Outdoor Living Contractor in St. Augustine, FL

Outdoor living for St. Augustine homes, from SilverLeaf to the beaches, designed in person with you in AutoCAD. We manage every step, from permit to final walkthrough.

A St. Augustine address can mean a newer inland community, a home on the water near the Matanzas, or a house inside the City's historic districts, and each one comes with different rules. AY Luxury Designs designs and builds screen rooms, cedar gazebos, paver patios, fireplaces, fire pits and outdoor kitchens for homeowners across St. Augustine (32080, 32084, 32086, 32092 and 32095). We sort out which jurisdiction you're in, handle the HOA paperwork and permits, and build it, so you get less chores and more chill.

AY Luxury Designs LLC · Certified Building Contractor CBC1268168 · Amany Youssef: Registered Building Contractor RB29003947 · Registered Electrical Contractor ER13016631 · Registered Underground Utility & Excavation Contractor RU11066663

Book a Consultation · Call (904) 629-8803

Outdoor Living Services in St. Augustine

Every project is custom designed for your lot, your home's architecture and the rules that apply where you live.

Pavilions & Cabanas: freestanding or attached shade structures in cedar, pressure-treated lumber or composite, with roofing matched to your home. Add a TV, fireplace or outdoor kitchen underneath.
Gazebos: attached and detached cedar gazebos, including A-frame gazebos tied into your roofline and solid-roof gazebos combined with screen enclosures.
Screen Enclosures: pool and patio enclosures that keep bugs and debris out without losing the view, including our expanded-view option and motorized retractable screens.
Outdoor Kitchens: you choose the layout, brick or stone, appliances and countertops, and we build it to handle Florida heat and humidity.
Cedar Pergolas: custom pergolas built and finished on site.
Paver Patios and Paver Pool Decks: pavers, travertine and marble in slip-resistant, durable layouts. We'll work alongside the pool builder of your choice.
Outdoor Fireplaces, Fire Pits and Water & Fire Features
All-Season Patio Rooms and Paver Driveways

Why Building in St. Augustine Is Different

City, beach or county: the ZIP code doesn't tell you. Many homes with a St. Augustine mailing address, including SilverLeaf, are in unincorporated St. Johns County, where the county issues permits after a clearance sheet and requires a recorded Notice of Commencement for most permitted projects. Homes inside the City of St. Augustine go through the City's Planning and Building Division, and the City of St. Augustine Beach runs its own building department with its own setback rules for screen rooms and pool enclosures. We confirm your parcel's jurisdiction before we design.

Historic districts add a review step, but only inside them. If your home is in one of the City of St. Augustine's five Historic Preservation zoning districts (HP-1 through HP-5), most exterior work needs a Certificate of Appropriateness from the Historic Architectural Review Board (HARB) before a building permit can be issued, and the project is reviewed against the City's Architectural Guidelines for Historic Preservation. Most backyard projects in the newer communities outside the City never go through HARB. If yours does, we prepare the scaled drawings, photos and materials the application requires.

Every permitted structure gets its necessary engineered documents. Gazebos, A-frames, patio extensions, screen enclosures and outdoor kitchens are permanent structures, and Florida's building code sets wind requirements that depend on your exact location. Every permitted structure we build gets its necessary engineered documents, and we pull the permits and pass the inspections that confirm it. Requirements vary between the county and the cities, so we confirm exactly what your project needs before we design.

Finishes chosen for the water. On waterfront properties, we choose materials and finishes for the exposure.

HOA approval comes first in most communities. SilverLeaf, Shearwater, Palencia and most other St. Augustine communities require architectural approval before work starts. We prepare a neighborhood-specific HOA/ARB package with a scaled site plan, elevations, materials and 3D renderings.

The Atlantic hurricane season officially runs from June 1 to November 30, with the peak around September 10, according to NOAA.

The Skin Cancer Foundation notes that a roof blocks direct sun while some UV still reflects in from bright surfaces such as concrete or dry sand.

Who Builds Your Project

AY stands for Amany Youssef, the founder who designs every project with you and stays personally involved through the final walkthrough. Amany came to the United States as a young child, grew up in Jacksonville, graduated from the University of Florida, and earned her Florida building contractor license. When she did, she became the youngest female licensed building contractor in Florida at the time. Today she leads an experienced team of designers, project managers and builders.

Amany is a member of Professional Women in Building, a council of the Northeast Florida Builders Association (NEFBA), and serves as co-chair of its STEM committee. Here in St. Johns County, she speaks regularly to students at Tocoi Creek High School about careers in construction, and AY Luxury Designs takes on Tocoi Creek students as interns.

Our Design-Build Process

Design session with Amany. Your project starts at our design studio, where you sit down with founder Amany Youssef and watch your backyard take shape live on screen.
Free AutoCAD design and a custom quote. Every project gets to-scale 3D renderings and a fully itemized custom quote, delivered within 24 hours of your initial consultation, so you know exactly what you're getting.
In-home design visit. Amany comes to your home for an in-person walkthrough, so we look at the project together where you're most comfortable, finalize the details and choose your colors and finishes.
Engineering, HOA and permits handled. We get the necessary engineered documents for every permitted structure, prepare your HOA/ARB package and pull the permits from St. Johns County or your city.
Build. We can start most projects within two to four weeks. Our crews follow a build process we've refined over many projects, and you get daily updates.
The AY Advantage. You hold back the final 5% for seven days after completion, so we can take care of any touch-ups before you sign off.

Financing is available through Synchrony Bank, including 18 months of no-interest financing, and we have other financing options as well.

Recent St. Augustine Projects

Composite-roof screen room with fireplace and two outdoor kitchens, St. Augustine (32092)A large composite-roof screen room with our expanded-view upgrade, a warm wood ceiling and a motorized retractable screen. Inside, a linear fireplace in stone veneer anchors the room, with two outdoor kitchens and a stone hot tub build-up, and lighting ties the whole backyard together at night.

Insulated-roof cedar gazebo, screen enclosure and marble, SilverLeafA custom cedar gazebo with an insulated roof and wood ceilings, inside a screen enclosure with our expanded-view upgrade. Underfoot is natural marble, with curved stone steps and in-ground lighting leading out to the yard.

Paver patio with gas fire pit, bench and seating wall, SilverLeafA paver patio built around a gas fire pit, wrapped by a built-in bench, columns and a seating wall, with lights set into the pavers and the stonework for evenings outside.

"(More like 10 stars!) … The craftsmanship is top-tier, but equally impressive was the behind-the-scenes professionalism: daily project updates with photos, hands-on project management, excellent communication, and personal involvement from the company owner."— Caroline H. (Google review), SilverLeaf

AY Luxury Designs was named a Nextdoor Neighborhood Favorite.

Areas We Serve in St. Augustine

We proudly serve homeowners all across St. Augustine (32080, 32084, 32086, 32092 and 32095), from Marsh Creek and Davis Shores to Palencia, Shearwater and World Golf Village, and everywhere in between. Wherever you live in the St. Augustine area, we'd love to hear about your project, so give us a call.

Nearby, see our pages for St. Johns and Fruit Cove, Nocatee and Ponte Vedra Beach.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much does an outdoor living project cost in St. Augustine?Every project gets a custom quote with an in-person AutoCAD design, and every AY Luxury Designs project has a $10,000 minimum. What drives the cost: the size of the space; materials; features like fireplaces, fire pits and screens; engineering and permits; and site work. You get a fully itemized quote within 24 hours of your design consultation.

Do I need a permit for a gazebo, screen room or outdoor kitchen in St. Augustine?Usually, yes. Whether the permit comes from St. Johns County, the City of St. Augustine or the City of St. Augustine Beach depends on where your parcel is, and each has its own process. Every permitted structure we build gets its necessary engineered documents, and we pull the permits and schedule the inspections for you.

Does my project need historic (HARB) approval?Only if your home is in one of the City of St. Augustine's Historic Preservation zoning districts (HP-1 through HP-5). There, most exterior work needs a Certificate of Appropriateness before a building permit is issued. Most homes in newer communities outside the City don't go through HARB. We check your parcel and prepare the application if it's needed.

Will my HOA have to approve the project?In SilverLeaf and most other St. Augustine communities, yes, and approval normally has to come before work starts. We prepare a neighborhood-specific HOA/ARB package with site plans, materials and 3D renderings to submit to your association.

How do you build for salt air and coastal storms?Every permitted structure gets its necessary engineered documents.

Can I see the design before I commit?Yes. Every client gets free, to-scale 3D renderings, created with Amany during an in-person design session at our Jacksonville studio.

How soon can my project start?It depends on the project's scope. We can start most projects within two to four weeks.

Do you offer financing?Yes. We offer financing through Synchrony Bank, including 18 months of no-interest financing, and we have other financing options as well.

Ready to Design Your St. Augustine Backyard?

Book your in-person design session with Amany and see your new outdoor space in AutoCAD before anything is built.

Call (904) 629-8803 or book a consultation.Design studio: 8917 Western Way, Suite 7, Jacksonville, FL 32256 · Monday–Friday, 10am–5pm