Hurricane Preparation for Florida HOAs and Condo Associations
Hurricane preparation for Florida community associations
Hurricane preparation for an HOA or condominium association means three things: getting the physical property ready before June 1, knowing which decisions the board can make once a storm is declared, and having a vendor already under contract when the forecast cone appears. The third one is where most communities lose time. Contractors in Tampa Bay are booked solid in the forty-eight hours before landfall, and a board that starts calling then is calling too late.
Ally Property Service works with HOA and condominium boards across Tampa Bay on a June-through-November retainer that covers pre-season preparation, storm-window response, and post-storm cleanup. What follows is what boards are actually responsible for, and where a vendor fits.
What Florida law requires of condominium boards before the season
Two obligations sit directly with the board, and both are frequently missed.
Hurricane protection specifications are mandatory for condominiums. Under Section 718.113(5), Florida Statutes, each board of administration of a residential or mixed-use condominium must adopt hurricane protection specifications for every building it operates. This is not optional and it applies regardless of when the condominium was created. The specifications must comply with the applicable building code, and the board may take appearance factors such as color and style into account. Installing, maintaining, repairing, replacing, or operating hurricane protection under this subsection does not count as a material alteration, which removes the usual barrier to acting.
Where the association is already responsible for the hurricane protection under the declaration, or where the declaration already requires owners to install it, no owner vote is needed. Otherwise, installation is subject to Section 718.3026 and approval by a majority of voting interests, recorded in a certificate in the county public records. Where compliant protection is already in place, the board cannot require a different type unless the existing protection has reached the end of its useful life or a change is needed to prevent damage.
This requirement sits in Chapter 718 and applies to condominiums. Homeowners' associations governed by Chapter 720 are not covered by the same specification mandate, though the maintenance duties below still apply.
Common element maintenance remains the association's responsibility. Section 718.113(1) places maintenance, repair, and replacement of the common elements with the association, except where the declaration assigns a limited common element to a unit owner. Deferred maintenance that would be a nuisance in March becomes a liability in September. Loose fascia, blocked drains, unsecured amenity furniture, and overgrown trees near structures are all ordinary maintenance items until wind speed turns them into projectiles.
What the board can do once a storm is declared
This is the part most communities have never read, and it changes what is possible during an emergency.
Section 718.1265 for condominiums and Section 720.316 for homeowners' associations grant boards a specific set of emergency powers. Both are triggered the same way: the association must be responding to damage or injury caused or anticipated by an emergency as defined in Section 252.34(4), a state of emergency must have been declared under Section 252.36 for the association's area, and the governing documents must not specifically prohibit the action.
Once triggered, both statutes allow a board to hold meetings by phone or real-time video with notice given as practicably as possible, cancel and reschedule meetings, appoint assistant officers who are not directors, relocate the principal office, and enter agreements with counties and municipalities for debris removal. Both allow the board to implement a disaster plan, including shutting off elevators, utilities, security systems, or air conditioning, and to close common areas on expert advice.
Two powers matter most for the work a vendor performs. Both statutes allow the board to contract for debris removal and to remove and dispose of wet drywall, insulation, carpet, cabinetry, and fixtures to prevent or reduce mold and mildew. Under Section 718.1265(1)(k), a condominium board may also contract on owners' behalf for items or services the owners are individually responsible for, where this is needed to prevent further injury or damage, with owners reimbursing actual costs. Both statutes also permit special assessments without an owner vote and borrowing against association assets without owner approval where operating funds are insufficient.
These powers last only as long as reasonably necessary to protect health, safety, and welfare, limit further damage, and make emergency repairs. They are not a general grant of authority, and both statutes restrict a board's ability to bar owners from reaching their units or parcels during a governor-declared emergency.
Who pays for what after the storm
The split is set by statute for condominiums and is worth settling before anyone is standing in a flooded lobby.
Under Section 718.111(11)(f), the association's policy must provide primary coverage for all portions of the condominium property as originally installed, or like-kind replacements under the original plans. Section 718.111(11)(f)(3) excludes a specific list that becomes the owner's responsibility: personal property within the unit or on limited common elements, floor, wall and ceiling coverings, electrical fixtures, appliances, water heaters and water filters, built-in cabinets and countertops, and window treatments including curtains, drapes, blinds and their hardware.
Reconstruction after a casualty is handled by the association under Section 718.111(11)(g)(1), unless otherwise authorized. Owners pay for reconstruction of the portions they are required to insure, and the association may charge that work as an assessment. Where association-insured portions are damaged by an insurable event, Section 718.111(11)(j) makes the rebuild a common expense, along with deductibles and uninsured excess damage, except where an owner is liable for damage caused by intentional conduct, negligence, or noncompliance.
What Ally does before June 1
A pre-season walkthrough is scheduled in the spring, documented with photographs, and delivered to the board as a written scope with pricing. Typical items include the following.
- Clearing roof drains, gutters, downspouts, and site drainage inlets
- Trimming vegetation back from structures, walkways, and sight lines
- Identifying and securing or removing loose exterior components
- Inventorying amenity furniture, umbrellas, grills, and signage, with a documented staging location
- Checking pool equipment, enclosures, and gate hardware
- Confirming dumpster, trash corral, and pet waste station anchoring
- Photographing exterior conditions as a pre-storm baseline for insurance purposes
- Confirming access points, gate codes, and an after-hours contact list
The photographic baseline is the item boards most often skip and most often wish they had. Documented pre-storm condition is the difference between a straightforward claim and a disputed one.
During the storm window and after
Within the forecast window, amenity furniture and loose items are staged and secured, drains are cleared a final time, and the community is left in a documented condition. After the storm, work moves to debris removal and clearing access routes, pressure washing and site cleanup, removal of wet materials where mold prevention requires it, and a documented post-storm condition report for the board and its insurer.
Where damage exceeds what a maintenance vendor should handle, the honest answer is to say so and point the board to a licensed specialty contractor. Structural work, roofing, and electrical restoration are not maintenance.
Putting a storm vendor under contract
Contract thresholds apply. Under Section 718.3026, a condominium association must obtain competitive bids for contracts exceeding five percent of the total annual budget, including reserves. Under Section 720.3055, the equivalent threshold for a homeowners' association is ten percent. Section 718.3025 sets requirements for condominium maintenance contracts, including that the contract be in writing and state the services to be provided and the fee.
A seasonal retainer is usually written as a scope with unit pricing, which keeps the pre-season work predictable and the post-storm work defensible. Boards should confirm that any vendor carries general liability and workers' compensation coverage. Under Section 440.02(20), Florida Statutes, construction-trade contractors face a lower employee threshold for mandatory workers' compensation coverage than non-construction employers, and the association's exposure depends on getting that verification in writing before work begins.
Where we work
Ally Property Service works with HOA and condominium communities across Tampa Bay and the surrounding Florida Gulf Coast, including St. Petersburg, Tampa, Clearwater, Largo, Pinellas Park, Seminole, Palm Harbor, Dunedin, Safety Harbor, Oldsmar, Brandon, Riverview, Apollo Beach, Wesley Chapel, Lutz, Land O'Lakes, Sarasota, and Bradenton.
Common questions from boards
When should a community association start hurricane preparation?
Scope and bid the work in February or March so it is complete before June 1. Vendor availability narrows sharply through the spring, and competitive bidding under Section 718.3026 or Section 720.3055 takes time that a board will not have in late May.
Is our condominium board required to adopt hurricane protection specifications?
Yes. Section 718.113(5) requires each board of administration of a residential or mixed-use condominium to adopt hurricane protection specifications for each building it operates, regardless of when the condominium was created. The specifications must comply with the applicable building code.
Can the board approve emergency repairs without an owner vote?
Where a state of emergency has been declared under Section 252.36 for the association's area and the governing documents do not prohibit it, Section 718.1265 for condominiums and Section 720.316 for homeowners' associations allow the board to levy special assessments without an owner vote and to borrow against association assets without owner approval, where operating funds are insufficient. These powers last only as long as reasonably necessary.
Can the board remove wet drywall and carpet from a unit the owner is responsible for?
Both statutes allow a board to mitigate further damage or contagion, including removing and disposing of wet drywall, insulation, carpet, cabinetry, and fixtures to prevent mold or mildew. For condominiums, Section 718.1265(1)(j) extends this to items an owner is obligated to insure or replace, and Section 718.1265(1)(k) allows the association to contract on an owner's behalf where it is needed to prevent further injury or damage, with the owner reimbursing actual costs.
Who pays to replace flooring and appliances after a storm?
For condominiums, Section 718.111(11)(f)(3) excludes floor, wall and ceiling coverings, appliances, electrical fixtures, water heaters, built-in cabinets and countertops, and window treatments from the association's policy. Those are the owner's responsibility. The association's policy covers the condominium property as originally installed.
Does a storm retainer need competitive bids?
It depends on the contract value against the budget. A condominium association must obtain competitive bids where the contract exceeds five percent of the total annual budget including reserves, under Section 718.3026. For a homeowners' association the threshold is ten percent, under Section 720.3055.
Should the community be photographed before the storm?
Yes. A dated photographic record of exterior conditions taken before the storm is the most effective support a board can give its insurer, and it is inexpensive. It is also the item most often skipped.
References
Section 718.113(1) and (5), Florida Statutes — maintenance of common elements; hurricane protection specifications. Section 718.1265, Florida Statutes — association emergency powers, condominiums. Section 720.316, Florida Statutes — association emergency powers, homeowners' associations. Section 718.111(11), Florida Statutes — insurance, including paragraph (f)(3) exclusions, paragraph (g) reconstruction, and paragraph (j) allocation of casualty costs. Section 252.34(4) and Section 252.36, Florida Statutes — definition of emergency and declaration of a state of emergency. Section 718.3025, Florida Statutes — condominium maintenance contract requirements. Section 718.3026, Florida Statutes — condominium contract bidding threshold. Section 720.3055, Florida Statutes — homeowners' association contract bidding threshold. Section 440.02(20), Florida Statutes — construction industry definition for workers' compensation coverage.
This page is general information about Florida community association maintenance and is not legal advice. Statutes are amended regularly and a community's declaration, articles, and bylaws may impose different or additional requirements. Boards should confirm their obligations with association counsel before acting.