Buying a Condo in Miami Beach

Miami Beach is nearly all condos, and most buildings are old

About 78.5% of Miami Beach housing units sit in buildings with 10 or more units, and just 8.8% are detached houses. With a median build year of 1969, the typical building has already passed its first milestone inspection deadline and is into its second ten-year cycle. Many are Art Deco and mid-century buildings that were never designed for today's insurance and reserve rules.

That is the background for a slow five-year number. The city's all-homes index is up 16.9% in five years, compared with 40.1% for Miami across the bay. Miami Beach condo values have held roughly steady in the last year, but buyers are pricing in the cost of keeping old concrete buildings safe by the sea.

One bedroom vs two: the jump that defines the budget

• Lower third of the market: up to about $271,910
• 1 bedroom: about $348,517
• 2 bedrooms: about $727,965
• 3 bedrooms: about $2,308,466

The move from one bedroom to two more than doubles the price, adding about $379,000. Two-bedroom units are more common in newer, larger and oceanfront buildings, while many smaller older buildings are mostly studios and one-bedrooms. Three-bedroom figures are pulled up by houses and luxury towers, so they say little about a typical condo.

A practical way to use this: if you want a second bedroom for visiting family, compare a two-bedroom in an older building west of Collins Avenue with a one-bedroom plus den in a newer building. The monthly fee and the special-assessment risk can differ more than the asking price does.

Low-rise vs high-rise: which buildings fall under the new reserve rules

Florida's milestone inspection and Structural Integrity Reserve Study (SIRS) requirements apply to condo buildings of three or more habitable stories. A building that turned 30 is due by December 31 of that year (or at 25 if the local building official requires), then every 10 years. Since budgets adopted on or after December 31, 2024, owners in covered buildings cannot waive or reduce SIRS reserves.

On Miami Beach that creates two different products. Two-story garden-style and small walk-up buildings may fall outside the milestone and SIRS rules, though they still face roof, plumbing and concrete repairs funded however the association decides. Taller buildings are covered and must fund reserves, which pushes fees up now but leaves fewer surprises later.

For any building, I read the inspection reports, the reserve study or reserve schedule, the budget, and two years of board minutes. Resale buyers have 7 days (excluding weekends and legal holidays) after receiving the association documents to cancel. Use the whole week.

Flooding, king tides and the building's insurance

Miami Beach is a barrier island, and the city has spent years raising roads and installing pumps to handle tidal flooding. For a condo buyer, the questions are about the building more than the street:

• Does the association carry flood insurance on the building, and for how much?
• Where are the electrical rooms, elevator equipment and parking? Ground-level and below-grade equipment is expensive to replace.
• What is the hurricane deductible on the master policy? It is a percentage of insured value and applies once per calendar year, and associations often pass it to owners as an assessment.
• Has the building had a recent roof replacement or concrete restoration, or is one planned?

Your own HO-6 policy should include loss assessment coverage. Check the FEMA zone of the address as well; much of the island is mapped in higher-risk zones, and lenders will want to see the building's flood coverage.

Second-home buyers: taxes and financing

With 21.2% of units used seasonally, many Miami Beach condo buyers are Canadians, northeastern snowbirds or foreign owners who will not live here full time. That has two consequences.

Property tax. Without a permanent Florida residence there is no homestead exemption. The assessment resets to market value after the sale, and future increases are capped at 10% on non-school levies, versus 3% or CPI for homesteaded owners. Amendment 3 on the November 3, 2026 ballot could change parts of this; the outcome is not known as I write.

Financing. Buildings with a high share of non-owner-occupied units, pending litigation or big unfinished repairs can be non-warrantable for conventional loans. Foreign national loans typically need 30 to 40% down. Ask the lender to review the condo questionnaire before you spend money on inspections.

Canadians can generally stay up to about six months a year as visitors, and should look at the IRS substantial presence test and Form 8840 with a cross-border tax advisor before buying.

Pets, guest rules and resale

Older Miami Beach buildings often have strict limits on dogs, renovation work hours and moving days, and some require board approval of buyers. Read these rules with resale in mind. A pet ban narrows the pool of future buyers, while a building with a long approval process can slow your own closing. If you share your budget, the bedroom count and how often you will be in Florida, I can shortlist buildings that fit and flag the ones with weak reserves.