Case Study: Special Assessment Challenges In Miami's Vintage Condo Market
Andy "Daro" Rotondaro, a Realtor® and North Bay Village Commissioner, discusses why he is paying $50,000 in condo special assessments instead of selling his two units.
What would you do if your South Florida condo association charged a $25,000 average special assessment and gave you 12 months to pay - or face foreclosure?
On top of that, what if your condo community is concurrently undergoing a Structural Integrity Reserve Study (SIRS) that could result in additional assessments in 2025 due to the new Florida Condo Law?
Andy “Daro” Rotondaro, a Realtor® with The Daro Team at Compass real estate and a North Bay Village Commissioner, is facing just this scenario with two of his units in a vintage condo tower built in 1969.
For Rotondaro, there was no question what he is going to do - pay and continue paying. He is confident reinvesting in his North Bay Village condo community now will pay dividends in the future in the form of a safe building and higher valuation.
This is the dilemma South Florida unit owners are facing in the leadup to the looming 2025 Condo Association Financial Cliff.
Simply put, is it better for Florida condo owners to pay off their special assessments or simply sell their units?
Miami expert Peter Zalewski explored this conundrum with Rotondaro in the second episode of an ongoing podcast series entitled “Special Report: Florida’s 2025 Condo Association Financial Cliff.”
This case study is based on an 11-minute excerpt from the overall 60-minute discussion between Zalewski and Rotondaro. To watch the entire interview, please click this link.
Watch The Interview
A transcript of the conversation between Miami Condo Expert Peter Zalewski and Andy “Daro” Rotondaro, a Realtor® and North Bay Village Commissioner, is available at the bottom of this page behind the paywall for members of the Miami Condo Market Investing Club™. To join the Club, click this link.
Florida condo owner are facing the 2025 deadline to comply with a series of safety requirements required under the state’s newly revised condo law.
In many cases, condo associations are facing multimillion dollar construction bills to ensure that their communities meet safety standards put in place to protect residents.
Failure to comply with the law could result in residents being forced to vacate their units for months - and even years - until the their communities can satisfactorily meet the new measures of the Florida Building Code.
Keep in mind, condo owners - who are forced to vacate - are still responsible for their monthly expenses and any new special assessments. Plus, these residents have the added cost of temporary housing until their communities are habitable again.
Not every unit owner has the means to simply write a check or send a digital payment to cover the costs of the necessary construction work.
In the last few months, a series of news stories have been published locally, nationally and internationally documenting the new charges - ranging from a few thousand dollars to more than $100,000 - that condo owners are facing in Florida.
As a potential workaround, financial institutions such as U.S. Century Bank are willing to finance the necessary repairs over a period of time than can range from a few years to as much as 12 years in certain circumstances. The interest rates on special assessment loans are typically comparable to those of residential mortgages.
Condo maintenance fees and special assessments have always been a focal point for unit owners but nothing like the current situation.
In the aftermath of the June 24, 2021 collapse of the Champlain Towers South in the town of Surfside on the barrier island of Miami-Dade County, everyone from residents to building inspectors, politicians to bankers understand better than ever the importance of ensuring that no Florida condo building ever unintentionally collapses again.
Nearly 100 people died and a $1 billion settlement was reached with the families of the victims.
A federal investigation is currently underway but the preliminary reports suggest a flawed design coupled with a lack of upkeep by the condominium’s association contributed to the disaster.
The Florida Legislature has taken a number of steps - prompted by insurance companies threatening to withdraw coverage in the state - to ensure that nothing like this ever happens again.
Up until now, the state’s measures were being implemented slowly but that all changes in 2025 when many of the measures take effect.
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If you are seeking information on condo resales in South Florida, please visit CondoVulturesRealty.com or call the office at 305.865.5859.
This information is believed to be accurate and complete but cannot be guaranteed or warranted.
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