Condo Master Policy vs HO-6: Where the Line Actually Falls

Florida does not leave the boundary between the association's insurance and yours to the declaration - s. 718.111(11) names the excluded items in a list. Everything from the floor coverings, wall coverings, cabinets, countertops, appliances and window treatments inward is yours.

Published August 28, 2026

Florida does not leave the boundary between your building's master policy and your own HO-6 to interpretation — s. 718.111(11), Florida Statutes sets it out as a list of named exclusions. The association insures the property as originally installed; floor, wall and ceiling coverings, electrical fixtures, appliances, water heaters, water filters, built-in cabinets and countertops, window treatments and everything personal inside the unit are the unit owner's responsibility.

That single sentence resolves most of the arguments people have at claim time. What it does not resolve — and what nobody explains before closing — is that being responsible for insuring something is not the same as being in control of repairing it, and that the association's deductible is a bill you can be sent.

Read the exclusion list literally

The statute requires the association to maintain property insurance providing primary coverage for all portions of the condominium property as originally installed, or replacement of like kind and quality, plus alterations or additions made to the condominium property or association property.

Then it excludes, and assigns to you:

• All personal property within the unit or the limited common elements
• Floor coverings, wall coverings and ceiling coverings
• Electrical fixtures
• Appliances
• Water heaters and water filters
• Built-in cabinets and countertops
• Window treatments — curtains, drapes, blinds, hardware and similar components

Two phrases in there carry most of the money. “Floor coverings” means the association is not insuring your porcelain or your wood; it is insuring the slab under it. “Built-in cabinets and countertops” means a full kitchen is on your side of the line. In a bayfront Edgewater unit that is not a rounding error.

The “as originally installed” gap

This is the part I would underline for anyone buying a renovated unit. The association's obligation runs to the property as originally installed, or replacement of like kind and quality. Not as you found it.

If a previous owner replaced builder-grade finishes with something considerably better, the master policy is not standing behind the upgrade. Your HO-6 has to, and it will only do so if the dwelling or “building property” limit on it was set with the current finish level in mind rather than left at whatever number was convenient at closing. A unit that has been through two renovations since delivery and carries an HO-6 written against the original spec is underinsured in a way that shows up exactly once, at the worst moment.

Worth checking on your own policy this week, not at renewal: what is the building property limit, and when was it last set?

You insure it. The association rebuilds it.

Here is the asymmetry that surprises owners most. The statute provides that all reconstruction work after a property loss must be undertaken by the association, except where a unit owner obtains board approval to handle specified portions of the unit. The unit owner bears the cost of reconstruction for the portions they were required to insure or are otherwise responsible for.

So after a covered event you may be paying for your own floors and cabinets while the association's contractor, on the association's schedule, does the work. You do not automatically get to pick the vendor, the finish or the sequence. If you care about that — and in a full-floor or high-value unit people do — the time to ask about board approval for owner-managed restoration is before a loss, in writing, not during one.

The deductible is a common expense, and that is the real exposure

The board may set deductibles consistent with industry standards and prevailing practice, and may base them on available funds including reserve accounts or predetermined assessment authority. Then the statute says the thing that matters: property insurance deductibles are a common expense of the condominium.

Translate that into a Miami hurricane deductible, which is typically written as a percentage of insured value rather than a flat figure, and the shape of the risk becomes clear. A named-storm loss can produce a deductible in the millions before the master policy pays a dollar, and that number is shared out among the units as a common expense. Your HO-6 may or may not carry loss-assessment coverage to meet it. Most owners have never checked the limit.

This is the single most useful question to ask a listing agent about any Miami condo, and it is almost never in the listing: what is the master policy's named-windstorm deductible, expressed in dollars, and what is the association's plan for funding it? Under s. 718.111(12) the financial reports and budget of a 25-plus-unit association are posted records, and any official record must be produced within 10 working days of a written request. The answer is obtainable. People just do not ask.

What this means when you are weighing an offer

Insurance is usually treated as a post-contract detail, something the lender chases during the inspection period. I would move it forward. Three things are knowable before you sign and all three change what a building is worth to you:

1. The master policy declarations page — the named-windstorm deductible in dollars, and whether the building is insured to replacement cost.
2. The budget and the reserve position — whether the deductible could be met from funds or only by assessment. This reads directly against the building's structural integrity reserve study, which tells you what else those reserves are already committed to.
3. Your own HO-6 quote, priced against the actual finish level — including a loss-assessment limit chosen with the first item in mind.

The honest downside case: a building with a large windstorm deductible and thin reserves is carrying a contingent liability that is not disclosed anywhere on a listing, does not appear in the HOA fee, and is shared by every owner. That is a real reason to prefer one tower over another, and it has nothing to do with the finishes. If you are working through the wider statutory picture, the 2026 Florida condo law guide covers how the inspection and reserve rules interact with it.

What your own policy has to carry, by statute

The exclusion list says what is yours to insure. A separate section says how much of one specific coverage you must be offered, and it is the coverage that meets the deductible described above.

Under s. 627.714, Florida Statutes, a residential condominium unit owner policy must include at least $2,000 in property loss assessment coverage for all assessments made as a result of the same direct loss, with a deductible of no more than $250 per direct property loss. Where a deductible was or will be applied to other property loss you sustained from the same direct loss, no deductible applies to the loss assessment coverage at all. The coverage responds regardless of the date of the assessment by the association.

Two things follow. $2,000 is a statutory floor rather than a sensible limit — set against a named-windstorm deductible on a large tower it is a rounding error, and higher limits cost very little. And loss assessment responds only where the underlying peril is covered by your own policy: an assessment arising from a flood is not covered by an HO-6 that excludes flood, whatever the loss assessment limit says. On this coastline that is the gap most likely to be tested.

Frequently asked questions

Does the condo association's insurance cover my flooring?

No. Section 718.111(11) expressly excludes floor, wall and ceiling coverings from the association's coverage and makes them the unit owner's responsibility. The association insures the structure beneath them.

Are my kitchen cabinets and countertops covered by the master policy?

No. Built-in cabinets and countertops are on the statutory exclusion list, along with appliances, electrical fixtures, water heaters, water filters and window treatments.

What is loss assessment coverage and do I need it?

It is the part of an HO-6 that responds when the association levies an assessment on unit owners — including to fund the master policy deductible, which the statute makes a common expense. Whether the limit you carry is adequate depends on your building's deductible, which is why the two questions have to be asked together.

Who chooses the contractor after a hurricane?

The statute provides that all reconstruction work after a property loss must be undertaken by the association, unless a unit owner obtains board approval to undertake specified portions of the unit. Paying for the repair and directing it are separate things.

Can I see the building's master policy before I buy?

The association's financial records are official records. For a condominium of 25 or more units they must be posted to the association's website or app within 30 days, and any official record must be produced within 10 working days of a written request under s. 718.111(12). Ask in writing.

Is this legal or insurance advice?

No. I am a licensed real estate sales associate — not an attorney, and not an insurance agent. Coverage turns on the policy wording and on your building's declaration. For a coverage decision, speak to a licensed Florida insurance agent, and for a legal one, a Florida attorney.

Work with Stefania

Not sure what a building's master policy actually leaves on your side of the line? I will request the master policy declarations page and the current budget, read the named-windstorm deductible against the association's reserve position, check the reserve study for what those funds are already committed to, and put the deductible-funding question to the association in writing so the answer is on the record before your inspection period closes.

Stefania Riverin · NB Elite Realty · (786) 828-0091 · WhatsApp · Call

Stefania Riverin, Licensed Real Estate Sales Associate · FL SL3620067 · Brokered by NB Elite Realty · 1101 Brickell Ave, Miami, FL 33131 · Equal Housing Opportunity