Florida Structural Integrity Reserve Studies (SIRS), Led by Licensed Engineers

Quick Answer: Florida SIRS Requirements

If your board is trying to confirm what a Structural Integrity Reserve Study is and whether it applies to your building, here is the short version of Florida Statutes 718.112 and 719.106 (enacted through SB 4-D in 2022 and refined by SB 154 in 2023 and HB 913 in 2025):

1. What it is: a reserve study focused on the structural and life-safety components of a condominium or cooperative building, pairing a visual inspection with remaining useful life estimates, replacement costs, and a recommended annual reserve funding schedule.
2. Who needs one: covered residential condominium and cooperative buildings three habitable stories or taller anywhere in Florida, subject to statutory exclusions for certain smaller dwellings, non-condominium or non-cooperative portions, and components maintained by another party.
3. Initial deadline: the baseline was December 31, 2025 for existing owner-controlled condominium associations; section 719.106 states December 31, 2024 for comparable cooperative associations. An association with a qualifying milestone inspection due on or before December 31, 2026, may complete the SIRS simultaneously, but no later than December 31, 2026. The statutes also contain limited post-milestone timing relief, so a board that has not completed its SIRS should take prompt, documented action and confirm its timeline with association counsel.
4. Updates: the SIRS must be updated at least every 10 years, for the life of the building.
5. The eight required component categories: (1) roof; (2) structure, including load-bearing walls and other primary structural members and primary structural systems; (3) fireproofing and fire protection systems; (4) plumbing; (5) electrical systems; (6) waterproofing and exterior painting; (7) windows and exterior doors; and (8) any other item with a deferred-maintenance expense or replacement cost exceeding the annually adjusted threshold when its failure negatively affects one of the first seven categories. The 2026 threshold is more than $25,675.

Questions about how the statute applies to your specific building are usually answered fastest with a short call. Reach CSI at (904) 261-8703 and we will walk through it with you.

Primary sources reviewed July 15, 2026: Florida Statute 718.112, Florida Statute 719.106, DBPR SIRS guidance, and the official 2026 reserve threshold. This summary is informational and does not replace property-specific legal advice.

SIRS vs. a Traditional Reserve Study

Many Florida associations have commissioned reserve studies for decades, so a fair question is what actually changed. The differences are real:

• Scope is defined by statute. A traditional reserve study covers whatever the association and the analyst agree to cover -- roofs, pavement, pools, painting. The SIRS must cover the eight component categories listed in Florida Statute 718.112, with the structure itself at the center.
• An inspection is mandatory. Traditional studies are sometimes prepared from records and photographs alone. The SIRS requires a visual inspection by or under the direction of a licensed engineer, architect, or certified reserve professional.
• Required funding is generally not waivable. For budgets adopted after December 31, 2024, owners in applicable associations generally may not vote to waive or reduce required SIRS funding. The statutes include defined exceptions and alternative funding methods that should be reviewed with association counsel.
• The two studies coexist. The SIRS does not replace planning for non-structural assets. Most associations still maintain a conventional reserve schedule for items such as pavement, pool resurfacing, and amenities alongside the SIRS components.

In short, the SIRS took the most consequential part of reserve planning, the structure that everything else depends on, and gave it an engineering foundation and a funding requirement. For boards, that is less a burden than a clearer mandate: fund the building's bones first, on a schedule an engineer has stood behind.

How the Milestone Inspection and the SIRS Work Together

The milestone inspection and the SIRS are companion requirements, and treating them that way saves associations real money. The milestone inspection, under Florida Statute 553.899, documents the current condition of the building's structural elements. The SIRS translates condition into funding: what each component will cost, when, and how much to reserve each year to be ready.

When the same engineering team performs both, the benefits compound:

• One site mobilization supports both engagements, instead of two firms each billing for travel, access, and setup.
• One document review -- drawings, repair records, and maintenance history are collected and studied once.
• Consistent findings. The remaining useful life estimates in the SIRS reflect what the milestone engineer actually observed, so the two reports tell one coherent story rather than two approximations.
• Repairs flow into the plan. Items the milestone inspection identifies appear in the SIRS funding schedule at realistic costs, so the board budgets for them rather than discovering them.

CSI can coordinate the milestone inspection and SIRS under one documented work plan, allowing the same records and field observations to support both services where appropriate.

Funding Rules Every Florida Board Should Know

The SIRS is not just a report; it changes how the association budgets. The rules that matter most to boards:

• SIRS funding is generally not waivable. For budgets adopted after December 31, 2024, unit owners in applicable associations generally may not vote to waive or reduce required funding for SIRS items, subject to statutory exceptions and alternative funding methods.
• HB 913 added flexibility in how, not whether, to fund. The 2025 refinements allow qualifying associations to satisfy reserve obligations through a loan or line of credit with owner approval, and permit an association that has completed its milestone inspection to temporarily pause certain reserve contributions in order to prioritize funding the repairs the inspection identified.
• Pooled reserve accounting is available. Associations may fund SIRS components through a pooled reserve method rather than straight-line component accounts, which often smooths the annual contribution.
• Non-SIRS reserves still follow the traditional rules. Items outside the eight categories, such as pavement or amenities, remain subject to the conventional waiver provisions.

None of this needs to be adversarial. The funding rules exist so that the owners who use a building across its life share its costs fairly across that life. A well-built SIRS makes that outcome achievable at a contribution level owners can live with -- and our overview of reserve funding methods in Florida explains the options in board-level language.