40 Year Rule

The 40 Year Recertification Ordinance was initially enacted by the Miami-Dade County Commission in the mid-1970’s. In 2001, the area’s building laws were modified and the Florida Building Code was adopted, though the requirement was maintained that buildings in Miami-Dade County after 40 years (and every 10 years thereafter) must be recertified by a registered Florida Engineer or Architect for structural and electrical safety. This Ordinance is applicable for all unincorporated Miami-Dade County and the incorporated Cities within the County. Single family homes, duplexes and minor structures are exempt from this ordinance.

Broward County and Palm Beach Counties have followed Miami-Dade’s lead and have adopted similar Recertification Programs of their own.

How does the 40 Year Recertification process work?

When a qualifying building reaches its 40th year, the County or City in which the building is located mails out a "Notice of Required Inspection" to the Property Owner.

  • From the date of this notice, the property Owner typically has 90 days during which to complete the required inspection
  • If no improvements are required, the building will be structurally and electrically recertified for ten (10) years.
  • If improvements are required, the Property Owner will most often be given a "Reasonable Amount of Time", usually 120 – 150 calendar days, to complete the required improvements and have the building re-inspected
  • The inspecting engineer or architect will then recertify the building upon inspection of the completed improvements (recertification is for 10 years).

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