As we mark the third anniversary of the Champlain Towers South tragedy in Surfside, Fla., CAI honors the memory of the victims and reiterates its commitment to promoting safety and resilience within community associations. CAI remains dedicated to providing education, resources, and support to community associations to protect the lives, well-being, and investments of all community residents.
When the Champlain Tower South condominium in Surfside, Fla., partially collapsed three years ago this month, Daniel Gonzalez was in bed just an hour away in Boca Raton. His immediate reaction was to commission a structural inspection on their nearly 50-year-old building. Gonzalez advises managers and boards facing the recertification process to be hypervigilant about structural maintenance.
Freddie Mac took a giant step toward transparency last week when it announced sweeping changes to its condominium and housing cooperative financing system. The government-sponsored enterprise that underwrites mortgages is introducing a tool that indicates whether a community is “certified” for financing or “not eligible”—and providing guidance that explains why a community may not be eligible.
Community associations should incorporate preventive maintenance and structural inspections into their reserve studies—the important budget planning tools that identify the components a community association is responsible for maintaining or replacing, indicate the status of the reserve fund, and provide a stable and equitable funding plan to offset anticipated future major common area expenditures. The recommendations are part of new Reserve Study Standards released by Community Associations Institute (CAI), the leading international authority on community association governance, management, and education.
The partial collapse of Champlain Towers South condominium in Surfside, Fla., on June 24, 2021, killed 98 people and is considered one of the worst building disasters in U.S. history. The tragedy spurred CAI into action, galvanizing members and staff around condo safety. Over the past two years, CAI has educated community association residents, board members, managers, business partners, legislators, and regulators about structurally sound and fiscally responsible communities.
