Temporary Housing on Your Lot in Panama City After Hurricane Isaias

This page is for homeowners in Panama City, Panama City Beach, Lynn Haven, Mexico Beach, and unincorporated Bay County whose home is not livable after Hurricane Isaias. Each city in Bay County wrote its own rule. Panama City and Lynn Haven have written storm rules for living in an RV on your lot while you rebuild, each with its own trigger. Unincorporated Bay County allows temporary RV living under a county building permit. Mexico Beach's current code bars it, and we found no RV rule in Panama City Beach. Florida's temporary shelter law applies to all of them after the Governor's emergency declaration, when its conditions are met. 1st Choice Living has placed furnished travel trailers on homeowners' own property, nationwide, since 2004, and we bill the carrier directly under ALE where the claim covers it.

Hurricane Isaias and the Panama City area

Storm facts as of October 9, 2026, 5 p.m. CDT, from official sources:

• The storm. In its 4 p.m. CDT advisory on October 9, 2026, the National Hurricane Center said Isaias was a Category 3 hurricane with maximum sustained winds near 115 mph, and that it was forecast to make landfall along the coast of the western Florida Panhandle that evening and then move across Alabama. Source
• Warnings. That advisory had a hurricane warning in effect from Ocean Springs, Mississippi, to the Bay and Gulf County line in Florida, and said storm surge could reach 6 to 9 feet above ground from the Alabama and Florida border to Grayton Beach, Florida. Source
• Florida. Governor Ron DeSantis declared a state of emergency on October 6, 2026, in Executive Order 26-202, and on October 7 extended it to 27 counties in Executive Order 26-211, including Escambia, Santa Rosa, Okaloosa, Walton, and Bay. Source

Bay County is one of the 27 counties in Governor DeSantis's Executive Order 26-211. That order matters for housing too: Florida's temporary shelter law, below, applies after a Governor's emergency declaration. The hurricane warning in the advisory above ran east to the Bay and Gulf County line, the eastern edge of Bay County.

Return to your property only when local officials say it is safe. Stay out of flood water and keep clear of downed lines. For roads, shelters, and re-entry, follow the Bay County Emergency Management. For the current forecast, go to the National Hurricane Center.

Local rules on living in an RV on your lot

Two of these local rules need a local step before they apply. Panama City's storm rule starts when the City Commission declares an emergency, and Lynn Haven's needs a Governor's declaration, a Mayor's declaration, and an order of the City Manager. We did not confirm those local steps for Isaias on the city sites as of October 9, 2026, so ask the city. Florida's temporary shelter law, below, applies notwithstanding local ordinances once its own conditions are met.

Mexico Beach: the RV permit the city used after Hurricane Michael ended October 31, 2022, and is not current. The code in force today has no disaster exception.

Flood zones: the Bay County, Panama City, Lynn Haven, and Panama City Beach floodplain codes each say an RV placed temporarily in a flood hazard area must be on the site fewer than 180 consecutive days, or be fully licensed and ready for highway use. Ask the building office which zone your lot is in.

Septic: the Florida Department of Health says the Florida Department of Environmental Protection has handled septic system permitting in Bay County since January 2, 2025.

Rules here were read on official city and county pages on October 9, 2026 and can change after a storm. The side-by-side table for every Isaias area is on Hurricane Isaias RV rules by county.

Florida’s temporary shelter law

Under section 125.023 (counties) and section 166.0335 (cities), Florida Statutes, after the Governor declares a state of emergency for a natural emergency during which a home was damaged and made uninhabitable, a county or city may not prohibit one temporary shelter on the residential property. The statutes say a temporary shelter includes a recreational vehicle or trailer. It can stay up to 36 months after the declaration or until a certificate of occupancy is issued, whichever comes first, when all of these apply:

• You make a good faith effort to rebuild or renovate, such as applying for a building permit, submitting plans, or getting a construction loan.
• The shelter is connected to water and electric utilities and does not threaten health and safety.
• You live in it.

The city or county still decides how the hookups and any permit work at your address, which is why the local offices above matter. This is general information, not legal advice.

How the trailer is billed: Additional Living Expenses

Additional Living Expenses, or ALE, sometimes called loss of use, pays for somewhere to live while the house is not livable. Ask your carrier whether your policy includes it and what the limit is. The Florida Department of Financial Services explains that the additional living expense feature of most homeowners policies pays some expenses for losses that leave homes unlivable during repairs, and to keep all receipts. Its Insurance Consumer Helpline is 1-877-693-5236.

• Local rules for your address checked before delivery.
• A furnished travel trailer that sleeps 2 to 10, with a kitchen, a bathroom, real beds, and heat and air, delivered, leveled, and set up on your property.
• Utilities connected by licensed, insured contractors from our preferred vendor network, planned around what is actually working at the property.
• Site conditions documented at setup and again at takedown.
• Direct billing to your carrier under ALE where the claim covers it, tracked against your ALE limit. On a covered claim that is $0 out of pocket for your family.
• One named contact from the first call to the day the unit leaves.

Flood is different. National Flood Insurance Program policies do not provide additional living expense coverage. If your home also had damage your homeowners policy covers, such as wind, ask your adjuster how ALE applies. This is general information, not legal or coverage advice. Your policy and your adjuster decide what is covered.

Already working with a temporary housing company?

We work with any temporary housing company. If one is handling your housing, ask them to place you with 1st Choice Living for a trailer on your own lot in Panama City. They send us the placement, we deliver, set up, and service the trailer, and the billing runs through them or straight to your carrier, whichever way their program works.

What we need to start

• The property address in Panama City and whether it is inside city limits.
• How many people are in the household.
• Your claim number and your adjuster’s name and contact.
• Your ALE limit, if your adjuster has told you.

From there we check the local rules for that address, confirm the lot can take a unit, and plan setup around what is safe and working at the property. If a trailer on your lot is not the right fit, we will tell you. Adjusters and housing companies can send a placement through for adjusters and carriers.

More Hurricane Isaias pages

• Temporary housing after Hurricane Isaias: storm facts, safety, and ALE for Alabama, Mississippi, and Florida.
• Hurricane Isaias RV rules by county: every area in one table.
• Our Florida temporary housing page.
• Nearby: Fort Walton Beach and Destin (Okaloosa County), FL
• Nearby: Santa Rosa County, FL
• Travel trailers for crews and families after Hurricane Isaias from Temporary RV Living.
• Drone documentation after Hurricane Isaias from LossMap, to record roof and property damage before cleanup.

Frequently asked questions