Zoning gives a maximum, not a promise. Roads, stormwater ponds, setbacks, wetlands and flood zones all come off the top, so the number of homes a parcel yields is usually well below acres times density.
Density: gross and net
Density is homes per acre. Gross density uses every acre inside the boundary. Net density uses only the acres left after the land you cannot put lots on is removed. Codes differ on which one they mean, and on what gets removed, so the first question for the planning office is: per gross acre, or per net acre?
Worked example: 3.43 acres zoned R-6
A 3.43-acre parcel in unincorporated Lake County was listed at $250,000 in November 2026. The listing remarks describe its R-6 zoning as allowing up to seven homes an acre; a 2025 Lake County staff report gives six per net acre, so the table shows both. Confirm with Lake County.
| Scenario | Math | Homes | Land cost per home |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gross, at the listing remarks' seven an acre | 3.43 times 7 is 24.01 | 24 | $10,417 |
| Gross, at the staff report's six an acre | 3.43 times 6 is 20.58 | 20 | $12,500 |
| Net at seven, 25% set aside for roads and retention | 3.43 times 0.75 is 2.5725 acres; times 7 is 18.01 | 18 | $13,889 |
| Net, at six per net acre | 2.5725 times 6 is 15.44 | 15 | $16,667 |
Always round down. The 25% is a screening assumption, not a rule: an engineer's site plan sets the real figure.
The rows at six are there because a Lake County planning staff report dated June 4, 2025 states the R-6 maximum as six dwelling units per net acre. That is one fewer per acre than the listing remark, and it moves the land cost per home from $13,889 to $16,667, a 20% increase. Neither figure is yours to use until the county confirms the density for this parcel in writing.
Setbacks and coverage
Each lot must keep buildings back from its front, side and rear lines, and most codes cap the share of a site that can be covered by roofs and pavement. The same Lake County report lists a maximum impervious surface ratio of 0.55 for R-6, meaning 55%. Minimum lot width and area then decide how many lots fit, often before the density cap does.
Wetlands
Florida's Department of Environmental Protection generally identifies a wetland by two of three signs: wetland plants, wetland hydrology and hydric soils. Filling, dredging or building in, on or over wetlands or other surface waters needs a permit, and the state, the water management district and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers can all be involved.
You can get the wetland line mapped by DEP, by the water management district or by a private environmental consultant. Do it before you count acres: wetland acreage is usually the first thing a net-acre calculation removes.
Flood zones
Look the parcel up on FEMA's Flood Map Service Center. Land in a special flood hazard area brings lender-required flood insurance for anything built there, and local restrictions on how you may build.
A density figure in a listing is the seller's description. Ask the planning office in one email for the zoning district, the future land use category, the maximum density, and whether it is gross or net.
Before the next lesson
- Enter acres, density and a set-aside percentage in the land calculator and compare the gross and net counts.
- Look up the parcel on the FEMA flood map.
- Ask the seller whether a wetland delineation or an engineer's concept plan exists.
- See the land currently for sale on the listings page.
Sources: Lake County rezoning staff report, June 4, 2025, Florida DEP, Wetland Permitting (January 2020), FEMA Flood Map Service Center. Checked November 2026.
3.43 times 0.75 is 2.5725 net acres, and 2.5725 times 7 is 18.01, which rounds down to 18. A wetland line comes from DEP, the water management district or an environmental consultant, not from a listing or a title search.
