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Florida’s New Condo Laws Recognize Price of Living on the Beach

November 24, 2024 | FlaglerLive | 6 Comments

Repairing high-rise condos like this one in Miami Beach can cost millions.
Repairing high-rise condos like this one in Miami Beach can cost millions. (Jeffrey Greenberg/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)

By Bill Hughes

Nearly a million Florida condo owners face an important deadline at the end of the year. That’s when a law passed in 2022 requires most Florida condo associations to submit inspection reports for their buildings and to collect money from owners to pay for any needed repairs.

Condo owners are reporting that new condominium rules are driving up fees and inducing outrageous assessments.




The media has picked up on the outrage. News articles about condo owners “facing financial turmoil as a result of new building safety regulations” and how “bills are crippling homeowners” lead readers to believe that Florida lawmakers have imposed an egregious tax on the elderly and those on fixed incomes.

This is misleading at best.

As the research director at the University of Florida’s Bergstrom Real Estate Center, I suggest it is important to set emotions aside and see what these laws attempt to accomplish.

Safety inspections

The 2022 state condo law, known as SB-4D, and its 2023 follow-up, SB-154, establish three primary requirements: licensed inspections, reporting and disclosures, and reserve funds.

Importantly, these laws are not tax legislation that directly increases housing costs on condo owners.

But by requiring more inspections, transparency and funding to cover repairs, many owners will face costs much greater than the amounts paid in the past. These new expenses simply reflect more of the true cost of living in a condo near the ocean.

Under the laws, all buildings occupied before 1992 must complete a milestone inspection by Dec. 31, 2024. This is an examination of the building’s structural integrity by an architect or engineer.




The requirement also applies to buildings at least 25 years old that are within 3 miles of the coast.

If the milestone inspection finds a potential structural problem, testing is required to determine if structural repairs are needed. If they are, owners must fund these repairs without an option to waive by vote.

If no damage is identified, then the association must report and post the results, and that concludes the requirement.

Prior to SB-4D, milestone inspections were not required outside of Miami-Dade and Broward counties. Now, they are required statewide and must be reported to local authorities, all unit owners and the public for buyer information.

Adequate savings for repairs

The new regulations also require building associations to budget and collect sufficient reserves to cover the cost of maintaining and replacing parts of their buildings subject to regular wear and tear, such as roofs, elevators and balconies.

History suggests that most homeowners associations struggle to adequately save for repairs and maintenance to keep their properties safe and in top condition.

“Florida has … more associations that are considered weak [in terms of funded reserves] than any other state,” Will Simons, the head of Florida and Southeast Operations at Association Reserves, which conducts reserve studies for condo and community associations, told a colleague as part of a research article.

The Champlain Towers South condominium that collapsed in the Miami suburb of Surfside in June 2021, killing 98 people, is just one example. Simons’ company completed a reserve study of the condo just months prior to the collapse and found its association was significantly underfunded.




The association held approximately US$706,000 in reserves as of January 2021. Association Reserves recommended the association stockpile nearly $10.3 million to account for necessary repairs. That means the Surfside condo’s homeowners association had just 6.9% of the money it needed on hand.

True costs of living by the ocean

More than 16,000 condominium associations representing over 900,000 of Florida’s 1.5 million condominium units are currently affected by the new laws because these units are already more than 30 years old.

Properties that have been sufficiently maintained and hold adequate reserves for future structural repairs will face nothing but an increased disclosure of inspection reports and continued reserve funding.

Many residents, especially retired seniors, are struggling to adapt to the funding requirement. In response, Gov. Ron DeSantis is indicating some form of relief for owners facing financial hardship over these regulations.

Frustration is understandable, as current residents are asked to simultaneously fund 30 years of past deterioration and also set aside savings for the next 30 years. However, policymakers are simply setting guidelines that condo owners should have established for themselves. Properties that face significant financial shocks from SB-4D are, by definition, undermaintained or underfunded.




It is important to separate the intent of these laws from possible overreaction or fraud from condo associations, which is an existing concern. House Bill 1021, signed into law in June 2024, focuses on association governance to manage oversight of this type.

Oceanside concrete structures, roofs, windows and elevators have limited lifespans. These items need to be repaired or replaced to protect residents’ safety. The new regulations are making the true condo costs transparent to unit owners and buyers.

Bill Hughes Research Director at the Kelley A. Bergstrom Real Estate Center at the University of Florida.

The Conversation arose out of deep-seated concerns for the fading quality of our public discourse and recognition of the vital role that academic experts could play in the public arena. Information has always been essential to democracy. It’s a societal good, like clean water. But many now find it difficult to put their trust in the media and experts who have spent years researching a topic. Instead, they listen to those who have the loudest voices. Those uninformed views are amplified by social media networks that reward those who spark outrage instead of insight or thoughtful discussion. The Conversation seeks to be part of the solution to this problem, to raise up the voices of true experts and to make their knowledge available to everyone. The Conversation publishes nightly at 9 p.m. on FlaglerLive.
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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Deborah Coffey says

    November 25, 2024 at 7:48 am

    OMG. The law(s) ARE egregious! Florida lawmakers and the government couldn’t care less about saving lives. They forced schools to open during the pandemic and the number of deaths of children from Covid doubled in a month. They put an abortion ban on women at 6 weeks. How many Florida women are dead because of it? They’ve approved child labor!

    No! Everything with the Fascists running Florida has to do with money and staying in power. These new condo laws are providing huge profits for all the people that contribute heavily to their campaigns. That’s it. And, it didn’t take long for them to figure it out. They thought, “Gee, one building collapsed and people were horrified. Lets accuse the condo HOAs of fraud and then, lets stick it to every condo owner and we will have rewarded our donors and show how good we are with our employment figures. Win. Win. And, let’s make sure that Floridians remain uneducated so they don’t catch on.” Yeah, place the blame on “someone else” except their devoted voters…the very people that voted NOT to pay enough to maintain their condo buildings…always wanting something for nothing…which is exactly what Republicans always promise.

    3
  2. The dude says

    November 25, 2024 at 12:10 pm

    Why is Meatball Ron looking to give free stuff to condo owners with our tax dollars?

    2
  3. Pogo says

    November 25, 2024 at 12:19 pm

    @Thanks Mr. Bill

    FWIW, help is on the way!
    https://www.jacksonville.com/story/news/politics/2024/11/25/congress-matt-gaetz-governor-florida-desantis-2026/76565618007/

    God is an insult comic.
    — Must have been said by someone

    2
  4. Pogo says

    November 26, 2024 at 11:57 am

    @DC

    OMG translated to Republiconese is OPM…

    3
  5. Ed P says

    November 26, 2024 at 1:01 pm

    Deborah,
    Can we examine your paragraphs’ hyperbole?
    “Forced schools to open during Covid pandemic and it doubled the children’s deaths”
    Closings were supposed to be 2 weeks. Schools closed in March 2020 and stayed closed throughout the balance of the school year. The disruption and isolation created far greater unexpected issues both mentally as well as learning. As for death rates doubling. Children were practically bullet proof and total deaths went from 7 to 17. Ask if they contracted the virus at school, or elsewhere. Ask why masks and vaccines didn’t protect them or if they had underlying health issues and Covid was actually a contributing factor. I’m not minimizing 10 deaths but the claim should be properly framed.

    “They approved child labor” False. HB 49 was passed to allow 16/17 year old more flexibility to work if they chose to. No forced labor or minor children working in sweat shops or fields. Read the bill.

    “They put an abortion ban on women at 6 weeks.” True and in fact because many women would may not even know if they are pregnant at 6 weeks, it’s a virtual ban by default. But asking how many women are dead because of it is the hyperbole. Their option would be to travel out of state unfortunately. Not a great option but better than suicide or an illegal procedure. Virtual visits for medication abortions with physicians in other states is still possible and probably being used often. It is legal as far as I can determine.
    Finally, your word choice of fascist running Florida or insinuating condo developers are the issue is also hyperbole. The salt air environment, ocean spray, and humid weather creates a difficult environment for all building materials, even concrete and stainless steel. Rust never rests and everything has a shelf life. Floridas bedrock is primarily limestone and is subject to a host of problems including sink holes. It’s not a conspiracy. It’s a reality.
    Finally, you speak of republicans as if they are an ethnicity. You realize that is a political label people choose. Right? They can change their affiliations and ideologies any time. Maybe you should try convincing them to “see the light” instead of vilifying and name calling.

    2
  6. Deborah Coffey says

    November 26, 2024 at 5:20 pm

    You can call it hyperbole; I call it TRUTH.

    Google this and you’ll get pages of proof: did desantis open schools during the pandemic and child deaths doubled

    2

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