1. Regular assessments: the association's budget
Every unit owner pays a share of the condominium's common expenses through regular assessments, usually monthly or quarterly. The annual budget shows what they fund: staff and management, the association's insurance, maintenance of the common elements, utilities the association pays, and contributions to reserves. Two buildings with the same monthly figure can be funding very different things.
How the expenses are divided between units is set by the declaration of condominium. The county record for each unit states its undivided share of the common elements, a percentage visible in the legal description; read the declaration to see whether assessments follow that share.
2. Reserves and the structural integrity reserve study
For each building of three habitable storeys or more, a Florida condominium association must have a structural integrity reserve study at least every ten years, covering the roof, structure, fire protection, plumbing, electrical systems, waterproofing, windows and exterior doors. The reserves for those items must be funded on the basis of the study's recommendations; owners can vote to waive them only in the context of terminating the condominium. An association may also fund work required by an inspection or by the study through a line of credit or a loan.
For a buyer, the study and the budget together answer the question that matters: is the money the building will need already being set aside, and if not, how will it be raised?
3. Special assessments
When reserves do not cover a project, the association can levy a special assessment. Distinguish carefully between a project that is being discussed, one that has been voted, one that has been financed by a loan (repaid through future assessments), one that is paid, and the balance still due on the specific unit. Board minutes often show a project months before it is formally adopted. Who pays an assessment adopted before closing is a matter for the contract.
The absence of a document about an assessment does not mean there is none. The association's estoppel certificate, which it must issue within ten business days of a request, states the amounts due on the unit; a new owner is jointly liable with the seller for assessments unpaid at transfer.
4. Milestone inspections
Condominium buildings of three habitable storeys or more must have a milestone structural inspection by December 31 of the year they reach 30 years from their certificate of occupancy, and every ten years after; the local building official may require it at 25 years. For a building at or past that age, the inspection reports and the repairs they call for feed directly into the budget and any assessment. See what buyers investigate.
5. Insurance
The association insures the building under its own policies, paid through the budget; the declaration and the policies define what the owner must insure inside the unit. Ask for the association's insurance declarations and recent premium history, and get a quote for the unit owner's own policy before committing.
6. Property tax: the seller's bill is not yours
Florida limits how fast the assessed value of a property can rise each year: for a homestead, by the lower of 3 percent or the change in the consumer price index; for other residential property, by 10 percent for levies other than school taxes. After a sale, these limits start over: the unit is reassessed at its just value as of January 1 of the following year. A seller who has owned for years may therefore pay much less than a buyer will.
Compare the property appraiser's just value with the price you intend to pay, check whether you will qualify for the homestead exemption as a permanent resident, and use the Property Appraiser's Property Tax Estimator for an estimate based on your own situation. Treat the seller's past bills as history, not as a forecast.
7. What is left to the owner
Utilities not covered by the association, the owner's insurance, maintenance inside the unit, and any parking, storage or cabana charges the building sets separately.
Where to read each figure
- Regular assessments and what they fund: the annual budget.
- Reserves: the structural integrity reserve study and the budget.
- Special assessments: board minutes, adopted resolutions and the estoppel certificate.
- Inspections: the milestone inspection summary and any phase two report.
- Property tax: the Property Appraiser's record and Tax Estimator, not the seller's bill.
A buyer of a resale unit is entitled to most of these documents from the seller, and the contract gives a cancellation window after receiving them. Associations of 25 units or more post them in an owners' section of their website.
Sources (2026 Florida Statutes, consulted November 9, 2026): § 718.112(2)(g) structural integrity reserve study and reserve funding; § 553.899 milestone inspections; § 718.116 assessments and estoppel certificates; § 193.155 homestead assessments; § 193.1554 nonhomestead residential property; § 718.503 resale disclosure; § 718.111(12)(g) association websites. General information, not legal or tax advice.