Milestone inspections in Palm Beach County

Milestone inspection rules in Palm Beach County

• Buildings that reached 25 or 30 years before 1 July 2022 were due by 31 December 2024, and those reaching that age between 1 July 2022 and 31 December 2024 were due by 31 December 2025. Later buildings are due by 31 December of the year they reach the trigger age.
• The county page covers unincorporated Palm Beach County only. Cities with their own building departments, such as Boca Raton, apply their own rules.
• The county sends certified letters to associations in the year the inspection is due, and the inspection must be completed within 180 days of receiving the letter unless a fixed legacy deadline applies.
• Phase 1, Phase 2 and Phase One Amended reports all use Form EB18-2024 and are uploaded through the county's Milestone Inspection Form Submission portal with the building's Reference ID, one building and one report type at a time, and only by the architect or engineer who prepared the report.
• In the state's 2025 data, 17 of the 39 Palm Beach municipal building officials did not report milestone figures, the largest gap of the three South Florida counties.
• Palm Beach was one of the three counties, with Broward and Miami-Dade, that reported the most required Phase 2 inspections in 2024.
• OPPAGA found that some jurisdictions in Palm Beach County accept one combined Phase 1 and Phase 2 inspection.
• A 60-day Phase 1 extension needs a written request from the architect or engineer, good cause from the owner, no evidence of unsafe conditions and a sealed statement that the building may stay occupied; a Phase 2 extension needs the request and the sealed statement.

How we handle milestone inspections in Palm Beach County

The Palm Beach County filing is strict about who submits and how. Only the architect or engineer who prepared the report can upload it, one building and one report type at a time, on Form EB18-2024 with the building's Reference ID. We make sure the professional we arrange has the Reference ID and the county's form before the inspection starts, so the 180-day window is spent inspecting rather than chasing paperwork.[1]

Permits for milestone inspections in Palm Beach County

• Palm Beach County Building Division: Milestone inspection notices and filings for unincorporated Palm Beach County

When is a milestone inspection due?

By 31 December of the year the building reaches 30 years from its certificate of occupancy, and every 10 years after that. If the certificate date is not available, the building official's records of occupancy set the date. Buildings that turned 30 before 1 July 2022 were due before 31 December 2024, and those that turned 30 between 1 July 2022 and 31 December 2024 were due before 31 December 2025.[4]

Is it 25 years within 3 miles of the coast?

Not automatically any more. The 2022 law set 25 years for buildings within 3 miles of the coastline. The 2023 law (SB 154) replaced that with a local choice, so the local enforcement agency now decides whether local circumstances, such as proximity to salt water, require 25 years. Many South Florida departments chose to keep the 3-mile line; Tampa and Pinellas use 30 years. Check your own department.[4][5][6][1][7][8]

How do Phase 1 and Phase 2 work?

• The building department sends written notice by certified mail, return receipt requested.
• The association tells unit owners within 14 days, with the due date.
• Phase 1, a visual examination and qualitative assessment, is completed within 180 days of the notice, when the architect or engineer submits the report to the building department.
• Phase 2, with destructive or nondestructive testing, is required only if Phase 1 finds substantial structural deterioration. A progress report with a timeline is due within 180 days of the Phase 1 report.
• The association sends the inspector's summary to every owner within 45 days of receiving a report.
• Repairs for substantial structural deterioration must start within 365 days of the Phase 2 report.

Who performs the inspection?

An architect licensed under chapter 481 or an engineer licensed under chapter 471 who is authorized to practise in Florida. A team may do the work with an architect or engineer as the registered design professional in responsible charge, and all work and reports are signed and sealed by the qualified team member. We arrange and coordinate the inspection; the professional performs it and seals the report.[4]

Frequently asked questions