CLEARWATER, Fla. – Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis held a news conference in Clearwater on Monday, where he signed a bill to provide relief for condominium owners facing regulatory challenges.
Citing the Surfside building collapse in 2021, which claimed nearly 100 lives and raised serious questions about building safety standards, DeSantis said that while Florida legislature enacted measures aimed at preventing similar disasters in the future, the well-intentioned regulations led to concerns regarding the financial burden placed on condo owners.
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“There’s been a huge demand to be able to live here in the state of Florida, and so people’s home values have gone up,” said DeSantis “And so you can sell a condo unit, maybe you do make a lot of money, but it isn’t like you’re going to have a lot of affordable options to be able to go.”
DeSantis added that the dilemma particularly affects senior citizens on fixed incomes, prompting officials to seek input from condo owners through roundtable discussions. The need for reform became increasingly urgent, leading to a special session called in January to address condo regulations alongside immigration issues.
Despite initial setbacks, a bill aimed at reforming condo regulations reached the governor’s desk. HB 913 seeks to enhance transparency and accountability within condominium associations while providing financial relief for owners.
“This bill will make changes to the regulation of condos and cooperatives,” DeSantis explained. “It will increase transparency and accountability on condominium associations and will provide needed financial relief for condo owners.”
In addition to the condo relief bill, the governor also signed legislation to improve the My Safe Florida condo pilot program. The initiative aims to provide grants for condo associations to enhance resilience against extreme weather events, a pressing concern in a state that has faced multiple hurricanes in recent years.
The new legislation takes effect July 1.