HB 913: What Actually Changed for Miami Condo Buyers

HB 913 did not make Florida condos safer overnight, and for a buyer it cut in two directions at once. It kept the post-Surfside inspection regime intact while giving boards new room to pause reserve funding - relief for an owner, a new question for anyone about to buy.

Published August 27, 2026

HB 913 did not make Florida condos safer overnight, and for a buyer it cut in two directions at once. It kept the post-Surfside milestone inspection and reserve-study regime intact, then gave unit-owner-controlled boards a temporary way to pause or reduce reserve contributions — relief if you already own, a new line of diligence if you are about to buy.

The bill passed unanimously (Senate 37–0, House 112–0) and took effect July 1, 2025, with several provisions phasing in later. Nearly everything written about it since has been aimed at board members: compliance duties, deadlines, penalties. This is the buyer's version — what to check, and where the rules quietly moved risk onto you.

What did not change: the inspection regime is still there

Under s. 553.899, Florida Statutes, a condominium or cooperative building must have a milestone inspection when it reaches 30 years of age, measured from the date the certificate of occupancy was issued, and every 10 years after that (subsection (3)(a)). Local agencies may pull that forward to 25 years in certain conditions (subsection (3)(b)). Single-family through four-family dwellings are excluded (subsection (4)).

HB 913 tightened one word in the applicability test: the trigger moved from “three or more stories” to three or more habitable stories. That sounds cosmetic. It is not — a building whose ground level is parking can land on a different side of the line than its neighbor of identical height.

The two-phase structure survives. Phase one is a visual examination by a licensed architect or engineer; if it finds no signs of substantial structural deterioration, there is no phase two (subsection (7)(a)). Phase two is triggered only when substantial structural deterioration is identified, and can involve destructive or nondestructive testing (subsection (7)(b)). Once notice is received, phase one must be completed within 180 days (subsection (6)).

Two provisions matter directly to a buyer reading documents. The association must distribute the inspector's summary to every unit owner within 45 days and post it on its website (subsection (9)). And if repairs are not scheduled within 365 days of a phase two report, the local agency must review and determine whether the building is unsafe (subsections (10)–(11)). HB 913 went further, directing county commissions to adopt ordinances requiring repairs to commence within 365 days.

So: the report exists, it is supposed to be available to owners, and there is a clock on acting upon it. If a seller's association cannot produce one for a building past 30 years, that is the finding, not a filing delay.

What changed on reserves — and why it cuts against buyers

This is the part worth slowing down on. Under s. 718.112(2)(g), a residential association must complete a structural integrity reserve study (SIRS) at least every 10 years for each building three habitable stories or higher, covering roof, structure, fireproofing and fire protection, plumbing, electrical, waterproofing and exterior painting, and windows and doors. HB 913 extended the completion deadline for associations existing on or before July 1, 2022 from December 31, 2024 to December 31, 2025.

It also added a requirement that the study include a reserve baseline funding plan that keeps the reserve cash balance above zero, and that it distinguish mandatory from discretionary reserve items. Both are useful to a buyer: the study now has to show its arithmetic.

Then the trade. Under s. 718.112(2)(f), members of a unit-owner-controlled association that must obtain a SIRS may not vote to provide no reserves, or less than required, for the SIRS items — that restriction stands for budgets adopted on or after December 31, 2024. But HB 913 carved out a pause: a unit-owner-controlled association may reduce or pause reserve contributions for up to two consecutive annual budgets following a milestone inspection completed within the previous two years, by majority vote. That authority expires December 31, 2028. Separately, boards may pause funding without an owner vote where a building has been declared uninhabitable.

The dollar threshold for what counts as a reserve item also rose from $10,000 to $25,000, inflation-adjusted by the division.

Here is my read, and I will label it as judgment rather than fact. The pause provision is affordability relief for people facing assessments they could not absorb, and that is a real problem the Legislature was right to address. But a buyer inherits the consequence and not the relief. A tower that pauses reserves for two budget cycles arrives at 2028 with the same building and less money set aside for it — and underfunded reserves are exactly what a lender tests. You can walk into a purchase where the fees look reasonable precisely because the association voted to stop funding the thing that will eventually be assessed for. The document that would tell you is the budget and the SIRS, not the listing.

Governance and records: three changes you can actually use

• Website records expanded. Associations must keep bank statements, meeting recordings, officer and director affidavits, and approved board minutes for the preceding 12 months on their websites, updated within 30 days. Twelve months of minutes is the single most informative document set in a diligence file, and it is now supposed to be sitting there.
• The 115% substitute budget. Under s. 718.112(2)(e)2.a, if a board proposes assessments exceeding 115 percent of the prior year, it must simultaneously propose a substitute budget excluding discretionary spending. If you see a substitute budget, the association is telling you something about its trajectory.
• Annual financials extended from 120 to 180 days after fiscal year end. Practical effect: the most recent financials may be older than you assume when you are under contract in the first half of the year.

Meetings may now be held by video conference, with recordings kept as official records; a director appearing remotely may vote but does not count toward quorum.

The misconceptions currently circulating

Two are worth naming. First, HB 913 did not repeal mandatory reserves — the pause is conditional, requires a recent milestone inspection and a majority vote, and sunsets at the end of 2028. Second, the milestone deadline was not extended; the SIRS deadline moved to December 31, 2025. Those are different obligations under different statutes and they are frequently conflated.

What I would actually ask for

Before signing an offer on any Miami condo in a building of three habitable stories or more: the milestone inspection report if the building is past 30 years, the SIRS and its baseline funding plan, the current budget and the prior year's, twelve months of board minutes, and a direct question in writing — has this association paused or reduced reserve contributions under the 2025 amendments, and for which budget years. That last one is new, it is answerable, and almost nobody is asking it yet.

Frequently asked questions

Does HB 913 apply to my building if it is only three stories?

The milestone inspection requirement under s. 553.899 applies to buildings three habitable stories or more that are subject in whole or part to condominium or cooperative ownership. HB 913 changed the wording to “habitable” stories, so a ground-level parking podium may change the count. Single-family through four-family dwellings are excluded under subsection (4).

When was the SIRS deadline?

Associations existing on or before July 1, 2022 and controlled by unit owners other than the developer had to complete a structural integrity reserve study by December 31, 2025, per s. 718.112(2)(g). HB 913 moved that date from December 31, 2024.

Can a condo board legally stop funding reserves now?

Only in narrow circumstances. A unit-owner-controlled association may reduce or pause contributions for no more than two consecutive annual budgets where a milestone inspection was completed within the previous two years, by majority vote, and that authority expires December 31, 2028. A board may also pause funding without an owner vote where a building has been declared uninhabitable.

How do I find out whether a building has done its milestone inspection?

The association must distribute the inspector's summary to unit owners within 45 days of receiving it and post it on the association website, under s. 553.899(9). Ask the association or the seller directly, and ask in writing. Most Edgewater towers are recent enough that the question turns on reserves rather than milestone findings.

Did any of this change what I pay in HOA fees?

Indirectly. The reserve item threshold rose from $10,000 to $25,000, which changes what has to be reserved for at all, and the pause provision can lower a budget temporarily. Neither changes the underlying cost of the work — only when it is collected.

Is this legal advice?

No. I am a licensed real estate sales associate, not an attorney. Statutes are amended every session and how they apply to a specific association depends on its declaration and its governing documents. For a decision that turns on the law, retain a Florida community association attorney.

Work with Stefania

Wondering whether the building you are looking at is carrying something the listing does not mention? I will pull the association's milestone inspection report and SIRS, read the current budget against the prior year's, go through twelve months of board minutes, and put the reserve-pause 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