Milestone Inspections and Structural Integrity Reserve Studies

The 2021 collapse of the Champlain Towers condo in Surfside, FL drew attention to the need for regular inspections of older buildings. 

A special session of the Florida Legislature recently passed the 2022 “Building Safety” (HB / SB 4-D) law for condominiums and cooperatives that contain buildings of three stories or more in height. This bill mandates Milestone Inspections by no later than December 31, 2024 for all condominiums and cooperatives whose certificate of occupancy was issued prior to 1992.

For buildings with a certificate of occupancy issued after January 1, 1992, if the building is located more than three miles from the coastline, a milestone inspection must be completed by December 31 of the 30th year after the certificate of occupancy was issued. 

If the building is located within three miles of a coastline, the milestone inspection must be performed by the end of the 25th year after the certificate of occupancy was issued.

Further, the bill also mandates that all condominiums and cooperatives with buildings of three stories or more complete an initial Structural Integrity Reserve Study (SIRS) by December 31, 2024, and then every ten years thereafter. 

Buildings greater than three stories in height are defined by the Florida Statutes as "threshold buildings" (along with other criteria). To perform inspections of threshold buildings in Florida, an engineer needs to be certified by the Florida Board of Professional Engineers as a Special Inspector (also known as a Threshold Inspector). With our team of professionals, including Special Inspectors, SEI is uniquely situated to provide your association’s Florida statutory requirements for Milestone Inspections and Structural Integrity Reserve Studies. 

The full text of Senate Bill 4-D: Building Safety can be found further below.