FLORIDA HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
FL Legislative Update: Condo-Safety Bill
May 25, 2022
FL Legislature takes up condo safety bill during its special session
Update: The House Appropriations Committee approved HB 5-D, Condo Safety Bill, late Monday evening. The Senate approved SB 4 Tuesday evening, related in part to condominium and cooperative association buildings that are three or more stories. * UPDATE- Gov. Ron DeSantis signed the bill into law on May 2022*
A House-Senate compromise bill (HB 5-D) would subject older condominium and cooperative buildings to routine inspections and end the ability of association boards to waive owner assessments needed to pay for repairs.
“The associations will no longer be able to waive the requirement of reserves which currently exist. That is the most important part of the bill for those of us in the House,” the House sponsor, Republican Danny Perez of Miami-Dade County, told reporters following that chamber’s vote.
Condo Safety Bill Key Provisions:
- All Buildings built prior to 1982 have already received their 40 year inspection, and will continue to follow the established schedule after their initial inspection.
- Required milestone inspections for any structure of three stories or more in height 30 years after it receives its certificate of occupancy and every 10 years thereafter. (If the structure is within three miles of the coast, the first inspection would come 25 years following the certificate’s issuance.)
- Boards would have one year to begin any recommended repairs.
- Associations will no longer be able to waive assessments needed to pay for repairs to roofs, load-bearing walls and structural members, foundations, fireproofing and fire-protection systems, plumbing, electrical systems, waterproofing and exterior painting, and windows.
- Audited Reserves to make sure associations can afford to maintain structural integrity.
MIAMI-DADE COUNTY
Changes effective January 2022
The recertification program in Miami-Dade County has been strengthened to include inspecting additional building components and providing a more detailed look into existing buildings. Approved by the Board of Rules and Appeals (BORA), the updated guidelines and report templates have been revised and are available below. Information about how the new guidelines and report templates have changed is also available below.
How the process starts
Each year, new properties become subject to the recertification process at 30 years and every 10-year interval thereafter for the life of the structure, pursuant to Section 8-11(f) of the Code of Miami-Dade County. For those properties that require certification, the property owners receive a Notice of Required Recertification to commence the process. The recertification reports must be submitted within 90 days from the date of notice.
Note that the following types of residences do not go through the recertification process: single-family homes, duplexes, and buildings with 10 occupant load or less and 2,000 square feet or less.
After Notification
Property owners must submit written recertification reports prepared by a Florida-registered professional engineer or architect, certifying each building or structure is structurally and electrically safe for the specified use for continued occupancy. The design professional must have proven qualifications by training and experience in the specific technical field covered in the inspection report (structural and/or electrical) as per the Miami-Dade County Code.
READ THE FULL PROVISION HERE
READ MIAMI DADE MEMORANDUM HERE
SEE CONDO RECERT DOCUMENTS HERE