Florida Milestone Inspection Requirements: Deadlines, Phases and What They Mean for Your Offer

A Florida milestone inspection is a structural inspection required by Fla. Stat. s. 553.899 for condominium and cooperative buildings three habitable stories or more in height, due by December 31 of the year the building turns 30 and every 10 years after that. Miami-Dade uses the statute's local option to pull that forward to 25 years for coastal buildings, so most bayfront towers here run on a 25-year clock rather than the statewide 30.

Updated 21 August 2026Published 19 August 2026

Who is covered, and who is not

Section 553.899 reaches buildings three habitable stories or more in height subject to condominium ownership under chapter 718 or cooperative ownership under chapter 719. Subsection (4) excludes single-family, two-family, three-family and four-family dwellings outright. Height and ownership form are what matter: a 200-unit complex of two-story buildings is outside the statute; a 40-unit boutique tower on NE 24th Street is inside it.

The deadline schedule

Three separate clocks are running, and buyers routinely conflate them.

The standard trigger. Under s. 553.899(3)(a), a covered building must have its initial milestone inspection by December 31 of the year it reaches 30 years of age, measured from the certificate of occupancy date, then every 10 years thereafter.

The coastal option. Subsection (3)(b) allows a local enforcement agency to require the inspection at 25 years where local circumstances — the statute specifically names environmental conditions such as proximity to salt water — warrant it. Miami-Dade exercises this.

The catch-up deadlines. Buildings that hit 30 years before July 1, 2022 were required to be inspected by December 31, 2024. Buildings reaching 30 between July 1, 2022 and December 31, 2024 had until December 31, 2025. Both of those dates are now behind us, which means a building still without a completed phase one is not "waiting on its deadline." It is late.

Miami-Dade's separate recertification requirement under County Code Sec. 8-11(f) runs on its own schedule — 25 years coastal, 30 years otherwise, then every 10 — and is enforced with its own notices and fees. I lay out how the two regimes interact in the 2026 condo law guide.

Phase one and phase two

Phase one is a visual examination of habitable and non-habitable areas and a qualitative assessment of the structure, performed by an architect licensed under chapter 481 or an engineer licensed under chapter 471. If phase one finds no substantial structural deterioration, phase two is unnecessary and the process ends.

Phase two is triggered only if substantial structural deterioration is identified. It is more comprehensive and may involve destructive or nondestructive testing. A progress report is due within 180 days of the phase one submittal.

"Substantial structural deterioration" is defined in the statute as substantial structural distress or weakness that negatively affects the building's general structural condition and integrity. It expressly does not include surface imperfections unless those imperfections indicate deeper deterioration. That definition does real work: a spalled balcony edge is not automatically a phase two, and a board that tells you "it's just cosmetic" may be right — or may be quoting the exclusion without the qualifier.

The report must be sealed and signed by the inspecting professional, must identify deterioration and recommend repairs, and must note any unsafe condition as defined in the Florida Building Code.

Notice, and why owners often hear late

The local enforcement agency notifies the association by certified mail, return receipt requested. The association then has 14 days after receipt to notify unit owners of the required inspection and the date it must be completed.

Fourteen days is the legal floor, not the practical reality. In the packets I read, the gap between the agency's notice and the point where owners understood what was coming is often months — the notice lands in a management inbox and the substance surfaces at the next board meeting. If you are buying, the minutes are a better early-warning system than the notice.

When the report finds problems

Where substantial structural deterioration is identified, repairs must be commenced within 365 days after the association receives the phase two report. Commenced — not completed. If the association does not begin within that window, the local enforcement agency may review whether the building is habitable.

This is the single most useful date in the entire packet and almost nobody asks for it. A building 300 days into its 365 with no signed construction contract is in a materially different position than one at day 40, and the price should reflect that.

What to request during your inspection period

Under s. 718.503(2)(a) a resale seller must furnish, at their expense, the inspector-prepared summary of the milestone inspection report. A summary is not the report. Ask for both, in writing, and specifically:

1. The complete sealed phase one report with its issue date.
2. The phase two report, if any, plus the date the association received it.
3. Any 180-day progress report filed after the phase one submittal.
4. Board minutes covering the inspection, the engineer's presentation and any vote on scope or funding.
5. The construction contract or proposals for recommended repairs, and the funding source — reserves, special assessment, or a loan.
6. The building's case in the Miami-Dade Building Recertification Portal, which is public and searchable by address or folio.

For contracts executed on or after July 1, 2025, you have 7 days, excluding weekends and legal holidays, to cancel after receiving the required disclosures. That is your working window. Request everything on day one.

What this means for your offer

My honest read: a clean phase one is worth less than buyers assume, and a phase two is worth less alarm than sellers fear. A clean phase one tells you the structure looked sound to a visual assessment on a particular date. It says nothing about the money — that is what the structural integrity reserve study is for, and the two documents disagree more often than you would expect.

A phase two, conversely, is a known and priced problem. Known problems are negotiable. What should actually move your number is the combination: a phase two report, a 365-day clock well advanced, no executed contract, and a reserve balance that cannot cover the scope. That is the pattern worth walking away from, and it is visible in the documents if you ask for all of them.

Frequently asked questions

If you want the reports read before your window closes

If you are under contract in Edgewater or along the bayfront and need someone to go through the reports and minutes with you, see buyer representation or get in touch.

General information about Florida statutes and Miami-Dade ordinances, not legal or engineering advice. I am a licensed real estate sales associate, not an attorney or an engineer. Verify current statutory text at the source and retain qualified professionals for a specific building.