Miami's housing market is flooded with aging condos which owners are desperate to sell before strict new regulations come into force later this year, according to a recent report from ISG World.

Talking about an "impending crisis," the report found that older condos dominate the market: nearly 90 percent of active listings in the southeast Florida city are condos that are more than 30 years old, while only 3 percent are less than a decade old.

As of the second quarter of the year, there were a total of 20,293 active listings in the Miami-Dade, Broward & Palm Beach Counties, according to ISG World. Of these, 17,796 were condos built at least 30 years ago. In Miami-Dade County alone, 7,961 active listings were more than three decades old; 1,088 were for condos aged between 10 and 30 years; and 588 condos less than 10 years old. The numbers suggest that a significant number of condo owners in Miami are trying to sell their aging property before the new regulations introduced by the SB 4-D Bill, Building Safety, come into place in 2025. Under the bill, Florida condos over three stories tall and over three years old must undergo a first inspection by an architect or engineer that, should evidence of "substantial structural deterioration" be found, will be followed by a second, deeper inspection. If no sign of deterioration is found, a new inspection will be done after 10 years, and so on. According to a June 2023 amendment, local jurisdictions can set the inspection requirements to 25 years instead of 30. The inspection reports will be made available to owners, tenants and prospective buyers online. The bill also requires condo associations to begin repairs within a year of receiving a report calling for work to be done. If they do not do so, enforcement might intervene and determine the building isn't safe for human occupancy; condo association directors might also be liable to civil lawsuits.

A new condo project is seen on March 31, 2016, being built next to the Brickell East condos (right) that were built in 1983 in Miami. Nearly 90 percent of all condos for sale in Miami-Dade and nearby counties are over three decades old, according to a recent report from ISG World.

 

The bill was passed by the Florida legislature in May 2022 after the Surfside tragedy of June 24, 2021, when a large part of the 12-story Champlain Towers South condo in the town collapsed in the middle of the night, killing 98 people. Investigators found that the building had been in dire need of structural repairs.

The South Florida market is full of aging condos. While many may be structurally sound, all are likely to face an increase in condo association fees. After the deadline of December 31, by which the first round of inspections must be completed, condo associations will have to prove they have the funds necessary for maintenance, inspections, and potential repairs. The bill for potential repairs and maintenance works might be in the millions.

There is also another reason why so many owners of older condos are trying to get rid of them: 30-year-old condos and older have depreciated 19 percent since 2023.

In 2024, the average sales price of a condo in the three counties analyzed by ISG World was $225,000, down from $277,000 last year. The biggest price drop was reported between 2022 and 2023, when 30-year-old and older condos went from selling for an average $325,000 to $277,000.

During the same time frame, condos under 10 years old appreciated by 9 percent. The average sales price of a condo that is 10 years old or less is $1,943,000 this year, according to ISG World estimates; last year, it was $1,840,000.