Building where others spend their holidays

Building a house in Cape Coral follows a sequence that you first have to learn. We have been building in Cape Coral for around four years and have learned every step along the way.

Some of these take days, some weeks, and none can be skipped. The most important step happens before an excavator is even on the property.

Sometimes there are days when nothing happens on our construction site. Days when the concrete slab lies in the sun and cures. No brick is allowed on it, no scaffolding. Anyone building in Cape Coral for the first time considers such a week to be wasted time. By now, we know that it is just as much a part of the process as any other step.

What happens between the first surveyor and the handover of the keys is outlined here in the correct order.

As an example, we will take you along and outline the construction using our Villas Sir Henry.

One house, 31 permits

In Germany, a single building permit is enough. In Cape Coral, we apply for 31 individual permits for a single-family home, from the foundation to the fence. The city approves each phase of construction individually and inspects it separately. Without approval, the construction site comes to a standstill.

For us, that means: It is not our site manager who decides when the next crew is allowed to arrive. An inspector from the city comes to the construction site, inspects the section on-site, and signs off. Only then do things proceed. We have made this rhythm our own and now plan for the inspectors just like the tradespeople.

Before we lay the first stone

At the beginning stands a report. A surveyor surveys the property, their appraisal must not be older than one year, is sealed in triplicate and goes to the city administration. In parallel, the environmental review is underway: whoever discovers burrowing owls, Florida's protected burrowing owls, or a gopher tortoise on their land must have the animals relocated by a licensed company before construction may begin. We check every property for this before we buy it.

Then our construction team pours sand and builds the house higher than the natural terrain level. The reason is the heavy rain that falls in minutes during the summer. It is supposed to run around the house, not into it.

Why we build exclusively in the north

The wind of a hurricane is rarely what destroys a house. What comes after is dangerous: The water rises, pushes into the canals and runs into the houses. Anyone who sees houses on stilts in Florida is seeing the answer to this problem.

Our answer is the location. We build exclusively in Cape Coral North. The land is higher there, outside the zone that floods during a storm surge. In October 2024, the test came. Hurricane Milton hit the west coast, and Cape Coral was in the impact zone. Frank Rahlf, founder of DARIA, and his business partner Patrick Lauber drove straight to the houses after the storm. „Zero damage,“ Rahlf says. No broken windows, no damaged roofs.

What needs to be on the note

Before we talk about concrete, let's talk about money, better sooner than later. Depending on the location and specifications, construction costs are around 2,150 to 3,760 dollars per square meter. 

Added to that is an item that German buyers rarely have on their radar: building insurance and property tax. We factor these figures into our calculations right from the start so that profitability and decision-making are based on a complete picture rather than the purchase price alone.

Seven days for a record

There is no basement in Cape Coral; the groundwater table is too high. We lay the foundation for every house on a concrete slab over compacted sand. For this, our team excavates the floor plan and lines it with boards. We lay the sewage pipes before anything is poured, because later no one will be able to reach them anymore. Then we lay out the reinforcement mesh and underneath it an air-cushioned plastic sheeting that provides insulation from below.

Then comes the concrete: we pour, smooth, let it dry partially, and grind it. The slab must cure for seven days before the first wall may stand on it. It is fully cured after 21 days. In between, the inspector comes, and only with their stamp do we build upward.

Concrete, steel and glass against the wind pressure

Anyone thinking of brick or drywall when it comes to new construction will be amazed at our building sites. Our walls consist of concrete blocks, hollow concrete stones that we reinforce with steel and fill with concrete. These walls are more solid than those in many new German buildings.

What the house must endure is dictated by the Florida Building Code, the state's building regulations. Its eighth edition from 2023 specifies wind loads of 209 to 225 kilometers per hour for Cape Coral. Every window must withstand the pressure generated by such a wind. Therefore, we use impact windows, impact-resistant glazing according to the Miami-Dade standard, the testing procedure from South Florida that is considered the benchmark throughout the state.

Four house types, one well-coordinated process

You don't need to look for an architect for this path. We build four house types that have already gone through the process many times: Signor Luca as an entry-level option, Sir Henry and Lady Daria as the larger houses. Most recently, we have created a very special new type with Villa Freedom. How many square meters, how many bedrooms, with or without canal access: you sort that out with your consultant before anything is signed.

For about four years we have been building in Cape Coral, and many houses are finished. „We improve with every villa,“ says Frank Rahlf. „And the city is increasingly supporting us with permits.“ For the upcoming houses, we are bringing in reinforcement from Germany: tile setters, electricians, and painters who bring the standard we mean when we speak of German construction.

When you are not here

Very few people move to Florida entirely right away. Most of them come for just a few weeks a year. The rest of the time, the house either stands empty or is rented out. For that to work, someone needs to be on-site to welcome the guests, clean the pool, mow the lawn, and take charge if something needs to be sorted out after a storm. We handle that ourselves, for 5 to 10 percent of the rental income. German-speaking providers in Florida typically charge 20 to 30 percent.

„We do not make money from high fees,“ says Rahlf. „We make money from the owner staying.“

Behind every stamp on this path are people who are currently walking it. Some are still sitting in their first meeting with their advisor, some are waiting for their floor slab, some have been holding their key for a year. All of them know the seven days in which nothing happens. And they know what is actually happening during that week: the dream is getting a foundation. 

If you want to know what this path could look like for you, talk to the people who are currently walking it. Everyone is part of the DARIA community, now with over 1,000 members, from the initial thought to the handover of the keys. Become a member.