Fort Lauderdale - Palm Beach Highrise Condos Spend 25% On Insurance, Highest In North America

Miami Real Estate Investing Podcast With Peter Zalewski

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4d ago 1:05:23

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Miami Condo Mondays™ is a live podcast hosted by Peter Zalewski of the Miami Condo Investing Club™ and veteran broker Jenny Huertas of CVRRealty.com providing an in-depth look at the latest residential real estate trends in South Florida.

Recorded weekly in Greater Downtown Miami, the podcast offers a one-hour discussion on various real estate topics, including preconstruction condos, market trends and investment strategies.

The hosts share their expertise, with Zalewski focusing on macro perspectives and Huertas offering micro insights from her on-the-ground experience.

Tune in every Monday at 4 PM (EST) on the social media accounts of Peter Zalewski and Jenny Huertas for insights on the latest trends in the South Florida condo market.

Episode Overview

The Fort Lauderdale - Palm Beach highrise condo market spends the largest share of its monthly maintenance fees on insurance of any market in North America, with 25 percent of all fees allocated to coverage, according to a new report.

This finding comes from the new “Benchmark 2025 Highrise Edition” report from FirstService Residential, which was analyzed on the Oct. 27, 2025, episode of the Miami Condo Mondays™ podcast.

The report, discussed by co-hosts Peter Zalewski and Jenny Huertas, also found that Miami and Tampa were tied for second-highest, with 20 percent of their maintenance fees going to insurance.

The hosts noted that this heavy insurance burden, a direct result of new state legislation following the June 2021 Surfside condo collapse, is the primary driver for South Florida’s high overall condo fees.

Despite having the highest insurance share, the Fort Lauderdale-Palm Beach market’s overall average monthly fee of $1.02 per square foot is third-highest in North America, trailing only New York City at $1.55 per square foot monthly and Miami’s $1.15 per square foot monthly.

For context, the median monthly fee for North America, represented by Tampa - St. Petersburg, was $0.86 per square foot. The cheapest markets in the study were Las Vegas - Reno at $0.47 per square foot, Vancouver at $0.56 per square foot and the combined Los Angeles - San Diego - San Francisco market at $0.63 per square foot.

This analysis comes as the 30-year fixed mortgage rate sits at 6.19 percent and the Federal Reserve meets this week to decide on interest rates amid 3 percent inflation.

The South Florida condo market remains sluggish, characterized by high supply, low transaction volume and falling prices, despite positive narratives from real estate trade groups.

The high fees are largely driven by new state legislation that introduced two mandatory requirements for condo associations: a Structural Integrity Reserve Study (SIRS) to be conducted every 10 years and a Milestone Inspection Report at a building’s 30-year mark based on its certificate of occupancy.

This marks a significant change, as all Florida condo associations must now complete mandatory inspections and collect reserves to pay for fixes. Critically, the new laws will no longer permit condo boards to defer necessary maintenance.

Zalewski likened the SIRS to a regular doctor’s checkup, while describing the more invasive Milestone Inspection as a “colonoscopy” for a building.

Zalewski argued that these new requirements make a building’s age and its maintenance fees more critical factors for a buyer than its location, a reversal of the traditional real estate mantra.

Huertas noted that these new laws are forcing associations to approve special assessments, which are separate, one-time fees for major repairs that were not budgeted.

Zalewski offered a guesstimate that these assessments could average $25,000 for lowrise buildings, $65,000 for midrise towers, and $100,000 for highrise towers.

Huertas added that owners must also account for contents insurance, which she noted is now “almost mandatory” and can cost an additional $150 to $300 per month.

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Fort Lauderdale - Palm Beach Highrise Condos Spend 25% On Insurance, Highest In North America

Miami Real Estate Investing Podcast With Peter Zalewski

published 4d ago