Florida Condo Due-Diligence Checklist

Reviewed November 11, 2026. General information only — not legal, tax, insurance, or financial advice, and not a commitment to lend.

A Florida condo can be a practical home. It can also hide a second price tag: a special assessment for the roof, the structure, or a reserve schedule the association can no longer waive. The point of due diligence is not to talk yourself out of every building. It is to read the official documents before the inspection period—and your cancellation window—runs out.

This checklist is for resale buyers of residential condominium units in Florida, with notes for new-construction (developer) contracts. It is general information, not legal advice. Review dates and citations were checked on November 11, 2026.

1. Know your cancellation clock

Florida law builds a document review period into the contract. The length depends on who is selling the unit.

For a nondeveloper resale, section 718.503(2)(d) of the 2026 Florida Statutes requires the contract to contain one of two conspicuous clauses. Either you acknowledge that you already received the core documents more than 7 days, excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays, before you signed, or the contract is voidable if you deliver written notice of cancellation within 7 days, excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays, after you both sign and receive those documents. The statute says a purported waiver of that right is of no effect, and that the right to void the agreement ends at closing.

For a developer sale, the statutory legend in section 718.503(1)(a) generally makes the agreement voidable for 15 days after you sign and receive the required developer documents. Contracts entered into after December 31, 2024, also have specific conspicuous-type language about milestone inspections, turnover inspection reports, and structural integrity reserve studies.

Put the deadline on a calendar the day you sign. Ask your real estate attorney or closing agent which clock applies to your contract. Do not rely on an oral “we’ll get you the documents later.”

2. Request the statutory document package

For a resale, section 718.503(2)(a) says each prospective purchaser who has entered into a contract is entitled, at the seller’s expense, to a current copy of all of the following:

1. The declaration of condominium
2. Articles of incorporation of the association
3. Bylaws and rules of the association
4. An annual financial statement and annual budget of the condominium association
5. A copy of the inspector-prepared summary of the milestone inspection report described in section 553.899, if applicable
6. The association’s most recent structural integrity reserve study, or a statement that the association has not completed one
7. A copy of the turnover inspection report described in section 718.301(4)(p) and (q) for a turnover inspection performed on or after July 1, 2023
8. The “Frequently Asked Questions and Answers” document required by section 718.504

You are also entitled to a governance form provided by the Division of Florida Condominiums, Timeshares, and Mobile Homes, which summarizes how associations are supposed to operate, including the obligation to pay regular or special assessments.

If any required milestone inspection, turnover inspection, or structural integrity reserve study has not been completed, contracts entered into after December 31, 2024, must say so in conspicuous type.

3. Read the milestone inspection like a safety report, not a brochure

A milestone inspection is a structural inspection of an aging building used to determine whether substantial structural deterioration exists. The Department of Business and Professional Regulation’s condominium inspections page and section 553.899 set the basic rules:

• It applies to residential condominium and cooperative buildings, including mixed-ownership buildings, that are three or more habitable stories.
• The first inspection is generally due by December 31 of the year the building reaches 30 years of age, based on the certificate of occupancy, and every 10 years thereafter.
• A local enforcement agency may require the first inspection at 25 years when local circumstances, including proximity to salt water, justify it.
• Buildings that were already 30 years old before July 1, 2022, were required to have the initial inspection by December 31, 2024. Buildings that reached 30 between July 1, 2022, and December 31, 2024, were due by December 31, 2025.

The inspection has two phases. Phase one is a visual examination of habitable and nonhabitable areas, including major structural components. If the licensed architect or engineer finds no signs of substantial structural deterioration, phase two is not required. Phase two may include destructive or nondestructive testing and is used to assess areas of structural distress.

After the association receives a phase one or phase two report, it must distribute the inspector-prepared summary to each unit owner within 45 days, and the association is responsible for arranging the inspection and for the costs attributable to the portions of the building it maintains. DBPR states that repairs indicated by a phase two inspection must be commenced within 365 days after receiving the report, unless a local government requires an earlier start.

When you read the summary, look for: whether phase two was required, whether the inspector identified unsafe or dangerous conditions, recommended repairs, and whether an amended report later confirmed that required repairs were completed.

4. Treat the structural integrity reserve study as a future bill

A structural integrity reserve study (SIRS) is a budget-planning study focused on the structural and life-safety parts of the building. DBPR’s inspections page lists eight minimum elements:

1. Roof
2. Structural systems
3. Fireproofing and fire protection systems
4. Plumbing
5. Electrical systems
6. Waterproofing and exterior painting
7. Windows and exterior doors
8. Other items over a dollar threshold (a statutory $25,000 baseline that the Division must inflation-adjust) whose failure would affect those structural items

Section 718.112(2)(g) of the 2026 Florida Statutes requires a residential condominium association to complete a SIRS at least every 10 years for each building that is three habitable stories or higher. Associations existing on or before July 1, 2022, and controlled by unit owners other than the developer, were required to complete a SIRS by December 31, 2025. An association that also had a milestone inspection due on or before December 31, 2026, could complete the SIRS at the same time, but not later than December 31, 2026.

The funding rules are what change a buyer’s monthly cost. DBPR states:

• If the budget was adopted on or before December 31, 2024, owners could vote to waive or fund less than the required SIRS reserves, but the association needed to begin funding according to the study on January 1, 2026.
• If the budget was adopted on or after January 1, 2025, the association may not waive SIRS reserves and must fund them in accordance with the study.

If the study shows the reserve account is short, the association may have to raise regular assessments, levy a special assessment, or use a loan or line of credit. That is often how a “reasonable” monthly fee becomes a much larger true cost. You can also check whether an association has reported SIRS completion in DBPR’s SIRS reporting database.

5. Get an estoppel certificate before you guess at assessments

Regular fees and special assessments are legal obligations. Failure to pay can lead to a lien. Before you finalize a resale, have the association issue an estoppel certificate.

Section 718.116 requires the association to issue the certificate within 10 business days after a written or electronic request from a unit owner, a unit mortgagee, or their designee. The certificate must state all assessments, special assessments, and other amounts owed as of issuance, and additional amounts scheduled to become due during the certificate’s effective period. If the association misses the deadline, it cannot charge a preparation-and-delivery fee.

Read the estoppel next to the budget, the SIRS funding plan, and any owner notices of a planned assessment. A current zero balance does not mean a large assessment is not already approved for a future date.

6. Map the insurance stack for the unit, not just the building

Condo living splits insurance in a way house shoppers often miss.

• The association master policy typically covers the building and common elements, subject to the declaration. Ask for the declarations page, deductibles (including any hurricane deductible), coverage amount, and whether flood is included—which it often is not.
• Your HO-6 (unit owners) policy covers the interior and personal property according to its terms, and may offer loss-assessment coverage. The Florida Department of Financial Services Homeowners’ Insurance Toolkit explains that Florida homeowners policies generally do not cover flood, and that windstorm coverage is typically included unless the policyholder signs a specific written rejection. In some wind-pool areas, wind may be written separately.
• The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation notes that flood insurance is usually purchased separately, and that federally related mortgages on buildings in high-risk flood areas generally require it.

Ask, in writing: What does the master policy cover? What is the hurricane deductible, and how would a unit owner’s share be assessed? Is there a separate flood policy on the building? What HO-6 and loss-assessment limits does a lender require?

7. A practical document and question list

Use this as a working list, then download the printable true-cost checklist:

• Contract type (developer vs. resale) and the exact cancellation deadline
• All documents listed in section 718.503, with a dated receipt
• Milestone inspection summary, phase, findings, and repair status
• Most recent SIRS, the reserve funding schedule, and whether current reserves can still be waived (for post-2024 budgets, DBPR says they cannot)
• Two to three years of budgets, year-end financials, and reserve balances
• Meeting minutes that mention litigation, loans, or assessments
• Estoppel certificate, including scheduled special assessments
• Master insurance declarations, deductibles, and any flood policy
• Rules on rentals, pets, vehicles, and age restrictions, if those matter to you
• A unit-level HO-6 quote and a flood-zone determination for the building
• A lender’s review of project eligibility (FHA, VA, conventional, or a state program such as Hometown Heroes all have project rules)

8. When to walk, and when to renegotiate

A completed milestone inspection or SIRS is not automatically a reason to cancel. An overdue study, a phase two finding with no repair plan, a reserve schedule that implies a large assessment, or an estoppel that already lists a special assessment is a reason to slow down, get a quote for the unit’s true monthly cost, and decide whether the price still works.

If you want a local mortgage professional to look at the payment, the association documents, and any down payment program that might apply, start a mortgage application or use the optional pre-qualification form. Those mortgage paths are optional and are not a commitment to lend.

Insurance is separate. For a Florida flood quote, get a flood quote from Dion. To compare home, wind, auto, or renters insurance, use the The Zebra placeholder (partner link not live yet). You are not required to use either insurance path to obtain a loan.

Sources (reviewed November 11, 2026)

• Florida Statutes § 718.503 (2026) — purchaser disclosures and cancellation periods
• Florida Statutes § 553.899 (2026) — mandatory milestone inspections
• Florida Statutes Chapter 718 (2026) — structural integrity reserve study provisions in § 718.112(2)(g)
• Florida Statutes § 718.116 — assessments, liens, and estoppel certificates
• DBPR Condominium Information & Resources — Inspections
• Enrolled SB 4-D (2022 special session) — the 2022 structural-safety legislation commonly cited as SB 4-D
• Florida DFS Homeowners’ Insurance Toolkit
• Florida Office of Insurance Regulation — Flood Insurance