Published on January 29, 2026 at 12:25 pm
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After decades of serving regions across the state, the housing nonprofit Rebuilding Together Greater Florida is expanding its presence in Northeast Florida.
Since 2000, RTGFL has helped families across Florida address urgent home repairs, provide disaster relief, homeowner education and more as one of 140 Rebuilding Together affiliates across the country.
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The nonprofit has secured funding to establish an office in Jacksonville, with a project manager and project coordinator to give Rebuilding Together Greater Florida a constant space in the market where clients and community partners alike can reach it.
Jose Garcia, CEO for Rebuilding Together Greater Florida, said there was an affiliate in Jacksonville in the early 2000s, but it didn’t survive. Garcia wants to slowly show that RTGFL can be an asset to the public and private partners in Northeast Florida, not in competition with them.
One of the things the nonprofit specializes in is stepping in to pay for necessary things, like new roofs or air conditioners, to make homes safe for residents, as well as disaster recovery.
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“We want to be in seen as a partner in this process. We don’t want to be a threat to any of these nonprofits,” Garcia said to the Business Journal. “We want to make sure that we deliver services that we already know how to do, in a quick way … pulling up permits, making sure the low-income residents are able to receive services, making homes safer and healthier for them.”
Homes in Jacksonville
RTGFL will establish an advisory board with local partners to stay abreast of the issues facing residents in Jacksonville and will also be rehabilitating four veterans’ homes in the Jacksonville area, as part of a program with Home Depot.
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Garcia said the nonprofit is working with the local community to identify these veterans and RTGFL will do permitting work while the Home Depot team will do work like painting and landscaping.
Once the nonprofit becomes more established in the market, it may grow to build affordable single-family homes for first-time buyers or for rent.
“Everything takes time, so the first thing that we want to accomplish is what we were born for and what our mission is, which is residential repairs and rehab,” Garcia said. “As we continue growing and have more presence in the community, and we have a clear successful track record, we will go into new construction.”
The nonprofit is finalizing its grant agreement for a new building and will soon make job announcements. Rebuilding Together Greater Florida has to settle on a location for its Jacksonville office and hire local staff by July 1, which is the start of its next fiscal year.
This story was published as part of the Northeast Florida News Collaborative.
