Comparison
Florida's milestone inspection under §553.899 is the statewide structural inspection requirement for qualifying condominium and cooperative buildings. In Broward and Miami-Dade, the county building departments that enforce it administer it through their own recertification programs, which cover structural and electrical systems. For qualifying buildings in those two counties that means one inspection process, not two.
Not both. In Broward and Miami-Dade, the county recertification program is how the milestone inspection requirement under §553.899 is administered and satisfied — one inspection process, filed with the county building department, covering structural and electrical systems. Everywhere else in Florida, the state milestone inspection applies on its own.
What people call the “40-year recertification” — the program that required aging buildings to pass a structural and electrical re-examination — still exists, but the law behind it has changed. Senate Bill 4-D (2022) replaced the old county-by-county recertification framework with a statewide milestone inspection requirement under F.S. §553.899. In Broward and Miami-Dade, the county recertification programs remain the mechanism that administers and satisfies that milestone requirement. The name changed; the 40-year inspection obligation did not go away, and “40-year building inspection” remains a common name for the former program.
The milestone inspection is the state requirement; recertification is the county program that administers it in Broward and Miami-Dade. The rows below show where they differ in trigger age, scope, enforcement and filing.
| Feature | Milestone Inspection | Broward / Miami-Dade Recertification |
|---|---|---|
| Program level | State (Florida Statute §553.899) | County (Broward or Miami-Dade) |
| First required | 30 years from CO date (25 at local discretion) | Broward: 25 years, then every 10 from CO / Miami-Dade: 30 years, then every 10 (25 for coastal condominiums and cooperatives) |
| Frequency | Every 10 years after first | Every 10 years after first |
| Enforced by | Local enforcement agency (the building department with jurisdiction) | The same county building department, through its recertification program |
| Report submitted to | Local building department | County building department (structural and electrical reports) |
| Which process applies? | Outside Broward and Miami-Dade, the state milestone rules apply directly | In Broward and Miami-Dade, the county recertification is the process that satisfies the requirement |
| Scope | Structural | Structural and electrical |
| Applies to | Buildings 3 stories or taller, statewide | Qualifying buildings in Broward and Miami-Dade under each county's criteria (broader than condos and co-ops) |
Column A
Scope reference
Outside Broward and Miami-Dade, the state milestone inspection applies on its own. Inside those counties, the county recertification program administers and satisfies the milestone requirement and adds an electrical inspection.
For qualifying condominium and cooperative buildings in Broward and Miami-Dade, completing the county recertification satisfies the milestone inspection requirement — boards do not commission a second, duplicative milestone inspection. Notice, distribution and follow-up repairs identified in the report still apply under §553.899. Everywhere else in Florida, the state milestone inspection is the requirement. Fortis confirms which process applies to your specific building.
Yes. The inspection obligation is now called the milestone inspection under F.S. §553.899. Buildings must complete it by 25 or 30 years after their Certificate of Occupancy, depending on the local enforcement agency, and every 10 years after that.
In Broward and Miami-Dade counties, the county recertification program is how the milestone inspection requirement is administered and satisfied — one process, not two. Outside those counties, only the state milestone inspection applies.
Yes. The milestone inspection (F.S. §553.899) and the Structural Integrity Reserve Study (F.S. §718.112) are two separate legal requirements with different triggers, timelines, and purposes. Every condominium association must satisfy both.
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