Repairs & Maintenance

Reflects Florida law as of August 2026. The answers on this page depend heavily on whether you live in a condominium (Chapter 718) or an HOA (Chapter 720), and on your declaration. Read your declaration before you rely on anything here.

Who is responsible depends on what broke

There is no universal rule that makes every Florida association responsible for every repair. Every repair dispute turns on two questions: what failed, and who does the declaration (and, for condominiums, the statute) assign it to? A roof leak, a pipe burst, and a cracked balcony each have a different answer, and the answer for a condominium is usually different from the answer for a detached home in an HOA.

Condominiums: the statute draws the first line

In a condominium, the association is generally responsible for maintaining the common elements. Section 718.113(1). The declaration may assign maintenance responsibility for certain limited common elements (such as balconies, patios, assigned parking spaces, windows, doors, or other components) to the unit owner or owners entitled to use them.

The declaration also defines the unit boundaries and may assign responsibility for components located inside, outside, or partly outside the unit. Start every condominium repair dispute by locating the declaration's definitions of "unit," "common elements," and "limited common elements."

Many condominium declarations define a unit by reference to the unfinished interior surfaces of perimeter walls, floors, and ceilings. Under that common approach, the building structure, roof, exterior walls, and utility lines serving more than one unit are common elements.

But unit boundaries vary from condominium to condominium. A declaration may assign responsibility for windows, exterior doors, sliding-glass doors, air-conditioning equipment, plumbing lines serving one unit, balconies, or other items differently. The recorded declaration, not a general rule of thumb, controls.

When a component is a common element that the association is responsible for maintaining, the association generally has a nondelegable duty to repair and maintain it. The cause of the damage may affect who ultimately pays, whether insurance applies, or whether the association has a claim against another owner or contractor, but it does not ordinarily excuse the association from addressing its common-element maintenance duty.

In McLlenan v. Cypress Chase North Condominium No. 4 Ass'n, 387 So. 3d 321 (Fla. 4th DCA 2024), unit owners alleged that water leaks and mold resulted from plumbing associated with an upstairs unit. The Fourth District held that the condominium association had a nondelegable duty to repair common elements, regardless of what caused the common-element damage.

In practical terms, an association may still have to repair a damaged common element even when it believes another owner caused the leak or other problem. The association may later seek reimbursement from the responsible person or insurer.

Courts will also order an association to do the work. In Amelio v. Marilyn Pines Unit II Condominium Ass'n, 173 So. 3d 1037 (Fla. 2d DCA 2015), moisture coming through a ground-floor slab had made a unit unlivable despite years of piecemeal fixes. The Second District held that the owners had met every requirement for a mandatory injunction compelling the association to repair the slab, reversed the order denying it, and sent the case back.

Maintenance versus casualty

Condominium maintenance responsibility and insurance responsibility are related but different questions.

For ordinary maintenance and deterioration (such as aging materials, deferred maintenance, or a slow leak from a deteriorated common-element pipe) the declaration and section 718.113 generally determine who must repair the component.

For damage caused by a covered casualty or insurable event (such as a hurricane, fire, sudden plumbing failure, or other covered water loss) section 718.111(11) and the association's insurance policy determine what the association must insure and reconstruct, what the unit owner must insure and replace, how the deductible is allocated, and whether a responsible owner can be charged for uninsured losses.

Damage from an insurable casualty is governed by section 718.111(11), the declaration, and the association's insurance policy. Condominium insurance and reconstruction obligations can be affected by statutory elections, policy terms, deductibles, exclusions, and the cause of the loss. Review the association's policy, the declaration, and the specific loss facts before deciding who must pay.

For an insurable condominium loss, the association's property insurance generally covers the building and condominium property as originally installed or replaced in accordance with the statute and governing documents. The association's policy generally excludes certain items inside the unit that the owner should insure separately. Section 718.111(11)(f). Items commonly excluded from association coverage include:

• Personal property.
• Floor, wall, and ceiling coverings, including paint, wallpaper, carpet, tile, and other finishes.
• Electrical fixtures and appliances.
• Water heaters and water filters.
• Built-in cabinets and countertops.
• Window treatments.

A unit owner's HO-6 policy is commonly used to insure those excluded items, as well as personal belongings and possible loss-of-use expenses.

After a covered casualty, the association generally repairs or reconstructs the property it is required to insure, subject to the insurance policy, deductible, statutory allocation rules, and any valid governing-document provision. The deductible is generally treated as a common expense, although Florida law permits allocation to a responsible owner in specified circumstances. Section 718.111(11)(j).

The unit owner is generally responsible for repairing or replacing items excluded from the association's coverage, often through an HO-6 policy.

An owner may be responsible for uninsured repair costs when the owner, a family member, tenant, guest, occupant, or invitee intentionally caused the loss, acted negligently, or violated the declaration or association rules and caused the damage.

An owner's delay in reporting known damage can also affect coverage. If an owner knew about damage but did not report it until after the association's insurance claim was settled or denied as untimely, the association may not be obligated to pay the resulting loss. Section 718.111(11)(j)1 and 4. Promptly report water intrusion, wind damage, fire damage, mold conditions, and other significant property damage to both the association and your own insurer.

After a hurricane or other casualty, the association commonly repairs the roof, structure, exterior walls, and other insured condominium property. The unit owner commonly remains responsible for interior finishes and personal property, including flooring, paint, cabinets, countertops, appliances, and belongings.

Responsibility for drywall, windows, exterior doors, sliding-glass doors, hurricane protection, air-conditioning components, and other borderline items depends on the declaration, the association's insurance policy, the type of loss, and applicable statute. Do not assume that a particular item is automatically the association's responsibility simply because it is outside the unit or automatically the owner's responsibility simply because it is inside the unit.

If a deteriorated common-element pipe leaks over time, the association may have a duty to repair the pipe and any common-element damage. Whether the association must also pay for damage to flooring, cabinets, paint, personal property, mold remediation, temporary housing, or other owner losses can depend on the declaration, insurance coverage, the duration of the leak, the association's notice and response, and whether the association breached its maintenance duty.

Access

A condominium association has an irrevocable right of access to a unit during reasonable hours when access is necessary to maintain, repair, or replace common elements; prevent damage to common elements or another unit; or comply with the association's statutory and contractual duties. Section 718.111(5).

An owner should not refuse necessary access as leverage in a repair dispute. Refusing access can delay repairs, increase damage, expose the owner to liability, and affect insurance coverage. The association should still provide reasonable notice when circumstances permit and should limit its entry to work reasonably related to the repair need.

At the same time, the association's engineer does not get the last word on everything. Courts often defer to a board's reasonable choice of repair method when the board acts within its authority, makes an informed decision, and chooses a repair approach supported by an appropriate investigation. Deference does not protect a board that refuses to address a known maintenance problem, acts outside its authority, proceeds in bad faith, or chooses an unreasonable repair method without adequate inquiry. Hollywood Towers Condominium Ass'n v. Hampton, 40 So. 3d 784 (Fla. 4th DCA 2010).

HOAs: the declaration is nearly everything

Chapter 720 does not provide the same comprehensive statutory allocation of maintenance responsibility that applies to condominium common elements. In an HOA, the declaration, any supplemental declaration, and the association's maintenance provisions usually determine who must maintain and repair each component.

In many detached-home HOAs, the owner maintains the home, roof, exterior, driveway, landscaping, and other improvements on the lot, while the association maintains common areas such as entry features, private roads, drainage systems, retention areas, recreational facilities, and perimeter landscaping.

That is a common declaration structure, not a universal rule. Townhome, villa, cluster-home, and maintenance-included communities often allocate responsibility differently. Some declarations make the association responsible for roofs or exterior walls; others place nearly all maintenance duties on the owner and give the association only the right, not the duty, to step in. Some allocate "maintenance" to the association but "repair and replacement" to the owner, or the reverse.

The rule is to find the maintenance article of your declaration and read every word, including amendments and any supplemental declarations for your phase. If the association has adopted a written maintenance policy or matrix, request it (it is an official record), but remember that a board policy cannot override the declaration.

HOA repair disputes most often involve damage flowing from a common area onto a lot: a failed drainage system that floods a yard, an eroding lake bank, a common-area tree that damages a roof, or a private road that has been allowed to deteriorate. If the declaration makes the association responsible for a common area or system and its failure to maintain that property causes damage to an owner's lot or home, the owner may have a claim for breach of the declaration and, depending on the facts, other claims or remedies.

As with condominiums, the board's choice of repair timing and method may receive deference when it is reasonable and made in good faith, but the declaration's maintenance duty remains enforceable. Miller v. Homeland Property Owners Ass'n, 284 So. 3d 534 (Fla. 4th DCA 2019).

Component by component

What to do when the association will not act

Put the problem in writing, with photographs, and send it to the board and the manager in a way you can prove was received. A condominium owner may consider sending a written inquiry by certified mail under section 718.112(2)(a)2. Within 30 days the board must provide a substantive response, or notify you that it has requested a legal opinion (substantive response due within 60 days of your inquiry) or advice from the Division (due within 10 days after the Division responds). See the condominium written inquiry sample. In either type of community, follow with a written records request for the documents that will show what the association knew and did: maintenance and repair contracts, engineering and inspection reports, the insurance policy, the minutes of meetings where the problem was discussed, and any claim correspondence. See Official Records Requests.

Take reasonable steps to prevent additional damage, such as stopping active water intrusion when safe, moving belongings, using dehumidifiers, arranging emergency drying, or obtaining a professional moisture assessment. Keep all receipts, photographs, contractor reports, and communications.

Do not perform a major common-element repair yourself without written authorization or a written agreement addressing scope, permits, insurance, responsibility, and reimbursement. Emergency mitigation is different from permanently repairing a common element; document why the emergency action was necessary.

After a condominium casualty, the association generally performs the reconstruction work for property it is required to insure and repair. Section 718.111(11)(g). A unit owner should obtain written board approval before independently reconstructing property that the association is responsible for repairing, especially where insurance proceeds, common elements, permits, warranties, or building-wide repair plans are involved. An owner who fixes a common element on his or her own may have difficulty recovering the cost, and may take on liability for the work.

Report the loss to your own insurer promptly. Your HO-6 condominium policy or homeowner's policy may cover some interior finishes, personal property, mitigation expenses, mold-related damage, and additional living expenses when the home cannot be occupied. Coverage depends on the policy, endorsements, exclusions, deductible, cause of loss, and timing of the claim.

Your insurer may seek reimbursement from a responsible association, owner, contractor, or insurer through subrogation, but you should not assume that your insurer will pursue another party or that recovery is guaranteed. Timely reporting to the association matters too, because of the late-report rule in section 718.111(11)(j)4.

If the association does not act, an owner may seek damages, a mandatory injunction requiring repair, or both. A condominium owner may be able to file a damages claim based on the association's alleged failure to maintain common elements directly in court because that category of claim is excluded from Chapter 718's mandatory alternative-dispute-resolution process in section 718.1255.

HOA common-area and maintenance disputes often require Chapter 720 presuit mediation under section 720.311 before litigation. The required procedure depends on the community type, the claim, and the relief sought.

Attorney-fee recovery depends on the declaration, the claims asserted, the applicable statute, and which party prevails.

What to preserve

• Dated photographs and video of the condition each time it changes, including the source if you can identify it.
• Every notice you gave the association and every response, with proof of delivery.
• Moisture readings, inspection reports, mold assessments, and repair estimates from your own contractors.
• Receipts for mitigation, temporary repairs, replacement of damaged items, and alternative housing.
• The declaration, any amendments, and any maintenance policy in effect at the time.
• Minutes, inspection reports, and engineering reports obtained through records requests.
• All insurance correspondence, both yours and the association's.
• A log of days you could not use all or part of the home.

When to get a lawyer

A repair dispute becomes a legal matter when the damage is continuing and the association has been told and has not acted, when the association is blaming you or a neighbor for a common-element failure, when mold or structural issues make the home unsafe, or when the cost of what you have lost is substantial. Deadlines to sue run from the time you knew or should have known of the damage, and they are shorter for some claims than others. An attorney can also evaluate whether the association's insurer, your insurer, a neighbor, or a contractor should be part of the claim.