Miami-Dade Dems Pass Resolution Opposing Florida's Burdensome Condo Laws, Call for Relief for Condo Owners

The Miami-Dade Democratic Party has passed a resolution opposing Florida's condominium inspection and reserve funding laws (HB 913/SB 154), citing the financial strain they've placed on condo owners across the county, especially seniors and residents on fixed incomes facing skyrocketing fees, special assessments, and even foreclosure. The resolution calls for hardship relief, a risk-based approach to inspections, stronger protections against predatory developer buyouts, and an independent task force to reform the law without pushing residents out of their homes.

A RESOLUTION OPPOSING FLORIDA'S BURDENSOME CONDOMINIUM INSPECTION AND RESERVE FUNDING LAWS (HB 913/SB 154) AND CALLING FOR RELIEF FOR CONDO OWNERS IN MIAMI-DADE COUNTY

WHEREAS, Miami-Dade County is home to over 274,000 condominium units, many of which are occupied by seniors and residents on fixed incomes who depend on their homes for stability and security;

WHEREAS, Florida law (originally SB 4-D, signed in 2022, and subsequently amended by HB 913/SB 154 e/ective July 1, 2025) requires mandatory structural milestone inspections and fully funded Structural Integrity Reserve Studies (SIRS) for all condominium buildings of three or more habitable.

WHEREAS, the implementation of these requirements has led to skyrocketing monthly association fees — rising by nearly 60% in Miami-Dade and Broward counties between 2019 and 2024 — as well as special assessments that many residents simply cannot a/ord;

WHEREAS, Low-income seniors in condos at risk of foreclosure have sought assistance at an alarming rate, with Coast-to-Coast Legal Aid in Broward County reporting that requests from such residents rose from 14% of requests in 2022 to 25% after the Surfside law took e/ect;

WHEREAS, Industry experts and real estate analysts warn that aging condominium units — approximately 70% of the roughly 25,315 condos currently on the market in South Florida are at least 30 years old — are projected to drop in value by approximately 40%, making it nearly impossible for owners to sell their units or cover the cost of assessments;

WHEREAS, the task force formed in the wake of the 2021 Champlain Towers South (Surfside) tragedy did not investigate the cause of the Surfside collapse, but instead focused on condominium association financial practices — and the task force chair has since acknowledged that tightening financial requirements would create redevelopment opportunities for developers; WHEREAS, Structural engineering experts, including a professor at Drexel University's College of Engineering who studied the Surfside collapse, have concluded that the collapse was caused by a confluence of design flaws, construction flaws, maintenance failures, and external factors including construction vibrations from a neighboring site, a tragic but not a common occurrence.

WHEREAS, the 2025 legislative session o/ered only modest relief — extending the SIRS deadline by one year and permitting associations to use loans or lines of credit — but failed to address the core financial crisis facing condo owners, with industry insiders noting there is 'virtually no good news for anybody in a condo in the state of Florida';

WHEREAS, Developers are actively targeting financially distressed condominium associations for bulk buyouts and terminations, with condo termination deals more than doubling since the Surfside collapse, disproportionately impacting seniors and waterfront residents who cannot find comparable housing at equivalent prices elsewhere;

WHEREAS, this issue, like most, a/ects working families, seniors, and fixed-income residents in Miami-Dade County who are being pushed out of their homes by financially burdensome and arguably unnecessary legislation;

BE IT RESOLVED that the Miami-Dade Democratic Party (Miami-Dade DEC) opposes the current implementation of Florida's condominium inspection and mandatory reserve funding requirements as set forth in HB 913/SB 154 and predecessor legislation, on the grounds that these laws impose undue financial burdens on condominium owners — particularly seniors and residents on fixed incomes — without proportionate benefit to public safety;

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Miami-Dade DEC seeks to provide this information to its candidates so that, if they are not already aware of the problems caused by this legislation, they will learn about it and about potential solutions to it, such as caps on annual reserve contribution increases, hardship exemption programs for low-income and senior owners, and direct state assistance or low-interest financing options accessible to all qualifying associations regardless of creditworthiness.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Miami-Dade DEC will advocate for the establishment of a new, independent task force composed of licensed architects, structural engineers, building o/icials, and representatives of condominium owner associations — expressly excluding individuals with direct financial ties to the condominium development community — to review the current inspection and reserve requirements and propose reforms that protect building safety without forcing residents from their homes; BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Miami-Dade DEC urges that any reform legislation adopts a risk-based approach to inspections and repairs, prioritizing buildings with documented structural deficiencies or imminent safety hazards rather than applying uniform, accelerated timelines to all buildings regardless of actual condition;

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Miami-Dade DEC supports strengthening consumer protections against predatory developer buyout practices that exploit financially distressed associations, and calls for greater transparency and fairness in the condominium termination process;

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Miami-Dade DEC will seek to educate voters on how this law harms condo owners and benefits developers; and will seek to add protections for condominium owners to the Florida Democratic Party (FDP) and Miami-Dade Democratic Party platforms; that the Miami-Dade DEC hosts or encourages local Democratic clubs to host community events to address this issue and invite Democratic candidates to speak on this issue and commit to legislative action supporting reforms of this law.

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