What HB 913 Means for Your Condo Association in 2026

Quick Answer: What HB 913 Changes for Florida Condos

House Bill 913 took effect July 1, 2025 and is the most significant update to Florida's condominium-safety law since the 2022 post-Surfside reforms. The key changes for boards:

1. Insurance appraisals: a new property-appraisal requirement on a 36-month cycle.
2. SIRS completion deadline: generally December 31, 2025 for existing owner-controlled condominium associations — a building may complete its SIRS alongside a milestone inspection due on or before December 31, 2026, but never later under that simultaneous-completion provision.
3. Reserve funding: the statutory base threshold rose from $10,000 to $25,000 and is adjusted annually. The official 2026 threshold is $25,675; the catch-all applies only when failure of the additional item would negatively affect a named SIRS category.
4. Conflict-of-interest protections: stronger rules governing board, manager, and vendor relationships.
5. Record retention: structural reports, including milestone inspections and SIRS, must be kept for 15 years.

Construction Solutions, Inc. (CSI) helps Northeast Florida boards stay compliant with milestone inspections, SIRS, and HB 913. Call (904) 261-8703 to review your association's obligations.

A New Chapter in Florida Condo Safety Law

House Bill 913 became effective on July 1, 2025, and it represents the most significant update to Florida's condominium safety framework since the post-Surfside legislation of 2022. If your board has been focused on meeting milestone inspection deadlines and completing Structural Integrity Reserve Studies, HB 913 adds new layers of compliance that deserve your immediate attention. Understanding these changes now will help your association avoid costly surprises and stay ahead of enforcement.

At CSI, we have been guiding Florida condo associations through every phase of these evolving requirements since they first took shape. Here is a plain-language breakdown of what HB 913 changes, what it means for your community, and what you should be doing about it right now.

Insurance Appraisals: The 36-Month Mandate

One of the most impactful changes in HB 913 is the new insurance appraisal requirement. Associations must now obtain an independent insurance appraisal to determine the full replacement cost of the property at least once every 36 months. This is not optional, and it overrides any outdated language in your condominium declaration that might suggest lower coverage standards are acceptable.

The practical effect is significant. Many associations have been relying on coverage amounts that have not been updated in years, leaving them dangerously underinsured. HB 913 forces boards to confront the true cost of rebuilding their property in today's construction market, where labor and material costs have increased substantially. If your last appraisal was completed before 2024, your board should be scheduling a new one now. For a deeper look at exactly what the statute does and does not require of your policy, see our companion article on what HB 913 requires condo association insurance policies to include.

A separate 250-year windstorm provision applies when a group of at least three eligible communities satisfies its insurance obligation through qualifying group coverage. It is not a universal appraisal calculation required of every individual association. Boards should confirm the applicable insurance method with their licensed insurance adviser.

Reserve Funding: More Flexibility, More Responsibility

HB 913 raised the statutory base threshold from $10,000 to $25,000 and required annual inflation adjustments beginning in 2026. DBPR set the official 2026 threshold at $25,675. This amount applies to the eighth SIRS catch-all category only when the additional item's failure would negatively affect one of the seven named categories; it does not remove the named roof, structure, fire-protection, plumbing, electrical, waterproofing and exterior-painting, or window and exterior-door categories.

The bill also introduces a temporary pause mechanism for reserve contributions. If your association has completed a milestone inspection that identified necessary repairs, the board may pause reserve funding for up to two consecutive budget years in order to redirect those funds toward completing the required repairs. This pause is limited and requires a vote of the unit owners. It is not a unilateral board decision.

Boards now have the option to pool reserve accounts for SIRS components without a unit owner vote. This allows for greater cash flow flexibility, letting the association direct funds to the most pressing structural needs within the reserve pool. However, structural reserves can only be pooled with other structural items. You cannot combine roof replacement reserves with non-structural amenity funds.

Additionally, HB 913 clarifies that associations may use alternative funding instruments, including special assessments, loans, or lines of credit, to meet reserve requirements. These alternatives require unit owner approval but provide additional pathways for associations that are working to reach full funding levels.

SIRS Completion Deadline: December 31, 2025

Here is where boards most often get the timeline wrong. For existing unit-owner-controlled associations with buildings three or more habitable stories, the Structural Integrity Reserve Study generally must be completed by December 31, 2025. HB 913 did not push that deadline out a full year for everyone. There is one narrow allowance: if your association is required to complete a milestone inspection under s. 553.899 on or before December 31, 2026, you may complete the SIRS at the same time as that milestone inspection. In no event may the SIRS be completed after December 31, 2026.

So unless a 2026 milestone inspection clearly applies to your building, treat December 31, 2025 as your operating deadline. Qualified engineering firms across Florida are handling a heavy volume of SIRS work and scheduling delays are common, so an association that is not yet underway should engage an engineer now rather than counting on the milestone-aligned date. This is general information, not legal advice; confirm the deadline that applies to your association with your engineer or legal counsel.

HB 913 also clarifies the definition of "habitable stories" for purposes of the SIRS requirement. The law now specifies that it applies to buildings three or more habitable stories in height, where habitable stories include space used for living, sleeping, eating, or cooking. This resolves previous confusion about buildings with ground-floor parking garages or non-residential levels that do not count toward the threshold. Those structures still warrant attention in their own right, which is why dedicated parking garage inspections remain an important part of a building's overall structural picture.

Conflict of Interest Protections

To prevent predatory practices in the inspection and repair pipeline, HB 913 imposes strict conflict-of-interest rules. Any architect, engineer, or licensed contractor hired to perform a SIRS or milestone inspection must disclose in writing if they also intend to bid on the resulting repair work. Violations of this disclosure requirement make the contract voidable.

This protection matters because some firms have used inspection findings as a sales tool, inflating the scope of identified deficiencies to generate larger repair contracts. The disclosure requirement gives boards the transparency they need to make informed hiring decisions and protects associations from conflicts that could compromise the objectivity of their inspection results.

At CSI, we have always maintained a clear separation between our inspection and engineering services and any repair contracting. We believe the integrity of the inspection process depends on objectivity, and HB 913 codifies that principle into law.

Record Retention: 15 Years for Structural Reports

HB 913 explicitly requires associations to retain milestone inspection reports and SIRS reports for at least 15 years. This reflects the long-term importance of these documents in tracking your building's structural condition over time. A single inspection is a snapshot. Fifteen years of inspection data is a trend line that tells your board whether conditions are improving, stable, or deteriorating.

If your association does not have a formal document retention policy, this is a good reason to establish one. These reports should be stored digitally with secure backups and made accessible to board members, property managers, and prospective buyers as required by law.

Financial Reporting Updates

The deadline for completing annual financial reports has been extended from 120 days to 180 days after the end of the fiscal year. Reports must now be accompanied by an affidavit from a board member confirming that the reports were provided to unit owners. This additional accountability measure ensures that financial information actually reaches the people who need it.

Beginning January 1, 2026, HB 1021 also requires condo associations with 25 or more units to provide online access to association documents through a website or application. Previously, this requirement only applied to associations with 150 or more units. For smaller associations, this means building an online presence that includes meeting minutes, financial reports, inspection documents, and other records required by statute.

What Your Board Should Do Now

If you serve on a condo board in Florida, HB 913 creates several action items that should be on your agenda immediately. Start by reviewing your current insurance coverage and confirming that replacement cost has been determined within the last three years. Confirm whether your SIRS has been completed or is in progress. The baseline deadline was December 31, 2025; only associations with a qualifying milestone inspection due on or before December 31, 2026, may use the narrow simultaneous-completion option.

Review your reserve study to determine whether the $25,675 2026 catch-all threshold or pooling provisions affect your funding plan, and make sure you understand the different reserve study levels so you know what depth of analysis your community is receiving. Discuss with your attorney and property manager whether a statutory funding exception or temporary reserve pause applies. Establish a document-retention policy that meets the 15-year requirement for structural reports. Associations with 25 or more units should also confirm their online document-access obligations.

Primary sources reviewed July 15, 2026: Florida Senate HB 913 summary, Florida Statute 718.111, Florida Statute 718.112, and the official 2026 reserve threshold.

These are not tasks to defer. The legislature has been clear in its intent: Florida condo associations must take structural safety and financial preparedness seriously. Boards that act proactively will protect their residents, their property values, and their own liability exposure. Boards that delay will face increasing enforcement pressure and rising costs.

Frequently Asked Questions: HB 913

What does HB 913 require condominium association insurance policies to include?

HB 913 requires an association to insure its property for full replacement cost, and it requires that replacement cost to be set by an independent insurance appraisal completed at least once every 36 months. That appraisal requirement overrides older declaration language that allowed lower coverage. A separate provision addresses group windstorm coverage for qualifying groups of at least three eligible communities. HB 913 governs how the coverage amount is determined rather than dictating every policy endorsement, so confirm specific terms, including flood and liability limits, with your licensed insurance adviser. For a fuller breakdown, see our companion article on what HB 913 requires condo association insurance policies to include.

What are Florida's condo reserve requirements for 2026 under HB 913?

HB 913 raised the statutory base reserve threshold from $10,000 to $25,000 and indexes it for inflation each year. The official 2026 threshold set by DBPR is $25,675. That figure applies to the eighth catch-all reserve category only when an item's failure would negatively affect one of the seven named Structural Integrity Reserve Study categories. It does not remove the named roof, structure, fire protection, plumbing, electrical, waterproofing and exterior painting, or window and exterior door categories. Boards may also pool structural reserve accounts without a unit owner vote, though structural reserves may be pooled only with other structural items.

Does HB 913 extend the SIRS completion deadline?

Not for most associations. For existing unit-owner-controlled associations with buildings three or more habitable stories, the Structural Integrity Reserve Study generally had to be completed by December 31, 2025. The only allowance is narrow: an association required to complete a milestone inspection on or before December 31, 2026 may complete its SIRS at the same time as that inspection, but never later. Unless a 2026 milestone inspection clearly applies to your building, treat December 31, 2025 as the operating deadline and confirm the date that applies to your association with your engineer or legal counsel.