SB326 HOA Update

Senate Bill 326 “SB 326” (Davis-Stirling Act | Civ. Code § 5550 ) requires California condominium and homeowner associations to conduct balcony inspections to ensure the safety of our residents.

In compliance with this requirement, our property management company will initiate a work order through Luzon Project Mgmt LLC to assist associations under our mgmt remain compliant with California’s balcony laws by conducting thorough SB 326 inspections and providing detailed reports.

Our company maintenance coordinators will open a work order for your association to arrange a visit our qualified and licensed sub contractors to start the process.

Below are some useful information that I gathered from internet about this law, please review and let us know if you have any question.

What is SB 326 and why was this law passed?

On June 16, 2015, six students were killed in Berkeley, California and seven others were injured when the balcony they were on collapsed. The Berkeley balcony collapse resulted in the passage of California Senate Bill 326 on August 30th, 2019.

The HOA balcony law, an amendment to Civil Code Section 5551, was designed to prevent future collapses by ensuring the structural stability of condominium decks, balconies, and walkways.

The law applies to all HOAs or condominium complexes with at least three attached units.

What are the requirements of SB-326?

Some of the requirements of SB-326 include the following:

Covered HOAs must complete initial SB-326 inspections no later than Jan. 1, 2025.
Subsequent inspections must be completed at least once every nine years.
Inspections must be completed by licensed structural engineers, architects, licensed general contractors, or certified building inspectors.
All exterior elevated elements (EEEs) “supported in whole or in substantial part by wood or wood-based products” that are 6 or more feet off the ground must undergo inspections.
The waterproofing systems for each EEE must also be inspected.
Under SB-326, inspectors are required to visually inspect a “statistically significant sample” (defined as enough units to provide “95 percent confidence that the results from the sample are reflective of the whole, with a margin of error no greater than plus or minus 5 percent”) of a building’s EEEs. The exact number of EEEs inspected will depend on the size of your building.
After a visual inspection, the inspector determines whether further testing is warranted and is required to report any imminent dangers to life and safety to the city’s building department and the HOA board.
The inspector must prepare a signed, detailed report and present it to the HOA board with the repair recommendations.
The HOA board must then budget for the repairs and complete them.

The report must include the following types of information:

Identification of the specific building elements that were inspected
The present physical condition of the inspected elements
Whether the inspected elevated exterior elements pose any dangers to the safety and health of the residents
The expected service life and future performance of the inspected elements
Types of needed repairs, including emergency and non-emergency repairs. Any emergency repairs that endanger the health and safety of the public will promptly be referred to the building department’s code enforcement agency. Non-emergency repairs will be reported to the condominium association’s board.

You must include the inspection report in your reserve study and keep copies of your inspection reports for a minimum of two inspection cycles.

What happens if you don’t comply with SB-326?

If you don’t comply with the new law, the code enforcement arm of your local building department can assess fees, recover enforcement costs, and enforce liens against non-compliant properties.

Additionally, failing to complete the required SB-326 inspections and repairs could expose you to liability.

If the inspections are not completed, condo owners could lose their liability protection extended by their insurance companies for personal injury claims.

This means that if any person is injured while using or occupying any of the association’s exterior elevated elements, the association will likely bear the financial responsibility of any civil judgement and will not have the benefit of coverage under their association’s insurance policies.

SB326 HOA Update SB326 HOA Update SB326 HOA Update