Governor Ron DeSantis is hoping Florida lawmakers will get the ball rolling to address the state’s looming "condominium crisis."
He made a stop in Tampa Tuesday morning for the swearing-in of Hillsborough County State Attorney Suzie Lopez.
While there, Gov. DeSantis answered questions about the future of the condo industry in Florida—telling reporters that millions of Floridians may be on the verge of losing their homes due to high costs.
Congratulations to @SuzyLopezSA on being reelected by the people of Hillsborough County! pic.twitter.com/1EtmFG5Vuq
— Ron DeSantis (@GovRonDeSantis) January 8, 2025
“Things happen in life and it’s not like the government can save, but this was created by the legislation," DeSantis said after the swearing-in ceremony.
The Governor said lawmakers are partially to blame for the rising cost of insurance and Homeowners Association (HOA) fees.
DeSantis said prices started going up after he signed off on new laws approved by the legislature following the deadly Surfside condo collapse in 2021.
98 people were killed in the incident, and DeSantis said the Florida Legislature wanted these laws to prevent similar tragedies.
“I think everyone had to acknowledge that it was kind of a work in progress," he said. "It was no way there weren’t going to be any issues.”
At the time, there was bipartisan agreement on rules that required high-rise condo buildings to be inspected regularly and for funding to be set aside for repairs and maintenance.
To DeSantis' point—those laws did create problems for some condo owners.
“My unit is 1400 square feet and my assessments are $49,000," Hillsborough condo owner Earl Cooper said.
Cooper purchased his parents’ condo in the Belleair community. The building is over 40 years old, and Florida’s law requires that the property’s HOA fully fund its reserves to get the building up to code.
But that requires residents, like Cooper, to pay more in assessment fees and in most cases, higher property insurance.
“Our smallest apartment, which is like 1200-1300 sq feet, the assessment is in the high $30,000 and it goes up from there," Cooper added. "We have one unit, which is a larger unit, their assessment is $100,000."
Gov. DeSantis wanted lawmakers to convene a special session back in September but couldn’t get the House or the Senate to agree.
Today, I met with condominium owners in Pinellas County to hear their concerns about the effect of some post-Surfside legislative reforms.
— Ron DeSantis (@GovRonDeSantis) September 19, 2024
This feedback will enable the Legislature to make necessary changes so that condo owners—particularly seniors on fixed income—can afford to… pic.twitter.com/U3SnyEdUJz
“If we have an agreement, I’ll call the session, and we’ll go. But I do think we need to act sooner rather than later," DeSantis said on Tuesday.
Florida’s newly elected House Speaker Danny Perez, R-Miami, thinks it’s best to have the conversation during the regular session, which starts in March.
"The question shouldn't be when," Perez told reporters in November. "The question should be what. What is the solution that people are offering to the issue before condos? It's an issue we'll be discussing during session."
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