Building recertification (40-year) in Fort Lauderdale

Recertification in Fort Lauderdale

• Reports are digitally signed and sealed and uploaded as separate files through the BSIP application in the LauderBuild Plan Room; paper submissions are no longer accepted, and the review fee is $375.
• The electrical report is prepared by a Florida-licensed professional who specializes in electrical design, and anyone removing electrical covers for the inspection must show NFPA 70E and OSHA 1910 training.
• The inspection and report are due within 180 days of the notice, on separate structural and electrical inspection forms with color photos of the conditions found.
• For threshold buildings, more than three stories or 50 feet tall, the structural portion is prepared by a Florida-licensed professional who specializes in structural engineering and qualifies as a Special Inspector.
• A late report goes to a Special Magistrate or the Code Enforcement Board, and a building whose required repairs are not made can be found unsafe and sent to the Unsafe Structures Board.
• The Broward program expressly includes balconies, elevated decks, and docks and seawalls that are attached to or support a structure, and it states that parking garages and guardrails are not exempt.
• BORA gives each city its list of buildings due by June, and Fort Lauderdale mails the notices by certified mail with return receipt between 1 June and 31 August.
• The Building Official may allow up to 60 more days to file the report, and up to 60 days to obtain repair permits on a written request with a sealed statement that the building may stay occupied.

How we handle building recertification in Fort Lauderdale

The old 40-year label survives in conversation, but in Fort Lauderdale the Broward program now starts at 25 years and repeats every ten. The report needs both a structural and an electrical inspection, a threshold tower needs a structural specialist, and the whole package is filed online with a $375 review fee.[1][2]

Permits for building recertification (40-year) in Fort Lauderdale

• City of Fort Lauderdale Development Services, Permitting Services: Building Safety Inspection Program notices, report review and repair permits

How is recertification different from a milestone inspection?

The milestone inspection is a state requirement in s. 553.899 for condo and co-op buildings. County recertification is local law that covers most building types, includes an electrical recertification, and has its own schedule, fees and penalties. A condo building in Miami-Dade or Broward may need to satisfy both, so ask the professional how one inspection can serve both programs.[3][5][1]

Miami-Dade recertification schedule

• Buildings built before 1983 keep their established recertification schedule.
• Coastal condo and co-op buildings 3 stories or more within 3 miles, built 1983 to 1997, and other buildings built 1983 to 1992, were due by 31 December 2024.
• Coastal condo and co-op buildings built 1998 or later recertify at 25 years.
• Other buildings built 1993 or later recertify at 30 years.
• Every 10 years after that.
• Courtesy notices are sent two years and one year ahead; reports are due within 90 days of the notice.

Broward Building Safety Inspection Program (Fort Lauderdale)

• First inspection at 25 years, then every 10 years
• Notices sent by certified mail from 1 June to 31 August each year
• Safety report due within 180 days of the notice
• Repairs within 180 days of the report unless the Building Official sets otherwise
• Review fee $375

Frequently asked questions