It looks like the State of Florida is now requiring balcony inspections via Form DBPR_hr_7020. The form leaves a gray area by stating “The inspector must have
the education and experience to be competent to perform the inspection”. Does anyone know if what that means? Are licensed home inspectors “educated” enough to perform these inspections?
It’s for public lodging 3 or more stories high.
If you have the requisite skills (engineer or equivalent), the proper insurance, and the fortitude to withstand the tremendous liability of “certifying” a balcony (most of which is not visible), then decide for yourself.
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Brother Dom
I couldn’t have said it any better. you are 100% correct.
I used to do them under my contractors license for may years, but they a pain in the ass.( ask me why)
I did make some good money doing them.
However, the liability is high and I was lucky .
I’m near Gainesville and the University of Florida which has thousand apron thousands of balconies. And balcony inspections kept me busy during certain times.
It paid good for a while then I got bored with it.
It means ‘clench your sphincter’ as YOU are the one that will be taking the hit if anything goes wrong, ie, “passing the buck” or “scapegoat”!
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I inspected about 10 or 15(?) new build condos in a Fort Myers Paseo neighborhood 7 or 8 years ago. They all had improper wood framed stucco installations and these funky bolt on balconies. I called out the balconies and stucco issues on all of them. 2 or 3 years ago we got an inspection in that neighborhood. Driving in was a WOW moment probably 15% or 20% (maybe more) of the units had Blue tarps, and/or stucco repairs in progress. During the inspection upon getting upstairs there was a official notice on the door to the balcony from the building Department stating that all of the balconies in the neighborhood had been closed due to safety risk.
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Hi All, I just received a call today by a multidwelling superintendant inquiring about a California Bill SB 721. This requires that all multidwelling properties with raised exterior elevated elements (balconies stairs above 6 Ft. off the finished grade) be inspected and certified as safe. I was ambushed on this one as compliance with this new building code must be completed by January 1st 2025 by building owners and re-inspected every 6 years thereafter. Golden opportunity for building and keeping a repeat customer base! Question: Does anyone have a check list that they use specific to structural raised elements that they would be willing to share?
You should be researching and posting about this in the CALIFORNIA section!
Note, this has been discussed a few times in the recent past, so a visit to the SEARCH feature would also be in order.
California version requires a Professional Engineer, Florida version does not. Here’s the Florida form:
http://www.myfloridalicense.com/dbpr/hr/forms/documents/dbpr_hr_7020_certificate_of_balcony_inspection.pdf
Short answer is that anyone can do these, actually anyone who thinks they are qualified.
From form: "The inspector must have
the education and experience to be competent to perform the inspection".
That has the language that would require someone with a stamp and lots of insurance.
Thank You Jeffrey! I really do appreciate your direction on this!
You’re correct about cost. It’s California and the law makers are about writing laws that are impossible to comply with. We had a walkway in Berkeley that collapsed a few years ago that killed several people. So it was a great opportunity for lawmakers to write a building code to appease the mob. When you think about the dangers of common areas, they have to be kept safe for the California criminals to assault law abiding citizens at any cost!
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Well, I participated in such inspections, and what we found was dry rot and concealed damage that really did need to be fixed. I suppose it kept safe criminals climbing balconies in the dead of night, but…
Our area has a lot of stucco construction, and common balcony design with enclosed areas that would not dry out in case of a leak. It was a serious issue, and was solved with an inspection process that was readily complied with.