The deadline for conducting building assessments on older homes is drawing near, and condominiums throughout Florida are feeling the pressure.
In the wake of the Surfside condo collapse in 2021, which resulted in the deaths of 98 individuals, Florida legislators enacted legislation that required the inspection of condos that were at least 30 years old.
Some condominium associations are already incurring thousands, if not millions, of dollars in fees as a result of the Dec. 31 deadline.
“A lot of people are on fixed incomes, they only have Social Security, and they cannot afford this additional assessment,” Jean Geiger, a resident of the Governor’s Pointe Condominiums in North Palm Beach, stated.
The cost of repairing the building’s foundation, plumbing, electrical, and roof replacement was estimated to be $1,070,000 by engineers in a structural reserve study conducted in July.
According to Geiger, the fees amount to $30,000 per unit.
“I know it’s a lot of money, but we want to feel confident, and you want to have peace of mind living any place,” Geiger stated, “but I feel a lot of residents will need financial help.”
She stated that inhabitants were given the choice to either pay the fee in full upfront or finance it.
Michael Barnett, the Palm Beach County Commissioner who was voted out of office in November, penned a letter in October urging the Florida Legislature to hold an immediate special session to resolve the special assessments on condos.
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The office of the governor, senate president, and house speaker, as verified by Palm Beach County officials on Wednesday, received the letter requesting a special session to address the condo insurance issue.
