Miami Neighborhoods: Reserve Studies by Area

Who handles recertification where?

Population from the 2020 Census. Cities with their own building department run recertification and receive milestone reports; unincorporated areas deal with the county.

Area	Residents, 2020	Recertification and milestone office	What the reserve study usually turns on
Brickell, Downtown, Edgewater, Coconut Grove	442,241 (City of Miami)	City of Miami Building Department	Glass towers from the 2000s boom are inside the SIRS cycle years before their first milestone; window walls and garage decks lead their studies.
South Beach, Mid-Beach, North Beach	82,890	City of Miami Beach	Some of the county's oldest high-rise stock, much of it within sight of the ocean. Concrete repair history matters more than age alone.
Sunny Isles Beach	22,342	City of Sunny Isles Beach	A skyline of oceanfront towers, many with large amenity decks over parking.
Surfside, Bal Harbour, Bay Harbor Islands	5,689 (Surfside)	Each town's own building department	Surfside was the site of the Champlain Towers South collapse in June 2021, the event behind the state's SIRS and milestone laws.
Coral Gables	49,248	City of Coral Gables	Mid-rise condominiums and older garden buildings; fewer towers, more roofs, paving and landscaping per unit.
Doral	75,874	City of Doral	Newer stock, much of it below the milestone age, where a first full reserve study sets the baseline.
Kendall, Westchester and other unincorporated areas	2,701,767 (whole county)	Miami-Dade County	Garden-style and low-rise condos, many under three stories: often no SIRS, but reserves for roof, paint and paving still apply.

Area

Residents, 2020

Recertification and milestone office

What the reserve study usually turns on

Brickell, Downtown, Edgewater, Coconut Grove

442,241 (City of Miami)

City of Miami Building Department

Glass towers from the 2000s boom are inside the SIRS cycle years before their first milestone; window walls and garage decks lead their studies.

South Beach, Mid-Beach, North Beach

82,890

City of Miami Beach

Some of the county's oldest high-rise stock, much of it within sight of the ocean. Concrete repair history matters more than age alone.

Sunny Isles Beach

22,342

City of Sunny Isles Beach

A skyline of oceanfront towers, many with large amenity decks over parking.

Surfside, Bal Harbour, Bay Harbor Islands

5,689 (Surfside)

Each town's own building department

Surfside was the site of the Champlain Towers South collapse in June 2021, the event behind the state's SIRS and milestone laws.

Coral Gables

49,248

City of Coral Gables

Mid-rise condominiums and older garden buildings; fewer towers, more roofs, paving and landscaping per unit.

Doral

75,874

City of Doral

Newer stock, much of it below the milestone age, where a first full reserve study sets the baseline.

Kendall, Westchester and other unincorporated areas

2,701,767 (whole county)

Miami-Dade County

Garden-style and low-rise condos, many under three stories: often no SIRS, but reserves for roof, paint and paving still apply.

Why is Surfside part of every conversation?

On June 24, 2021, part of the Champlain Towers South condominium in Surfside collapsed and 98 people died. The National Institute of Standards and Technology opened a National Construction Safety Team investigation into the cause (NIST). Florida's legislature answered in 2022 with the milestone inspection and the SIRS, and boards across the county have been working through the consequences ever since.

Oceanfront towers: Miami Beach, Sunny Isles Beach, Key Biscayne

The SIRS for an oceanfront building is mostly about concrete and water. Balcony slabs, parapets and the garage take the brunt of the salt, and remaining-life estimates for coatings and sealants run short. Expect the waterproofing and exterior painting line to be large and recurring, and expect the provider to ask for every past concrete restoration contract. Boards that have deferred restoration usually see the gap between current reserves and the SIRS schedule turn into a special assessment.

Brickell and Downtown glass towers

Many of the towers from the 2000s building boom use window-wall and curtain-wall systems, large amenity decks and long mechanical lists. Their first milestone dates mostly fall in the 2030s, but the SIRS clock is already running for them. In a SIRS, the windows and exterior doors line can be the most expensive item in the study, because replacing a window wall is a facade project, not a maintenance task. A combined SIRS and full study also picks up the elevators, chillers and pool deck those buildings depend on.

Low-rise and garden-style condos

Kendall, Westchester, Hialeah, Miami Lakes and much of the county's west side are full of one- and two-story condominium buildings. Under three habitable stories there is no SIRS and no milestone inspection, but the association still has to fund reserves for roof replacement, painting and paving under Fla. Stat. 718.112(2)(f). A full reserve study is the honest way to set that number, and it is far cheaper than a tower's SIRS.

Where these figures and rules come from

Miami Neighborhoods