Unity of Title in Florida: When It’s Required and How to Release It

A unity of title in Florida is a recorded covenant that merges two or more separate lots into a single parcel for zoning and development purposes, so no individual lot can be sold, mortgaged, or built on by itself. Local governments require it when a property owner wants to build a structure that spans multiple platted lots, or when a zoning approval depends on treating adjacent parcels as one site. Once recorded in the county’s official records, it binds every future owner until the local government formally releases it.

What the Covenant Actually Does

A unity of title is a restrictive covenant that runs with the land. The owner signs a declaration stating that the combined lots will be treated as a single parcel, and that no portion can be separately sold, transferred, mortgaged, or developed. The City of Coral Gables’ standard form captures the core language: the covenant “shall be binding upon the undersigned, his/her successors and assigns and may only be released by the City.”¹ After recording, the restriction appears in every future title search, putting buyers, lenders, and title companies on notice.

The practical effect matters most for setbacks, lot coverage, and density. Without a unity of title, a building that straddles two platted lots would violate the setback rules on each individual lot. The unity of title erases the interior lot lines for regulatory purposes, so the structure only has to meet setbacks measured from the outer boundaries of the combined site. Planning departments rely on this tool to keep approvals enforceable after the property changes hands.

When Florida Local Governments Require One

There is no single statewide statute mandating a unity of title. Individual municipalities and counties impose the requirement through their own land development codes. The trigger is nearly always the same: an owner applies for a building permit or zoning approval for a project that depends on treating multiple lots as one site, and the building or planning department requires the unity of title as a condition of the permit.

Common situations include:

Building a house that crosses a platted lot line.
Adding an accessory structure, such as a pool or detached garage, on an adjacent lot.
Applying for a zoning variance that relies on the combined square footage of multiple parcels.

Palm Beach County, for example, requires a unity of title application that identifies the accessory structure being proposed and confirms that the legal description matches the zoning approval.²

Covenant in Lieu of Unity of Title

Some municipalities offer an alternative called a covenant in lieu of unity of title. The City of Miami uses this instrument when the lots must be treated as one site but the owner may need more flexibility later. Unlike a standard unity of title, the covenant has a built-in term of 30 years from the date of recording, with automatic extensions in successive 10-year periods.³ It still binds future owners and restricts separate conveyance, but allows limited exceptions. An owner may be permitted to convey portions of the property if all involved parties execute a recorded easement and operating agreement that preserves common-area access.

Releasing a covenant in lieu requires a formal finding that the instrument is no longer necessary. In Miami, that means sign-off from the Zoning Administrator and the Directors of the Departments of Resilience and Public Works, Planning, and Building, all subject to the City Attorney’s approval.³ Which instrument applies depends on the local code and the specifics of the project; the planning department will tell you which one to file.

What You Need to File

Requirements vary by jurisdiction, but most Florida municipalities expect:

An accurate legal description for every parcel being merged, including lot number, block, plat book, and page number. Coral Gables requires this information to be complete and accurate.⁴
Parcel control numbers (folio or parcel IDs) assigned by the county property appraiser.²
Recorded warranty deeds for each lot. Palm Beach County explicitly requires warranty deeds for both lots.²
Authority documentation if the property is held by a corporation, LLC, or trust, showing that the signer can bind the entity.
The unity of title form itself, from the local planning or zoning department. Do not use a generic template; the form must match the jurisdiction’s requirements.

Every owner listed on the current deed must be named on the unity of title exactly as they appear in the recorded deed. Resolve any discrepancy before submitting, because title examiners flag mismatches and delays follow. If the legal descriptions are unclear, overlapping, or based on old metes-and-bounds descriptions rather than a recorded plat, a current boundary survey by a licensed surveyor may be required.

Signing, Notarizing, and Recording

Florida law imposes specific formalities. The unity of title must be signed by every owner in the presence of two subscribing witnesses. Florida Statute 689.01 governs this requirement and states that no seal is necessary for the instrument to be valid.⁵

Validity and recordability are different questions. To record the document, which creates constructive notice to the world, the signatures must be notarized. Florida Statute 695.03 requires acknowledgment before a notary public or other authorized officer who affixes an official seal.⁶ Florida notaries may charge up to $10 per notarial act.⁷ In practice, you need both: two witnesses and a notary.

Florida also accepts electronic recording. Under the Uniform Real Property Electronic Recording Act, Florida Statute 695.27, an electronic document with electronic signatures satisfies recording requirements, and a physical stamp or seal image does not need to accompany an electronic signature.⁸ Many county clerks accept submissions through e-recording portals; in-person filing remains available.

Recording fees are set by statute and apply across all 67 counties. With the base recording charge, the Public Records Modernization Trust Fund surcharge, and the technology surcharge under Florida Statute 28.24, the total is $10.00 for the first page and $8.50 for each additional page.⁹ Documents naming more than four parties incur an extra $1.00 per additional name for indexing. A typical unity of title runs two to four pages, so expect recording costs between $18.50 and $35.50 before any local application or review fees. Because a unity of title involves no transfer of ownership and no consideration, it should not trigger documentary stamp tax, but confirm with the clerk’s office before filing.

Protecting the Covenant From MRTA

Florida’s Marketable Record Title Act (MRTA), Chapter 712 of the Florida Statutes, can extinguish old restrictive covenants, including a unity of title, if they are not properly preserved. MRTA voids any covenant, restriction, or charge whose existence depends on a recorded transaction more than 30 years before the current title examination.¹⁰ A unity of title recorded in 1990 with no preservation steps could be wiped out after 2020.

The statute carves out a protection for government-related covenants. Florida Statute 712.04 provides that MRTA shall not invalidate “any recorded covenant or restriction that on the face of the first page of the document states that it was accepted by a governmental entity as part of, or as a condition of” a zoning ordinance, development permit, building code, or similar regulatory approval.¹⁰ The Coral Gables form includes exactly this language in its WHEREAS clauses, and most modern municipal forms do the same.¹

The risk falls on older documents recorded before municipalities started including the protective language. If a decades-old unity of title’s first page does not contain the governmental-acceptance statement, the covenant may be vulnerable. To preserve it, any person claiming an interest can file a written notice under Florida Statute 712.05 with the clerk of the circuit court during the 30-year period following the root of title. That notice preserves the covenant for another 30 years and must be refiled before each 30-year period expires.¹⁰ Buyers of property with an old unity of title should have a real estate attorney check whether MRTA language appears on the first page, and if not, whether a preservation notice has been filed.

What Happens If You Violate It

A unity of title is enforceable. Selling one lot separately, building on only part of the unified site in a way that violates zoning, or otherwise breaching the covenant gives the local government real tools. Monroe County’s standard form authorizes the county to immediately suspend or rescind development applications, pending permits, approvals, inspections, and issued development orders conditioned on the unity of title being in effect. The county can also seek emergency, preliminary, and permanent injunctions, collect damages, and recover attorney’s fees.¹¹

The most common enforcement in practice is a failed title search. Any competent title company flags an unreleased unity of title during due diligence, and no title insurer will issue a policy for a single lot still bound by a covenant requiring the parcels to be conveyed together. The deal cannot close until the unity of title is released or the sale is restructured to include the entire unified parcel.

How to Release a Unity of Title

If you want to split the unified parcel back into separate lots, you need a formal release from the local government that required the unity of title. You cannot release it yourself; the covenant grants the municipality sole authority to cancel it.

The process varies by jurisdiction. In Port St. Lucie, the release goes through the Building Department, Planning and Zoning, Public Works, Utility Systems, and Legal before being recorded at the county level.¹² In Miami, the Zoning Administrator and Building Official must determine that the unity of title is “no longer necessary” before the city will issue a written cancellation.¹³ Palm Beach County runs the application through a sufficiency review, a zoning and land development review, and a County Attorney review for legal sufficiency before permitting execution.²

Approval generally requires showing that each resulting parcel independently meets all current zoning requirements: setbacks, lot size minimums, lot coverage, density, and parking. If the lots cannot stand alone under today’s code, the municipality will deny the release. Some jurisdictions charge a separate application fee, and recording the release document costs the same per-page fees as the original filing.⁹ Without a recorded release, the covenant remains in effect and title insurers will refuse to insure individual lots. Start the release process early, because multi-department reviews and County Attorney sign-offs can take weeks or months.

1
City of Coral Gables. Unity of Title
2
Palm Beach County Zoning Division. Unity of Title and Unity of Title Release Application Instructions
3
City of Miami. Covenant in Lieu of Unity of Title
4
City of Coral Gables. Instructions for Completing and Submitting Unities of Title
5
The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 689.01 – How Real Estate Conveyed
6
Florida Senate. Florida Statutes Chapter 695 – Record of Conveyances of Real Estate
7
The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 117.05 – Use of Notary Commission
8
The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 695.27 – Uniform Real Property Electronic Recording Act
9
The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 28.24 – Service Charges
10
The Florida Legislature. Florida Code Chapter 712 – Marketable Record Title Act
11
Monroe County. Covenant of Unity of Title and Restriction on Future Conveyance
12
City of Port St. Lucie. Residential Release of Unity of Title Application
13
City of Miami. Release of Unity of Title