5 Steps for a Condo After the Fact Remodel in Florida

Key Takeaways

• Florida condos require two separate approvals for remodels: a building permit from the local department AND condo association approval under Florida Statutes §718.113, which may require 75% owner voting approval for work affecting common elements.

• Stop unpermitted work immediately and gather all documentation (contracts, photos of framing/wiring, floor plans, product specs) before contacting authorities, as this evidence significantly reduces inspection costs and may prevent walls from being opened.

• Contact both your building department and condo association in writing early in the process; building departments handle after-the-fact situations regularly and upfront disclosure typically works better than concealment, which can create bigger problems at inspection or sale.

• Common unpermitted work needing permits includes structural changes, kitchen/bathroom renovations, electrical circuits, plumbing moves, and HVAC work, but cosmetic updates like paint often don't—always confirm with your local building department rather than assuming.

• After-the-fact permits require sealed as-built drawings, engineering documentation, and potentially structural verification; having drafting and engineering in-house streamlines revisions and prevents delays from coordinating multiple outside consultants.

• Unpermitted work can delay closings, affect insurance claims, and create refinancing issues; obtaining a closed permit record protects you at resale and provides documentation proof that code-compliant work was completed.

So you finished a condo remodel, and now you've learned the permit never got pulled. Take a breath. You're not the first Florida owner to land here, and there's a clear path forward. Maybe a prior owner skipped the paperwork. Maybe a contractor said they'd handle it and never did. Maybe you simply didn't realize that moving a wall or redoing a bathroom needed approval.

A condo after the fact remodel in Florida is really a two-part puzzle. One part is the local building department, which decides whether the finished work can be documented, inspected, and approved. The other is your condominium association, which has its own rules about what happens inside the building you share with your neighbors.

In this guide, we'll walk through five practical steps to get unpermitted condo work back on the right side of the rules, from the first call you make to the final sign-off. Whether you're a homeowner, a real estate professional prepping a sale, or a contractor cleaning up a past job, you'll find a friendly roadmap here. If you'd rather hand the whole thing off, after-the-fact and expired permit help is exactly what our team does every day.

Why Condo Remodels Need Extra Care

Remodeling a house is one thing. Remodeling a condo is another, because your unit sits inside a building full of shared systems. Walls, floors, ceilings, plumbing stacks, and electrical risers can all connect to other units or to areas the association controls.

Florida law is clear on the basics. Florida Statutes §553.79 makes it unlawful to construct, alter, repair, or demolish a building without first getting a permit from the appropriate enforcing agency, subject to certain exceptions. That applies to condo units just like any other building.

Condos add a second layer. Under Florida Statutes §718.113, material alterations or substantial additions to common elements or association property must follow the condominium declaration's approval process. If the declaration doesn't spell one out, the statute generally requires approval by 75% of the total voting interests before the work begins. The same statute also says an owner may not do anything that adversely affects the safety or soundness of common areas.

Here's the quick comparison that trips up a lot of owners:

Having one does not replace the other. You may need both, and an after-the-fact process usually has to address each one.

Step 1: Stop Work and Gather Your Paper Trail

The first move is simple: pause any further unpermitted work. Adding more finishes on top of unapproved work only makes the later inspection harder and more expensive.

Then become a detective. The more documentation you have, the smoother the rest of this goes. Collect everything you can find:

• Contracts, invoices, and receipts from whoever did the work
• Before, during, and after photos (especially anything showing framing, wiring, or plumbing before it was covered up)
• Any existing floor plans, previous permits, or association approval letters
• Product information for windows, fixtures, panels, water heaters, and similar items
• Your condo declaration, bylaws, and the association's alteration rules

If a prior owner did the work, you may have very little. That's okay. Even partial records help a professional reconstruct what was done. Our guide on what to do if a prior owner skipped permits covers this situation in more detail.

You can also check whether any permits are already open or expired on your address using our open permit search tool. Sometimes a permit was started years ago and simply never closed, which is a different (and often simpler) fix.

Step 2: Figure Out What Your Scope Actually Includes

Permit needs depend on the actual work performed, not on whether the project was casually called a "remodel." Local guidance commonly points to these kinds of work as needing permits:

• Structural changes, including adding or removing walls
• Extensive kitchen or bathroom renovations
• Regulated electrical work, such as new circuits or panel changes
• Plumbing changes, including moving fixtures or drain lines
• Mechanical work, such as HVAC replacements or relocations
• Gas line work

Cosmetic updates like paint, some flooring, and minor fixture swaps often don't require a permit, but rules vary by city and county. Always confirm with your local building department rather than assuming.

Here's a quick scope-sorting table to help you think it through:

Write down everything that changed, room by room. This inventory becomes the backbone of your after-the-fact application. If the work touched structural elements, a sealed review from an engineer may be part of the picture, which our structural engineering team handles in house.

Step 3: Talk to Your Building Department and Your Association

Now comes the part many owners dread: making the calls. The good news is that building departments handle after-the-fact situations regularly, and being upfront usually works better than hoping nobody notices.

An after-the-fact permit is not an automatic approval. It's a way to document existing work and have it reviewed and inspected. The local department decides what the application requires, which inspections are needed, whether corrections are necessary, and what fees or enforcement steps apply. Those details change from one jurisdiction to the next.

Not sure which office actually controls your address? City lines can be tricky. Use our building department lookup to find the right one, or read about which Florida jurisdiction reviews your project.

When you contact the association, ask about these items:

1. Does the declaration require board or owner approval for the type of work you did?
2. Was any approval granted before the work, and is it on file?
3. Does the work touch common elements such as shared plumbing stacks, structural walls, or exterior components?
4. Are there required contractor insurance, licensing, or inspection letters?
5. Does the association require its own engineer or inspector to review?

Keep every response in writing. A friendly email trail protects you later, especially at resale. If you're also dealing with a violation notice, our overview of code compliance violation help in Florida explains what to expect.

Step 4: Prepare Drawings, Engineering, and the Application

Once you know what the building department wants, it's time to build the application package. For after-the-fact work, this usually means documenting what exists rather than designing something new.

Depending on the scope, your package may include:

• As-built drawings showing the current layout and any altered walls or fixtures
• Electrical, plumbing, or mechanical documentation (often called MEP)
• An engineer letter or sealed drawings verifying structural or system safety
• Product approvals or specification sheets for installed materials
• Association approval letters, if required

This is where having drafting and engineering under one roof makes life much easier. If a plans examiner flags something, the same team can correct it without sending you chasing an outside consultant. Learn more about as-built drawings, MEP engineering, and engineer letters.

One common question: will you have to open up walls? Sometimes, yes. When work is already concealed, the building official may require access to verify construction. That can mean opening a section of drywall or a ceiling, supplying plans or engineering, correcting deficiencies, or pulling separate trade permits. Whether existing work can be approved as-is depends on the jurisdiction and the actual conditions. Photos taken during the original work can sometimes reduce how much needs to be exposed, which is why Step 1 matters so much.

If you want to see how others have handled it, our guide on what happens during a Florida ATF site inspection is a helpful preview.

Step 5: Complete Inspections and Close It Out

After the application is filed, expect a review period, possible correction comments, and then inspections. Think of this stage as a conversation. The reviewer asks for something, you respond, and the file moves forward.

A few things to keep in mind:

• Respond to comments promptly. Delays on your end can stall the whole file.
• Be ready for corrections. Inspectors may ask you to fix deficiencies before approval, such as missing GFCI protection, improper venting, or undersized supports.
• Keep the association in the loop if corrections touch common elements.
• Don't let the permit expire. An approved but unclosed permit can cause headaches later.

Fees, penalties, timelines, and inspection requirements are set locally, so there's no single statewide number to quote. Some jurisdictions charge higher fees for after-the-fact work, and costs depend on scope and corrections needed. For a closer look at typical cost drivers, see our breakdown of after-the-fact permit costs in Florida.

When everything passes, you'll receive final approval and the permit can be closed. That closed record is gold when you sell, refinance, or file an insurance claim. It also helps avoid the closing delays described in open permit found at closing situations.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Most after-the-fact headaches come from a short list of avoidable missteps. Watch out for these:

1. Ignoring the association. A clean building permit doesn't erase a declaration violation.
2. Hiding the work. Concealing it rarely works, and it can create bigger problems at inspection or sale.
3. Skipping documentation. Photos and receipts can save you from tearing into walls.
4. Assuming it's "just cosmetic." If plumbing, electrical, or walls changed, it likely wasn't.
5. Waiting too long. Problems rarely shrink with time, especially with a sale or refinance coming.

It's also worth knowing that unpermitted work can affect insurance. Our article on expired permits and insurance claims in Florida explains why a clean paper trail matters.

How 1 Contractor Solutions Can Help

If this all feels like a lot, that's completely normal. This is exactly the kind of work we do. 1 Contractor Solutions acts as your outsourced permitting department across all 67 Florida counties, handling filing, tracking, reviewer comments, revisions, and closeout. Our in-house drafting and engineering means your documentation, sealed drawings, and corrections all come from one team.

We work with homeowners, realtors, and general contractors who need unpermitted work resolved so projects and closings can keep moving. If you're racing a deadline, our urgent permit rescue service is built for exactly that. You can also see what past clients say by visiting our 1 Contractor Solutions listing on Google, and you can follow us on LinkedIn or follow us on Facebook for more Florida permitting tips.

For the official statutory language on condo alterations, you can read Florida Statutes §718.113 on the Florida Senate website.

Conclusion: You Can Fix This

Discovering unpermitted work in your condo is stressful, but it's very fixable. Stop further work, gather your records, understand your scope, talk to both the building department and your association, document the work properly, and see the inspections through. Follow those five steps and you'll turn a lingering problem into a closed, clean permit file.

Ready to get started? Whether you want a second set of eyes on your situation or a team to take the whole process off your plate, get a free quote and we'll tell you exactly what it will take. Permits approved. Projects moving.