Selling a Florida Condo in 2026? Get These Documents Ready Before You List

Florida condo sales changed. After Surfside, the state rewrote the rules for older buildings — structural inspections, engineer-led reserve studies, and real money set aside for the big repairs. The legislature has kept adjusting the details every session since, but the direction is one-way: buildings have to prove their condition, and buyers have to be shown the proof.

If you own in a building that's three stories or taller and getting on in years — which describes most of the coastal condo stock from Boca Raton to Boynton Beach — this now shapes your sale as much as your view does. Here's what to have in hand before your unit hits the MLS.

The documents buyers (and their lenders) will ask for

• The building's milestone inspection status. Older buildings of three stories or more are required to go through a structural milestone inspection as they age. Buyers' agents now ask "has the building had its milestone?" the way they used to ask about the roof. Know your building's answer — done, scheduled, or not yet required — before the first showing.
• The reserve study (SIRS). Associations must have a structural integrity reserve study that says what the big components — roof, structure, waterproofing, and the rest — will cost to replace and how the money is being set aside. It drives what happens to your dues next.
• The budget, reserves, and any special assessments. Passed, pending, or being whispered about at board meetings — assume the buyer will find out, because their lender will. A surprise assessment in week three kills more condo deals than inspections do.
• Association documents and the condo Q&A. Florida gives condo buyers a review window after they receive the association documents — rules, financials, budget. Slow document delivery means a longer escape hatch for a nervous buyer. Fast, complete delivery keeps your contract solid.
• Insurance and any recent repairs. The building's coverage, plus receipts for concrete restoration, roof work, or repairs already completed. Work that's already done and paid for is a selling point — say so.

What this does to your price — the appraiser's view

Here's the part most listing agents soft-pedal: two identical units in two buildings are no longer worth the same money. A building with its milestone inspection passed, reserves funded, and no pending assessment sells at a premium — and appraises at one. A building with an unfunded study and a looming assessment sells at a discount, because the buyer is really buying your unit plus a share of the building's deferred bills.

Our broker is a certified residential appraiser, so we price your unit the way the buyer's appraiser will read it: unit condition, building condition, reserve posture, assessment risk. That number holds up at the bank — which is what keeps your closing date real.

This article is general information, not legal advice. Condo statutes have been amended repeatedly since 2022 and deadlines vary by building age, height, and location — confirm your building's current requirements with your association, or call us and we'll help you find out.