Condo Renovation Rules in Florida: Approvals, Permits and Reserve Studies

The full picture

How condo renovation rules in Florida fit together

Three layers apply to almost every condo project: the association’s declaration, bylaws and rules; the Florida Condominium Act (chapter 718); and the local building department.

The declaration matters most because it says where your unit ends and the common elements begin, which shapes who approves, maintains and insures windows, doors, balconies and pipes.

Under section 718.113 of the Florida Statutes, the association maintains the common elements, and an owner may not do anything that would adversely affect the safety or soundness of the common elements. Material alterations to the common elements follow the declaration’s procedure or, if it has none, need approval from 75% of the total voting interests.

As of October 2026, section 718.111(12)(g) requires associations with 25 or more units to post records such as the declaration, rules, budget, inspection reports and latest structural integrity reserve study on a website or app. In a smaller building, ask the association for copies. This guide is general information, not legal or insurance advice; confirm details with your association, a Florida attorney or your insurer.

What usually needs association approval

Associations commonly regulate:

• Windows, sliding glass doors and entry doors. The product usually has to match the board’s hurricane protection specifications.
• Hard flooring. Hard surfaces can carry footstep noise to the unit below, so many associations set sound-control underlayment standards.
• Plumbing and electrical. Moving fixtures, replacing a water heater or adding circuits can affect shared lines and risers.
• Walls and structure. Removing a wall or coring through a slab can affect the structure, so expect requests for an engineer’s letter or signed plans.
• Balconies. New tile, railings, enclosures or anything fastened into the slab, since balconies are often tied into the building’s structure and waterproofing.

A typical approval package includes a scope of work, product sheets or drawings, and the contractor’s license and insurance certificate.

Hurricane protection follows the board’s specifications

Section 718.113(5) requires the board of every residential condominium to adopt hurricane protection specifications for each building, which may cover color and style and must comply with the building code. If your documents require approval, the board may not refuse protection that meets those specifications, though it can require you to follow the building’s existing unified look. Ask for the current specification sheet before you collect quotes.

• Association programs. With approval from a majority of the voting interests, the board can install hurricane protection or require owners to. If your unit already has code-compliant protection and the association installs the same type, section 718.115(1)(e) generally excuses you from that assessment or gives you a credit, though you still share the cost of protection on the common elements.
• Removal for association work. If your shutters, impact windows or doors must come off for association work on other property it is responsible for, you generally do not pay to remove and reinstall them unless the declaration says otherwise.
• Product approvals. Windows and exterior doors need a product approval the building department accepts; state approvals are listed in the Florida Product Approval search. Broward and Miami-Dade make up the Florida Building Code’s High-Velocity Hurricane Zone, which has stricter requirements.

Any premium effect of impact windows or doors is your insurer’s decision. The wind mitigation inspection guide explains how such features are documented.

Contractors, insurance certificates and building logistics

Expect the association to ask for:

• A license for the trade. You can check a Florida contractor license on the DBPR license search.
• A certificate of insurance. Associations commonly set general liability limits and may ask to be named as an additional insured.
• Workers’ compensation. The state’s coverage requirements page says construction employers with one or more employees must carry it; some business owners hold an exemption for themselves.

Check your own insurance too. Under section 718.111(11), the association’s property policy excludes items such as floor, wall and ceiling coverings, electrical fixtures, appliances, water heaters, built-in cabinets and countertops, which are the owner’s responsibility, and the association generally need not pay to rebuild improvements that benefit only your unit. Tell your insurance agent about significant upgrades.

Building rules on work hours, elevators, parking and water shutoffs affect the schedule and the price. Give each contractor the rules and get written quotes from more than one.

Association approval does not replace a building permit

Section 553.79 generally makes it unlawful to alter or repair a building without a required permit, and the local building department can tell you which work needs one. Window and door replacement, plumbing, electrical, air-conditioning and structural work commonly do. Some departments also want proof of association approval; the Town of Palm Beach condo checklist, for example, asks for a condominium or building manager’s letter for window and door replacements.

Cities such as Boca Raton, West Palm Beach, Fort Lauderdale and Port St. Lucie run their own building departments. Unincorporated areas generally go to the Palm Beach County Building Division, the Broward County Building Code Division or St. Lucie County’s permitting office. Palm Beach County’s guide for condo owners says it does not issue owner-builder permits for condo units, so permitted work must be done by licensed contractors.

A 2026 law (HB 803, effective July 1, 2026) added a narrow exemption to section 553.79, on written request, for some work under $7,500 at a single-family dwelling, excluding electrical, plumbing, structural, mechanical and gas work and flood hazard areas. Palm Beach County’s Building Division has posted that the HB 803 exemptions do not apply there. As of October 2026, do not assume it covers a condo unit; ask the building department.

Milestone inspections, reserve studies and special assessments

After the 2021 Champlain Towers South collapse in Surfside, Florida added two requirements in 2022 for condominium buildings three or more habitable stories tall. Both can change what the association spends and when.

• Milestone inspections. Under section 553.899, a licensed architect or engineer inspects the building by December 31 of the year it turns 30, based on its certificate of occupancy, then every 10 years. Local officials may require the first one at 25 years based on local conditions, such as nearness to salt water. If the first phase finds substantial structural deterioration, a second phase follows, and repairs must begin within 365 days after the building department receives that report. The association must send owners the inspector’s summary within 45 days after receiving a report.
• Structural integrity reserve studies. Under section 718.112(2)(g), the association needs a study at least every 10 years covering the roof, structure, fire protection, plumbing, electrical, waterproofing and exterior painting, windows and exterior doors, and other items over $25,000 (or a higher inflation-adjusted amount) whose failure would affect them. For owner-run associations that existed by July 1, 2022, the first study was generally due by December 31, 2025. For budgets adopted on or after December 31, 2024, reserves for those items generally cannot be waived or reduced, with narrow exceptions.
• Special assessments. When reserves fall short or repairs come due, the association may levy one. For a nonemergency assessment, section 718.112(2)(c) requires notice to owners at least 14 days before the board meeting, stating the estimated cost and purpose.

Before a large project, read the latest milestone summary, reserve study, budget and board minutes, and ask the association in writing about planned building work. The state’s DBPR condominium information site summarizes these laws for owners.

How HOA rules differ for single-family homes

Houses and townhomes in an HOA fall under chapter 720 instead. Under section 720.3035, the association can review plans only as far as the declaration or published guidelines allow. It cannot regulate interiors not visible from the frontage, adjacent parcels, common areas or a community golf course, cannot require a building permit before it reviews your application, and must explain a denial in writing, citing the specific rule or covenant. Its board must adopt hurricane protection specifications and may not deny an application that meets them. Milestone inspections and structural integrity reserve studies do not apply to single-family homes.