Florida's New Condo Safety Laws in 2026: What Every Unit Owner Should Know About SIRS, Milestone Inspections, and Special Assessments
If your condo association just sent you a special assessment notice larger than your mortgage payment, you're not alone — and you're not without options. Here's what changed in Florida condo law, and what to do if you think your association got it wrong.
Since the 2021 Champlain Towers South collapse in Surfside, Florida has rewritten the rules governing condominium and cooperative building safety and reserve funding — first with SB 4-D in 2022, then with significant adjustments under HB 913 in 2025. For unit owners, the practical effect has often been the same: a special assessment notice, sometimes for tens of thousands of dollars per unit, with little explanation of how the number was calculated or what rights owners have to challenge it.
Milestone Inspections — Does Your Building Need One?
Under Fla. Stat. § 553.899, condominium and cooperative buildings that are three habitable stories or more in height are generally required to undergo a Milestone Inspection by a licensed architect or engineer. The first inspection is generally due within 30 years of the building's certificate of occupancy (25 years if the building is within three miles of the coastline), and every 10 years after that. A Phase 1 inspection identifies visible signs of substantial structural deterioration; if any are found, a more invasive Phase 2 inspection follows.
Structural Integrity Reserve Studies (SIRS) — What Associations Must Fund
Separately, associations must complete a Structural Integrity Reserve Study examining specific structural and safety components, including the roof, load-bearing walls and other primary structural members, floor, foundation, fireproofing and fire protection systems, plumbing, electrical systems, waterproofing and exterior painting, and windows and exterior doors — plus any other component with a deferred maintenance expense or replacement cost exceeding the statutory threshold. Once an association has a SIRS in hand, full funding of those reserve items generally can no longer be waived or reduced by owner vote, a significant shift from how many associations budgeted for decades.
What HB 913 Changed in 2025–2026
The Legislature built in some relief after associations statewide realized how steep full reserve funding would be:
The original SIRS completion deadline of December 31, 2024 was extended to December 31, 2025.
The reserve-item cost threshold was raised from $10,000 to $25,000, subject to annual inflation adjustment starting in 2026 — meaning fewer minor items require full reserve funding.
Associations gained limited ability to pause or reduce reserve contributions for up to two years in defined circumstances, to prioritize repairs identified as urgent by a milestone inspection.
Transparency requirements expanded: boards must disclose conflicts of interest, use competitive bidding for major contracts, and — as of January 1, 2026 — associations with 25 or more units must maintain a website or owner portal posting meeting minutes and recordings.
Associations must now obtain an independent insurance replacement-cost appraisal at least every 36 months.
Prospective buyers now get 7 days (up from 3) to review an association's financials before closing.
Community association managers whose licenses are revoked for violations now face a 10-year industry ban, and boards gained clearer authority to terminate a management company for statutory violations.
What HB 913 did not do is eliminate the underlying funding obligations. Many associations spent years underfunding reserves before SB 4-D existed, and are now catching up all at once — which is exactly why special assessments have become so common and so large.
Your Rights If You're Facing a Large Special Assessment
A special assessment isn't automatically valid just because the board issued it. As a unit owner, you generally have the right to:
Request and review the records behind it — the SIRS report, the milestone inspection report, and the itemized budget the board relied on. Florida law gives condo owners a statutory right to inspect association records (Fla. Stat. § 718.111(12)).
Confirm the board followed proper procedure — was the assessment approved through a valid board vote, with proper notice under the association's governing documents and Chapter 718?
Look for conflicts of interest — HB 913's new disclosure requirements make it easier to identify whether a board member has an undisclosed financial relationship with a vendor being paid through the assessment.
Pursue mediation or arbitration through the DBPR's Division of Condominiums, Timeshares, and Mobile Homes for many types of condo disputes before litigation is required.
Bring a breach of fiduciary duty claim against board members if the assessment resulted from negligent reserve planning, self-dealing, or a failure to follow the association's own governing documents — which, depending on the facts, may implicate the association's D&O insurance rather than falling solely on unit owners.
Refusing to pay a disputed assessment outright is risky — it can expose you to a lien and eventual foreclosure even if your underlying objection has merit. The better path is almost always to formally challenge the assessment through the proper channels while staying current, or working with an attorney to contest it before nonpayment becomes necessary.
When to Call a Florida Condo Attorney
If your association has refused a records request, pushed through an assessment without proper notice or a valid vote, shows signs of financial mismanagement or an undisclosed conflict of interest, or has threatened a lien or foreclosure over an assessment you believe is invalid, it's time to get an attorney involved before the situation escalates further.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can my condo association still waive reserve funding for these items?
Generally, no — once an association has a SIRS, full funding of the structural and safety components it covers can no longer be waived by owner vote. HB 913 did create limited, temporary flexibility to pause or adjust contributions in specific circumstances, but the underlying funding requirement remains. Because this area was recently and significantly amended, association-specific review is important.
What buildings are actually subject to milestone inspections and SIRS?
Generally, condominium and cooperative buildings that are three habitable stories or more in height, regardless of the total number of units in the building.
I think my special assessment is unfair or excessive — can I just refuse to pay?
Refusing to pay can expose you to a lien and eventual foreclosure, even where you have a legitimate dispute. It's generally safer to formally challenge the assessment — through a records request, mediation/arbitration, or litigation — than to withhold payment outright.
What's the difference between an HOA and a condo association under Florida law?
Homeowners associations, governed primarily by Chapter 720, typically apply to single-family home and townhome communities. Condominium associations, governed by Chapter 718, apply to condo buildings and carry additional statutory obligations — including milestone inspections and SIRS — that don't apply to most HOAs.
Did HB 913 eliminate the wave of special assessments condo owners have been facing?
No. It gave associations short-term relief — an extended SIRS deadline, a higher reserve-item threshold, and limited ability to pause contributions — but it didn't eliminate the underlying funding requirements. Many associations are still catching up on years of underfunded reserves, and large assessments remain common in 2026.
Hit With a Major Condo Special Assessment? The Dempsey Law Firm — Florida Condo & HOA Dispute Attorneys
Attorney Eliot Dempsey represents Florida unit owners in disputes with condominium and homeowners associations, including special assessment challenges, records access disputes, board misconduct, and lien defense. We serve clients throughout Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach Counties and across the state. Contact us for a free consultation: (305) 320-1141 or eliot@thedempseylaw.com.