Monroe County’s new workforce housing sits empty at $2,995 rent

Monroe County’s $7.5 million workforce-housing bet in Key Largo sat vacant for months, even after officials cut the rent from $2,995 to $1,900 a month. The contradiction is stark: 11 one-bedroom units built for tourism workers at Southcliff Estates, at MM 95 on Overseas Highway, drew inquiries but no signed leases.

The county bought the property in June 2025 using surplus Tourist Development Council bed-tax revenue generated during the post-COVID tourism boom. The Florida Legislature had authorized Monroe County in 2024 to use that surplus for affordable housing for employees of private-sector tourism-related businesses, making Southcliff Estates the first project funded under the new law. The site, at 95295 Overseas Highway between Key Largo and Tavernier, includes 12 one-bedroom apartments. Eleven were set aside for tourism-industry workers, while the remaining unit was not part of the workforce-housing program.

County officials initially priced the apartments at $2,995 a month, including water, sewer and trash, with tenants paying electricity. That rate proved too high for the target market, and by late August 2025 commissioners switched to a formula based on 30% of gross annual income. County materials later listed the monthly rent at $1,900, though records also said the rent could be calculated as 30% of household income and not exceed $3,042 a month, depending on household size.

The county’s own application page shows just how narrow the target market is. Maximum qualifying incomes are listed at $109,560 for one person, $125,040 for two unmarried adults and $166,720 for a married or domestic-partner couple. Applicants must be at least 18, work in an eligible private-sector tourism-related job in Monroe County, clear background and sex-offender registry checks, and agree to evacuate during Phase 1 of a declared emergency.

The empty building has become a test case for Monroe County’s housing crisis, which officials say is driven by high land values, geographic and environmental limits, tourism-sector wages and growth controls under the Rate of Growth Ordinance. County materials also note that the Keys are an Area of Critical State Concern and must evacuate within 24 hours for an approaching hurricane. Michelle Lincoln called the vacant project frustrating, and county staff said they would revisit housing-needs studies and update marketing with a more visible banner, social media posts and Zillow ads. Officials have said Southcliff Estates is meant to be the first of several TDC-funded workforce-housing projects across the Florida Keys.