Florida Structural Integrity Reserve Study (SIRS): Who Needs One, Deadlines and Funding

Who needs a structural integrity reserve study

Under section 718.112(2)(g), a residential condominium association must have a SIRS for each building three habitable stories or higher (stories counted under the Florida Building Code). That covers most mid-rise and high-rise condos and many three-story garden-style buildings.

The statute exempts:

• buildings under three habitable stories;
• single-family, two-, three- and four-family dwellings with three or fewer habitable stories;
• portions of a building that aren't in the condominium form of ownership or that someone other than the association maintains.

There is no exemption based on the number of units. A 12-unit, three-story condo is covered; a 200-unit two-story complex is not. Co-ops follow a parallel rule in section 719.106, with some different dates, so co-op boards should read that section separately.

The deadlines

If your association missed December 31, 2025 and doesn't qualify for the combined deadline, talk to your association's attorney now. The obligation doesn't go away, and the board carries the risk (see liability below).

What a SIRS must cover

The study is based on a visual inspection of the building's common areas. It must estimate each component's remaining useful life and replacement cost or deferred maintenance expense, and include at least a baseline funding plan: a plan that keeps the reserve cash balance above zero. It must cover:

A milestone inspection completed within the previous five years can stand in for the SIRS's visual inspection, which saves a second walk-through. See our guide to Florida milestone inspections.

Who can perform it

Only a professional the statute names:

• a licensed engineer (chapter 471);
• a licensed architect (chapter 481);
• a reserve specialist or professional reserve analyst credentialed by the Community Associations Institute (CAI) or the Association of Professional Reserve Analysts (APRA).

If the firm that prepares the study also bids on the repair work it recommends, it must disclose that in writing. Ask every bidder up front.

Funding the reserves the study recommends

For budgets adopted on or after December 31, 2024, an owner-controlled association may not waive or underfund the SIRS reserves, or use them for anything else. (A multicondominium with a DBPR-approved alternative funding method is the narrow exception.) Non-SIRS reserves can still be waived or reduced by an owner vote under section 718.112(2)(f).

HB 913 (2025, chapter 2025-175) gave boards more ways to meet the SIRS number:

• Regular assessments, the default.
• Special assessments, lines of credit or loans, each approved by a majority of the total voting interests. A line of credit or loan must be big enough to cover all previously waived or unfunded amounts, and the SIRS must be updated to reflect the funding method.
• A pause for milestone repairs. For budgets adopted on or before December 31, 2028, a majority of all voting interests may pause or reduce reserve contributions for up to two annual budgets to pay for repairs a milestone inspection recommends. Developer-controlled associations, associations under owner control for less than a year and bulk-buyer associations can't use it, and a new SIRS is required before contributions resume.

Straight-line funding is the usual starting point: each component's cost, minus what's already in reserve, divided by its remaining life. Our free condo reserve calculator runs that math per component and per unit, so the board can see what the study's numbers mean for monthly assessments before the budget meeting.

After you receive the study: the 45-day clock

Within 45 days of receiving the SIRS, the association must:

1. Give every unit owner a copy of the study, or a notice that it's complete and available, by the method the statute allows (mail, hand delivery or, for owners who consented, email).
2. File the completion statement with DBPR, the Division of Florida Condominiums, Timeshares and Mobile Homes, on the Division's form. DBPR says SIRS reporting is done through the association's online account with the Division.

An officer or director must also sign an affidavit acknowledging receipt of the study. Associations required to have a website post the study there under section 718.111(12)(g); see our guide to Florida association website requirements.

Board liability

Section 718.112(2)(g) makes it plain: a board member who willfully and knowingly fails to have the SIRS completed breaches his or her fiduciary duty to the unit owners under section 718.111(1). That exposes directors personally, and it shows up in disclosure to buyers and lenders, who increasingly ask for the study before they lend.

Keeping track of it all

A SIRS isn't a one-off. Each building has its own 10-year cycle, its milestone inspection dates, a funding plan that changes every budget year, and a 45-day notice and DBPR filing every time a new study arrives. Board members change; dates get lost.

That's the problem the building safety calendar in Agenbord Recur for Florida condo associations is designed for: every SIRS and milestone date, the 45-day steps and the study's components next to the budget, with reminders to whoever is on the board that year. It's in early access.

This guide is general information, not legal or engineering advice. Read the current statute and confirm your association's obligations with its attorney and a qualified professional.