Florida Condo Safety Laws Explained for Buyers and Owners

Florida's condo safety laws require most condominium buildings of three habitable stories or more to complete milestone inspections and structural integrity reserve studies, and they limit an association's ability to skip reserves for major structural components. Four bills shaped the rules (SB 4-D in 2022, SB 154 in 2023, HB 1021 in 2024 and HB 913 in 2025), and the documents they produce give buyers a way to see how a building is maintained and funded. This is a plain-English summary, not legal advice, and because the Legislature has changed these rules repeatedly, you should ask a Florida real estate attorney to confirm what applies to a specific building.

Why these rules exist

Champlain Towers South, a 12-story condominium in Surfside, partially collapsed on June 24, 2021. The Legislature responded in May 2022 with SB 4-D, which set statewide inspection requirements for condominium buildings, and later bills adjusted the details.

The four laws at a glance

The Florida Senate bill pages linked below hold the official text and analyses.

Milestone inspections

Florida Statutes 553.899 sets the milestone inspection rules. In plain terms:

• Which buildings. Condominium and cooperative buildings with three habitable stories or more. Single-family, two-family, three-family and four-family dwellings with three or fewer habitable stories above ground are excluded.
• When. By December 31 of the year the building reaches 30 years old, based on the certificate of occupancy date, then every 10 years. A local enforcement agency can move this to 25 years, then every 10 years, if local conditions such as proximity to salt water call for it, so ask the building which schedule applies.
• Phase one. A licensed architect or engineer performs a visual examination, and if there is no substantial structural deterioration, the process ends there.
• Phase two. If phase one finds substantial structural deterioration, further testing follows, with progress reporting.
• Reports. Sealed reports go to the association and the local building official, and a summary goes to unit owners and is posted on the association's website.
• Repairs. Local ordinances set the deadline to schedule or start repairs for substantial structural deterioration, and repairs must begin within 365 days after the local enforcement agency receives the phase two report.

The statute defines substantial structural deterioration as distress that negatively affects a building's structural integrity, and it excludes surface imperfections unless they point to something deeper.

Structural integrity reserve studies

A structural integrity reserve study, or SIRS, is covered by Florida Statutes 718.112, and it looks at:

• Roof
• Structure, including load-bearing walls and primary structural members
• Fireproofing and fire protection systems
• Plumbing
• Electrical systems
• Waterproofing and exterior painting
• Windows and exterior doors
• Any other item whose deferred maintenance or replacement cost is above $25,000 or the inflation-adjusted amount, whichever is greater ($25,675 for 2026, as posted by the state division), if failing to maintain it would hurt one of the items above

The study must be performed or verified by a licensed engineer, a licensed architect, or a certified reserve specialist or professional reserve analyst, and it is based on a visual inspection. Owner-controlled associations that existed on or before July 1, 2022 had until December 31, 2025 to complete one. An association that must complete a milestone inspection by December 31, 2026 may do the study at the same time, but no study may be completed after December 31, 2026. The study repeats every 10 years. Within 45 days of receiving it, the association must tell the state division it was completed and give owners a copy or notice that it is available.

On reserves, the statute says that for budgets adopted on or after December 31, 2024, members of a unit-owner-controlled association that must obtain a SIRS may not vote to provide no reserves or fewer reserves for those listed items, and reserve funds for those components may be pooled only with each other. HB 913 added flexibility. With a majority vote of all owners, an association can fund these reserves with special assessments, lines of credit or loans. For budgets adopted on or before December 31, 2028, an association that completed a milestone inspection in the previous two calendar years can also pause or reduce reserve contributions for up to two consecutive annual budgets to pay for the recommended repairs, and it must get a new study before contributions resume. Ask how the association is funding its plan and whether any reserve pause is in effect.

What buyers can ask for

• The milestone inspection summary, and whether phase two was required
• The SIRS and the association's plan for funding it
• The current budget, reserve balances and any loans or lines of credit
• Any approved, proposed or discussed special assessments
• Approved board minutes, which condo associations with 25 or more units must post online
• An estimate of repair timing and who is managing the work

If a document doesn't exist yet, ask why and when it will. The SIRS deadline for most existing associations was December 31, 2025, with a last date of December 31, 2026 for associations pairing it with a milestone inspection, so ask where the study stands and raise any delay with your attorney.

Your rights in the contract

For resales, Florida Statutes 718.503 requires contracts signed after December 31, 2024 to carry specific language about these documents. If the association has completed a milestone inspection or reserve study, the contract includes a clause acknowledging that you received the milestone inspection summary and the reserve study more than 7 days, excluding Saturdays, Sundays and legal holidays, before signing, and a clause that lets you cancel by written notice within 7 days, excluding Saturdays, Sundays and legal holidays, after signing and receiving the documents. The cancellation right ends at closing. If the association is required to have a milestone inspection or reserve study and has not completed it, or is not required to have one, the contract must say so. Have your attorney confirm which language your contract uses and how to calendar it.

How the documents fit together

Read the three documents as a set. The milestone inspection summary tells you what a licensed professional found in the structure, the reserve study estimates what the building's major components will cost to maintain and replace over time, and the budget and financial statements show whether the association is actually setting money aside. A building with a clean inspection and a well-funded plan reads very differently from one with open repair items and thin reserves, even if the two look alike from the street.

If you already own a unit

Owners have a role too. Read the milestone summary and reserve study when the association distributes them, attend or review the minutes of board meetings where repairs and funding are discussed, and ask how any plan will be paid for. Keep your own unit policy current and ask an insurance agent whether your loss assessment coverage fits the building's situation. If the association is behind on a required study or inspection, raise it in writing and consider talking to an attorney who works with condominium owners.

What this can mean for costs

These laws can raise monthly dues or lead to special assessments in some buildings, particularly where reserves were low, and they can also reassure buyers when a building has completed studies and funded repairs. Neither outcome is automatic, so compare two buildings by their documents, not their reputation. For a side-by-side view, see our condo versus single-family cost guide, and for a local example, our Sunny Isles Beach condo guide.

Talk to Jessica

Jessica Sonino is a South Florida Realtor with The Bograd Team. If you are weighing a condo and want help requesting the right documents, contact Jessica, and see how she works with buyers on the buy page. Questions about how the law applies to your contract are best answered by a Florida real estate attorney.