- A milestone inspection report is the sealed document a licensed Florida engineer or architect produces after inspecting a condo/co-op building three or more habitable stories — required at 30 years (25 in coastal areas) and every 10 years (SB 4-D → s. 553.899).
- It's not the finish line, it's the starting gun. The report answers one question — is the building structurally sound? — and by statute must include six things, from the engineer's seal to a plain-language owner summary.
- Phase One is visual; if no substantial structural deterioration is found, you're done for 10 years. Phase Two (cores, sounding, moisture testing) is triggered by real deterioration and must hand your board a recommended repair program.
- Two clocks start when the report lands: 45 days to distribute the summary to owners (regardless of findings), and — if Phase Two found substantial deterioration — 365 days to commence repairs before the building can be reviewed as unsafe.
- The 365-day clock covers commencing repairs, but engineering, permit drawings, and Miami-Dade/Broward permitting eat months of it. Boards that treat the report as the start of procurement — not a document to file — hit their deadlines and budget once, not three times.
In This Article
Florida law requires a milestone structural inspection for any condominium or cooperative building three or more habitable stories tall, once it reaches 30 years from the certificate of occupancy — and 25 in most coastal communities. The program was created by SB 4-D (2022) in direct response to the 2021 Surfside collapse and codified under s. 553.899, F.S.
The inspection produces a sealed report — and that report is not the finish line. It's the starting gun. Two clocks start the moment it arrives at your building department, and the boards that act on that immediately are the ones that stay out of county enforcement. This article covers what must be in the report, exactly who receives it, every deadline it triggers, and the practical steps for acting on what it finds.
What Is a Milestone Inspection Report?
A milestone inspection report is the sealed document a licensed Florida architect or engineer submits after conducting a structural inspection of a building's load-bearing walls and primary structural members — columns, beams, and floor slabs. It is not a code-compliance review, not a home inspection, and not a property condition assessment. It is a structural soundness determination by a licensed professional who stakes their seal on the finding.
The law behind it: Governor DeSantis signed SB 4-D in May 2022; it was refined in 2023 and again by HB 913 (2025). The Florida Building Code: Existing Building carries the implementing program, standardized report forms, and minimum content requirements.
It answers exactly one question: is this building structurally sound and safe for continued use? Not whether it meets today's building code — whether the structure holding it up is doing its job.
Required
Residential condo and co-op buildings (including mixed-ownership) under Ch. 718 or 719 that are three or more habitable stories. A garage or parking level under the living space counts; storage and utility spaces don't.
Exempt
Single-family homes, duplexes, triplexes, and four-family dwellings with three or fewer habitable stories above ground.
On the coast, assume the 25-year trigger.
The clock runs on the certificate of occupancy — 30 years statewide, but 25 where the local agency requires it near saltwater. In Miami-Dade and Broward the milestone inspection is also separate from the county 40-year recertification; a smart board coordinates the two rather than paying for parallel efforts.
Phase One vs. Phase Two: Which Report You'll Receive
The inspection produces either a Phase One report or — when Phase One finds substantial structural deterioration — a subsequent Phase Two report. The two are very different documents with very different consequences.
Phase One — The Visual Examination
After certified-mail notice, the association has 180 days to complete Phase One (and must notify unit owners within 14 days). A licensed architect or engineer visually examines habitable and non-habitable areas and major structural components. No substantial structural deterioration found → Phase Two isn't required, the report is filed, and you're done for 10 years.
Phase Two — The Deeper Look
Triggered when Phase One finds substantial structural deterioration. Gets physical: concrete cores, sounding surveys, moisture readings, or removing finishes to expose members. By statute it must recommend a program for fully assessing and repairing the distressed portions — the outline of your repair project.
Least disruptive, most representative. Phase Two inspectors must prefer test locations that are the least disruptive and most easily repairable while still representing the structure — so testing tells the truth without needlessly tearing the building apart.
What the Report Must Include
Florida Statute 553.899 sets six minimum criteria for every milestone report. If your report is missing any of these, it's deficient.
Seal and signature. Bears the seal and signature — or qualified electronic signature — of the licensed engineer or architect who performed the inspection and who is legally responsible for the findings.
Manner and type of inspection. Indicates the specific inspection method used — visual only for Phase One; the specific destructive or nondestructive testing methods for Phase Two.
Substantial structural deterioration. Identifies any substantial structural deterioration found, describes its extent and location, and identifies recommended repairs to address it. This is the finding that triggers Phase Two and starts the 365-day clock.
Unsafe or dangerous conditions. States whether any conditions defined as unsafe or dangerous under the Florida Building Code were observed. If so, that changes the urgency of everything that follows.
Remedial or preventive repairs. Recommends repairs for items that are damaged but fall short of substantial structural deterioration — maintenance findings that don't trigger Phase Two but do require attention.
Items requiring further inspection. Identifies and describes any areas the inspector could not fully assess and that require additional investigation — often concealed conditions behind finishes or in inaccessible spaces.
The inspector also prepares a separate plain-language summary for unit owners. Where the inspection is conducted by a team, a registered design professional in responsible charge signs off on the entire report.
What "substantial structural deterioration" actually means: structural distress or weakness that negatively affects the building's general structural condition and integrity — not surface imperfections. A stained ceiling is a maintenance item; a corroding slab edge that has lost section is a structural finding. The difference is what triggers Phase Two.
Who Receives the Report — and the Clocks That Start
By statute, three parties receive the sealed report simultaneously:
The moment the report reaches the building official, two clocks start — and one of them runs regardless of what the report found:
Distribute the summary
Regardless of findings: mail or deliver the owner summary to every unit owner (electronically to opt-ins), post it conspicuously on the property, and publish the full report and summary on the association website if required. This clock runs whether the report is clean or devastating.
Commence repairs
If Phase Two identified substantial structural deterioration, repairs must commence within 365 days of the building official receiving the report. Local ordinances can set shorter windows. Miss it without proof repairs are scheduled, and the agency must evaluate whether the building is unsafe for occupancy.
Local governments may add their own penalties on top of the state requirements, and DBPR now maintains statewide public reporting of inspection status and unsafe-building determinations. This isn't a paperwork exercise anyone can quietly skip.
The milestone inspection report is not the finish line — it's the starting gun.
— New Age Construction Group
How to Read the Findings: A Contractor's View
Engineering reports are written in careful, qualified language — here's how to translate the findings you're most likely to see in a coastal building.
Spalling
Concrete that has cracked, flaked, or broken away — on slab edges, balcony undersides, columns, or garage decks. Usually the visible symptom of the real problem: rebar corrosion expanding from the inside and cracking the concrete apart. When you see spalling, the structural finding is what's behind it, not just the surface damage.
Delamination
A layer of concrete separating beneath the surface — often invisible to the eye, which is exactly why Phase Two inspectors sound the surface with a hammer, listening for the hollow report of separated concrete. Delaminated areas can look fine and still be structurally compromised.
Post-Tension Findings
Corrosion at anchors or along tendons in post-tensioned slabs is a serious structural finding distinct from general rebar corrosion — it calls for specialized post-tensioning repair, not general patching. If your report flags post-tension distress, that item requires immediate attention and a contractor with specific PT experience.
Salt air penetrates the concrete over years
Embedded steel rusts
Rusting steel expands to several times its volume
It cracks the concrete from the inside
Spalling and delamination — visible at the surface, structural at the core
Corrosion doesn't wait for a milestone birthday. Where reports flag water intrusion behind stucco or at balcony edges, expect repairs to pair concrete restoration with waterproofing.
What to Do After a Phase Two Report
This is the part the statute spends the least ink on, and the part that determines what your association actually pays. Three moves, in order, before anyone touches concrete.
Scope and permit the repairs. The 365-day clock covers commencing — but first you need an engineered repair scope, permit drawings, and approved permits. In Miami-Dade and Broward, permitting realistically consumes months of that year. Structural repair on an occupied high-rise is not a commodity purchase — start procurement the week the report arrives, not after the board has deliberated for two months.
Choose the contractor — and know the disclosure rule. s. 553.899(12) requires an inspecting architect or engineer to disclose in writing any intent to bid on the repairs they recommend, and bars repair contractors with an undisclosed interest in the inspection firm. Ask every bidder about their relationship to the inspection firm; look for a licensed GC with documented concrete restoration experience on occupied coastal buildings.
Coordinate with your SIRS and recertification. The milestone tells you what's wrong; the structural integrity reserve study tells you whether you can pay for it. Sequence them so Phase Two findings flow into the reserve schedule; fold in the 40-year recertification so you mobilize contractors — and disrupt residents — once, not twice.
The report is the start of procurement, not a document to file. Boards that treat it that way hit their deadlines; boards that file it and wait end up racing the 365-day clock while permits are still in review.
- 1Read the report as a project brief, not paperwork: it names the deterioration, states whether unsafe conditions exist, and (in Phase Two) outlines the repair program your board must execute.
- 2Know the six mandatory contents — seal/signature, inspection type, substantial deterioration + repairs, unsafe conditions, preventive repairs, and items needing further inspection — plus the owner summary.
- 3Coastal buildings are on the 25-year clock because corrosion doesn't wait — spalling is usually the visible symptom of rebar corrosion, and delamination hides beneath the surface until an inspector sounds for it.
- 4Start procurement immediately: an engineered scope, permit drawings, and approved permits realistically consume months of the 365-day window in Miami-Dade and Broward.
- 5Mind the disclosure rule (s. 553.899(12)) — the firm that inspected can't quietly profit from the repairs without written disclosure. Hire a licensed GC with occupied-coastal-building restoration experience, and coordinate with your SIRS and 40-year recertification so you mobilize once.
Stephanie Lopez
Owner, New Age Construction Group
Stephanie Lopez is the owner of New Age Construction Group, a state-licensed structural restoration contractor (CGC#1531273) serving Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach County. She leads the firm's concrete restoration, structural repair, waterproofing, and recertification work for condominiums, HOAs, and commercial properties across South Florida.
Frequently Asked Questions
Received a milestone report with findings you're not sure how to act on? New Age Construction Group is a state-certified general contractor (CGC #1531273) specializing in structural restoration for condominium and cooperative buildings across Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach counties. We'll walk your board through the engineer's recommendations and give you a clear, phased repair plan.
