For Marianne Meischeid, living steps from the ocean has been a dream come true.
The retiree purchased her Surfside condominium 24 years ago and planned to spend her retirement enjoying the beachfront lifestyle. But in recent years, the cost of owning her condo has risen dramatically.
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“The only downside of living on the ocean is to keep up with the maintenance,” Meischeid said.
She said she was assessed nearly $39,000 to help cover her building’s 50-year recertification requirements and an elevator repair project. In addition, she now pays about $300 more each month as her condominium association builds reserve funds for future repairs.
“Currently, I’m paying $995. Previously, I was paying about $650, roughly,” she said.
Meischeid’s experience is becoming increasingly common across Florida as condominium owners adjust to sweeping reforms enacted after the 2021 collapse of Champlain Towers South in Surfside.
In 2022, Florida lawmakers approved legislation requiring milestone structural inspections for older condominium buildings and mandating that associations fully fund reserves for critical repairs. The measures were designed to improve building safety and prevent deferred maintenance.
However, the new requirements have also led to significant increases in association fees and special assessments for many condo owners.
“The new law for the reserve eliminates all the friction that would happen around assessing people who own condominiums and collecting the money,” said attorney Jane Muir of J. Muir and Associates.
As financial pressures mounted, lawmakers revisited the issue in 2024, passing legislation that allows condominium associations to obtain lines of credit to finance required structural repairs and creates additional pathways to temporarily pause reserve funding under certain circumstances.
“There was an amount of sticker shock after the reserve studies and reserve funds were required to be retained,” Muir said. “Many condominium and HOA owners complained that the Legislature kind of walked back these draconian requirements.”
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To help ease the burden on homeowners, Miami-Dade County launched its Condominium Special Assessment Loan Program. The program offers eligible condominium owners loans of up to $50,000 at zero percent interest for terms of up to 40 years to help cover special assessments tied to required building repairs.
Gerald Farr, chief financial officer for the Miami-Dade Housing Department, said demand for the program remains high.
“In this funding round right now, we have about 200 applications submitted and about another 325 in progress,” Farr said.
According to the county, nearly $60 million in loans have been distributed so far, helping approximately 2,100 families.
“And we do that to help alleviate some of the financial burden on the condominium owners,” Farr said.
Meischeid said she received funding through the program less than a month after applying. With another potential assessment on the horizon, she said she is considering applying again.
“You don’t have to start paying until it’s inspected and everything is finished, inspected, ready to go,” Meischeid said. “When that happens, my loan payment will only be $81 a month, which is doable.”
For her, the program has provided much-needed financial relief as condominium owners across South Florida continue to navigate the costs associated with new safety requirements.
The Miami-Dade County Condominium Special Assessment Loan Program is accepting applications through June 30. Applications are available online through Miami-Dade County’s website. Priority is given to applicants aged 62 and older.
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