FL- 12 Story Condo Partial Building Collapse, many still unaccounted for, Miami, 24 June 2021

[anneg]

Here is a letter to the owners of the condos from the Board. It has the estimates and proposed scope of work. Interesting read.

https://s.wsj.net/public/resources/documents/miamiletter0628.pdf

Very interesting. The letter is well written and very clear about what needed to be done, IMO, as well as what the repairs would cost.

 

[moonriverfarm]

I keep saying by the time it’s all said and done, I’ll have oceanfront property. I’m not in a flood zone or even an evacuation zone. But I’m sure at some point, a hurricane will come along and wipe out Siesta Key and Longboat Key condos. People keep right on building out there. I guess the Dolphin Towers debacle wasn’t enough of a wake up call. Sigh.

For many years we vacationed at The Colony on Longboat - from the 60s to 12 years ago right before it closed due to - guess what - maintenance issues and in-fighting between owners and management. Now there will be a multi million dollar high rise in the place of what once was one of the most wonderful, unspoiled spots in the area. Same with Villa Am Meer on Longboat. Greed is ruining Florida beaches.

 

[Knitty]

Maybe someone familiar with real estate laws in Florida or involved in a recent purchase could provide input? I read a "condo association" does not have to disclose anything to potential buyers....because the buyer is not a member of the association until the sales transaction is completed? And, the seller only has disclose issues that affect the condo unit itself.... not the public/common areas? Does this apply in Florida?
PS... Good night @Cujenn81

Selling a Florida Home: What Are My Disclosure Obligations?

The categories covered on the standard Florida disclosure form include, for example:

• whether any actual or potential legal claims, complaints, or court proceedings affect the property
• whether any disputes have arisen regarding the property's boundaries
• whether the property contains any past or present sinkholes (a particular hazard in Florida)
• whether the property contains any environmental hazards such as asbestos, lead, mold, defective drywall (another hot-button problem in Florida), and others
• whether any infestations or damage have occurred from wood-destroying organisms such as termites or from fungi, and
• whether there are any problems with structural and other essential components of the home, such as the roof, plumbing, electrical wiring, major appliances, HVAC, and more.

 

[dixiegirl1035]

Here is a letter to the owners of the condos from the Board. It has the estimates and proposed scope of work. Interesting read.

https://s.wsj.net/public/resources/documents/miamiletter0628.pdf

OMG, I have chill bumps. This was sent out just a few months ago. This is just horrific as more information comes out as to all this timing/problems/exponential increase in problems since 2018 being stated.

ETA: Once other condo association owners see all this re end of life for many parts of a building.... egads... move out now as those assessments that are multi millions WILL COME.

 

[GatorFL]

Selling a Florida Home: What Are My Disclosure Obligations?

You missed the important one:

• if the property is in a community governed by a condo or homeowner's association, information about the mandatory membership, the requirement to pay monthly or quarterly fees as well as assessments, and what documents contain more details about the association and its rules (Florida Statutes §720.401); and there's a similar statute specifically for condominiums (Florida Statutes §718.503), and
  

 

[GatorFL]

OMG, I have chill bumps. This was sent out just a few months ago. This is just horrific as more information comes out as to all this timing/problems/exponential increase in problems since 2018 being stated.

ETA: Once other condo association owners see all this re end of life for many parts of a building.... egads... move out now as those assessments that are multi millions WILL COME.

So many people are moving here right now and many are paying a premium to live in Florida. No income taxes, great weather, favorable political environment. I bet it doesn't matter if the building they choose needs repairs, so much money is flooding in the repairs will be made.

 

[moonriverfarm]

Wonder what the assessment would have been per unit for the much needed repairs.

 

[indicolite22]

I compared Zillow photos with apartment layouts and SM photos & videos. It looks like the lady who told her husband on the phone that the pool deck caved in lived in the apt #410. The condo is directly opposite the pool deck. Judging by older pics she previously lived two doors down in unit #412 (with ocean views). She made her last SM post a day before the collapse.

 

[Herat]

Wonder what the assessment would have been per unit for the much needed repairs.

The math: $15,000,000 and 136 units. If you count the penthouse as two units, giving you a denominator of 137:

About $110,000 per unit. ( $220,000 for the penthouse)

Now actually getting those funds out of 136 owners is going to take years. There will be non-payers, and protests, and maybe even legal challenges, liens. They are going to have to make assessment payments on time. Maybe someone can loan them the money at a low interest rate.

If you had a 40 year old condo worth $600,000 (probably lowest priced unit) would you pay the $110,000?

 

[BetteDavisEyes]

Missing Florida woman was on phone with husband, as building came crumbling down (nbcnews.com)

Cassondra “Cassie” Billedeau-Stratton had heard her building's swimming pool collapse before making the frantic call.

A woman, among those missing from the Champlain Towers South collapse, was on the phone with her husband moments after an outdoor swimming pool caved and then the line went dead.

Rescuers still have not found Cassondra “Cassie” Billedeau-Stratton, 40, who was staying on the fourth floor of the doomed Surfside, Florida condo complex, when she frantically called her husband and described the massive sink hole beneath their fourth-floor unit that had once been the building's swimming pool...

 

[GatorFL]

The math: $15,000,000 and 136 units. If you count the penthouse as two units, giving you a denominator of 13:

About $110,000 per unit. ( $220,000 for the penthouse)

Now actually getting those funds out of 136 owners is going to take years. There will be non-payers, and protests, and maybe even legal challenges. They are going to have to make assessment payments on time. Maybe someone can loan them the money at a low interest rate.

If you had a 40 year old condo worth $600,000 (probably lowest priced unit) would you pay the $110,000?

The HOA had a loan lined up for the repairs, it is in the letter I posted.

Yes, people pay.

 

[MimosaMornings]

I would like to see a list with a breakdown of all the capital projects budgeted versus completed in the last 10 years for that building.
JMO

 

[Herat]

The HOA had a loan lined up for the repairs, it is in the letter I posted.

Yes, people pay.

Good.

Also realize the costruction is going to mean the pool likely has to be removed and rebuilt and all the pool deck has to be taken up, along with the piers underneath it. The parking garage will have to be closed to remove the floor and replace all the piers.

A lot of inconvenience. A lot of noise. A lot of bother. Not a good time to be trying to sell a condo.

 

[dixiegirl1035]

The math: $15,000,000 and 136 units. If you count the penthouse as two units, giving you a denominator of 137:

About $110,000 per unit. ( $220,000 for the penthouse)

Now actually getting those funds out of 136 owners is going to take years. There will be non-payers, and protests, and maybe even legal challenges, liens. They are going to have to make assessment payments on time. Maybe someone can loan them the money at a low interest rate.

If you had a 40 year old condo worth $600,000 (probably lowest priced unit) would you pay the $110,000?

MOO

The association should have had a long term plan for all this and slowly built up reserves to meet such many many years prior. My HOA/POA does the same thing and PIzzes me to no end. They don't build up for anticipated and KNOWN capital items in their 15 year plan. It's not fair MOO to later owners who get hit with a $$$ assessment as it should be paid on an ongoing basis for those that live there now. MOO

 

[dixiegirl1035]

The HOA had a loan lined up for the repairs, it is in the letter I posted.

Yes, people pay.

Interesting as the bylaws for my HOA/POA (not condo) specifically state we CANNOT take out loans. Again, it should be a build up in reserves vs. a one time hit to the person who just happens to own it at the time, or later when loan is taken out.

 

[Hope32]

My guess is it would probably be rolled into the monthly HOA fees paid.. My HOA went up $10 a month last year because they are replacing the roofs on all the units... So my guess is that they would have it put into HOA payments

 

[MimosaMornings]

This is an interesting read about the Dolphin condo building that has been mentioned in some MSM articles.
JMO


The Story Behind a Downtown Sarasota Condo's Near-Collapse

 

[IQuestion]

The math: $15,000,000 and 136 units. If you count the penthouse as two units, giving you a denominator of 137:

About $110,000 per unit. ( $220,000 for the penthouse)

Now actually getting those funds out of 136 owners is going to take years. There will be non-payers, and protests, and maybe even legal challenges, liens. They are going to have to make assessment payments on time. Maybe someone can loan them the money at a low interest rate.

If you had a 40 year old condo worth $600,000 (probably lowest priced unit) would you pay the $110,000?

Herat...
NO. Instead of ponying up $110,000 for a 40 year old building, I would use the money for a down payment on a single family residence. For others, this might not fit into their life style...in which case, they should look for a better/newer property. Geesh laahweez...the layers (pardon choice of words) of this disaster gets worse each day. I am impressed so many investigative reporters have been working around the clock to keep the public informed.

 

[MimosaMornings]

Herat...
NO. Instead of ponying up $110,000 for a 40 year old building, I would use the money for a down payment on a single family residence. For others, this might not fit into their life style...in which case, they should look for a better/newer property. Geesh laahweez...the layers (pardon choice of words) of this disaster gets worse each day. I am impressed so many investigative reporters have been working around the clock to keep the public informed.

You wouldn’t get that view unless you’re in a high rise building.
Which seems to be the big draw to these expensive condos.
(No need to worry about flooding in the garage or cracked balconies - just look at the view)
JMO

 

[SuziQ]

Oh dear! My husband was correct. There was a lot of patching and painting hiding the problem instead of fixing it. If you don't replace rusting rebar it will continue to deteriorate. You can't patch and paint this problem!

Home | Daily Mail Online

Snipped
Espinosa, who had a team of three maintenance workers, also told CBS Miami how he would regularly see exposed rebar rods poking out of corroded concrete. He claimed he would plaster over it with cement in a bid to fix it. The bars, which cannot be seen from intact, structually-sound concrete, would then appear in other parts of the 12-story building's basement, Espinosa said.