Florida Condominium Owners' Right to Inspect Association Records
By Isabella Martinez | Last reviewed September 29, 2026
A Florida condominium owner does not have to give the association a reason for wanting to see its records. The statute says so directly. Chapter 718 of the Florida Statutes gives unit owners broad access to association records, and amendments enacted in 2024 and 2025 added criminal penalties and extended a website-posting requirement to much smaller associations. This guide follows the rules as they appear in the 2026 Florida Statutes.
What records can a Florida condo owner inspect?
Section 718.111(12)(a) lists the association's "official records." Among other things, they include:
- the recorded declaration of condominium and bylaws, with all amendments, and the current rules of the association;
- minutes of all meetings of the association, the board, committees, and the unit owners, plus a recording of any meeting conducted by video conference;
- a current roster of unit owners;
- all current insurance policies, and any management agreement, lease, or other contract to which the association is a party;
- accounting records, including itemized records of receipts and expenditures, bank statements, and ledgers;
- audits, financial reports, and structural integrity reserve studies;
- ballots, sign-in sheets, and proxies, which must be kept for one year after the election, vote, or meeting;
- structural and life-safety inspection reports, bids for materials, equipment, or services, and building permits.
The list ends with a catch-all for all other written records of the association related to its operation. Fla. Stat. § 718.111(12)(a). If an owner is trying to understand a special assessment, the budget, the reserve study, the bids and the contracts are usually the place to start.
How a records request works, and the 10-working-day clock
The official records are open to inspection by any association member, and by a representative the member authorizes, at all reasonable times. The right includes making or obtaining copies at the member's reasonable expense. The association may adopt reasonable rules about the frequency, time, location, notice, and manner of inspections, but it "may not require a member to demonstrate any purpose or state any reason for the inspection." Id. § 718.111(12)(c).
The records must be made available within 45 miles of the condominium property or within the county where it is located, within 10 working days after the association receives a written request. Id. § 718.111(12)(b). When it responds, the association must simultaneously provide a checklist of all records made available for inspection and copying, identifying any official records that were not made available. Id. § 718.111(12)(c). If the requested records are posted on the association's website or available through its mobile application, the association may satisfy the request by directing the owner there. Id.
Penalties when an association withholds records
If the association fails to provide the records within 10 working days after receiving a written request, the law creates a rebuttable presumption that the association willfully failed to comply. An owner denied access is entitled to actual damages or minimum damages of $50 per calendar day for up to 10 days, beginning on the 11th working day after the association received the written request. A person who prevails in an enforcement action is entitled to recover reasonable attorney fees from the person in control of the records who knowingly denied access. Id. § 718.111(12)(c).
The statute now carries criminal penalties as well. A director, board member, or community association manager who willfully and knowingly or intentionally violates the inspection requirements commits a second-degree misdemeanor and must be removed from office. Willfully and knowingly or intentionally defacing or destroying required accounting records, or failing to create or maintain them, with the intent of causing harm to the association or its members is a first-degree misdemeanor. Refusing to release records with the intent to avoid or escape detection, arrest, trial, or punishment for a crime is a third-degree felony. Id.
Records the association can keep private
Some records are not accessible to unit owners. They include records protected by the lawyer-client privilege or the work-product privilege, information obtained in connection with approving the lease, sale, or other transfer of a unit, personnel records of association or management company employees, medical records of unit owners, and personal identifying information such as Social Security and driver license numbers. Id.
Condo websites: the new 25-unit threshold
Beginning January 1, 2026, an association managing a condominium with 25 or more units that does not contain timeshare units must post digital copies of specified documents on its website or make them available through a mobile application. Id. § 718.111(12)(g)1. The threshold used to be 150 units, so buildings with 25 to 149 units are now covered.
The documents that must be posted include the declaration, bylaws, articles of incorporation, and rules; approved minutes of board meetings over the preceding 12 months; the annual budget and financial reports; a list of executory contracts and bids received in the past year; inspection reports; the most recent structural integrity reserve study, if applicable; and building permits for ongoing or planned construction. Id. § 718.111(12)(g)2. Unless a shorter period applies, a document must be posted within 30 days after the association receives or creates it. Id. § 718.111(12)(g)1.
Before you sue: arbitration or mediation
Florida adds a step before a records dispute goes to court. Section 718.1255 treats a governing body's failure to "[a]llow inspection of books and records" as a covered dispute. Before filing suit over such a dispute, a party must either petition the Division of Florida Condominiums, Timeshares, and Mobile Homes for nonbinding arbitration or initiate presuit mediation. Id. § 718.1255(1), (4)(a), (5).
The Division also has authority over owner access to association records. If an owner shows that he or she requested the records in writing by certified mail, repeated the request by certified mail as the statute describes, and still did not receive access, the Division must issue a subpoena requiring production of the records. Id. § 718.501(1).
Separately, unit owners may sue the association for failure to comply with Chapter 718 and the condominium documents, and the prevailing party in such an action is entitled to recover reasonable attorney fees. Id. § 718.303(1).
A short checklist for unit owners
Make every request in writing and send it by certified mail. Identify the records you want and keep a copy of the request. Count 10 working days from the date the association received it, and ask for the checklist the statute requires. If the association refuses or ignores the request, keep a written record of every response. The statute's remedies turn on proof of what you asked for and when.
Talking with Reiser Law
Reiser Law, P.C.'s Miami office, on Brickell Avenue, represents unit owners and associations in condominium, HOA and real estate disputes. Hablamos español. Learn more about our Miami office and practice areas, or send us a message.
This article is general information, not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. The law changes, and its application depends on the facts of each case. Attorney advertising.