Broward County is one of the two counties in Florida’s High-Velocity Hurricane Zone, so wind drives the property placement. Flood is a separate policy, and here it matters for rain and tides as much as for storm surge. A rental building is not covered by the state condominium milestone-inspection law, but Broward’s own program reaches it at 25 years. Send me the roof and opening details, the inspection report and the elevation certificate and I can show the building to the markets that write coastal Florida apartments.
What makes a Fort Lauderdale apartment building different
- High-Velocity Hurricane ZoneThe Florida Building Commission defines the zone as Miami-Dade and Broward counties, where the code requires the whole building envelope to be impact resistant.
- Hurricane deductibleSet by Florida statute for apartment policies, usually as a percentage of insured value rather than a flat amount.
- Three kinds of floodExtreme rain, king tides and storm surge. None is covered by the building’s property policy.
- 25-year safety inspectionA Broward County program, separate from the state condominium law, that applies to most apartment buildings.
- Security checklistA 2023 Florida law gives owners of five or more units a presumption against liability for third-party crime if listed measures are in place.
The policy structure is the same as elsewhere (how apartment programs are put together). Everything below is Florida law and Broward practice.
Wind, the roof and the hurricane deductible
Florida treats an apartment building policy as commercial lines residential coverage (s. 627.4025). For those policies, s. 627.701 requires the insurer to offer two versions of the hurricane deductible: one that applies once per calendar year and one that applies to each hurricane. The same statute lets an insurer offer a hurricane deductible of up to 10 percent of insured value only if it also offers one at 3 percent, at the first offer and at each renewal.
On a large building the difference between those choices is the biggest number in the placement, so I lay them out side by side. The deductible applies for a defined window: from the time the National Hurricane Center issues a hurricane warning for any part of Florida until 72 hours after the last hurricane watch or warning in the state ends. How hurricane deductibles work.
Underwriters then ask what a wind engineer would ask: roof type, age and permit date, how the roof deck is attached, and whether every opening has impact glass or rated shutters. Buildings permitted under the High-Velocity Hurricane Zone rules have an easier time; older buildings need proof of what was upgraded and when.
Rain, king tides and storm surge
On April 12 and 13, 2023, a slow-moving front dropped what the National Weather Service in Miami measured as more than 20 inches of rain around Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood International Airport, with 15 to 20 inches from Hollywood and Dania Beach north into Fort Lauderdale. The agency’s survey found the deepest standing water in the Edgewood neighborhood, and its year-end summary called it by far the most significant flood of the year in South Florida, one that displaced residents of entire neighborhoods for as much as a week. It was not a hurricane, so wind coverage and the hurricane deductible were beside the point, and a standard property policy excludes flood.
Tides are the second source. The City of Fort Lauderdale says its highest tides typically come in September, October and November and that king tides, combined with rising sea levels, raise the flood risk in low-lying areas. The city names Victoria Park as prone to tidal flooding, the Southeast Isles as having significant tidal impacts, and Middle River Terrace as a place where rain and tide combine. It maintains a network of tidal valves and requires new seawalls to be built to a minimum top elevation of 5 feet.
Storm surge is the third. The National Hurricane Center calls surge the leading cause of hurricane deaths and notes that it can travel up rivers and canals well inland, which describes much of this city.
Flood insurance is its own policy, with FEMA noting a typical 30-day wait before a National Flood Insurance Program policy takes effect. FEMA classes a building designed for five or more families as an other residential building. The federal program has maximum limits and does not pay financial losses from loss of use of the property, so owners of larger buildings often add private or excess flood and ask specifically about lost rents. How flood insurance works.
The 25-year Broward inspection, not the condo milestone law
Owners often ask whether the post-Surfside milestone inspection applies to them. The state law, s. 553.899, covers buildings three habitable stories or taller that are under condominium or cooperative ownership. A rental apartment building is not in it.
Broward County has its own rule. Under the Building Safety Inspection Program, set by Broward County Board of Rules and Appeals Policy 05-05, a building is first inspected when it reaches 25 years of age and every 10 years after that. Once the building official mails the notice, the owner has 180 days to submit a safety report confirming the building’s structural and electrical safety. Small residential buildings of up to four units and three stories or less, and structures under 3,500 square feet, are exempt.
Insurers ask for that report on any building old enough to have one. A completed report with repairs closed out helps; an overdue notice or open structural or electrical items narrows the market quickly.
Security and Florida’s multifamily presumption
Section 768.0706 applies to residential property with at least five dwelling units on a parcel. An owner or principal operator who substantially implements its list has a presumption against liability for criminal acts on the premises by third parties. The list includes:
- Cameras at entry and exit points, with footage kept retrievable for at least 30 days.
- Lighting from dusk to dawn in the parking lot, walkways, laundry rooms, common areas and porches.
- Unit hardware: a deadbolt of at least one inch on each unit door, window and sliding-door locks, and a peephole where the door has no window.
- Locked gates with key or fob access along pool fences.
- A crime prevention through environmental design assessment no more than three years old, performed by law enforcement or a designated practitioner.
- Employee training on crime deterrence and safety, within 60 days of hire.
The burden of proving compliance is on the owner. Liability underwriters in Florida now ask for the assessment and training records as a matter of course, and I include them in the submission when you have them.
Citizens as the fallback
Citizens Property Insurance Corporation, the state-created insurer, writes commercial residential policies for apartment buildings whose owners cannot find private coverage and who meet its underwriting rules. Those policies are multiperil or, where available, wind-only, and they exclude liability, so a separate liability policy is always needed alongside. Under s. 627.351(6), a new apartment application is not eligible if an authorized insurer offers coverage including wind, unless that offer costs more than 20 percent above Citizens’ premium for comparable coverage. In practice I shop the private market first and document the results.
What to send me
- Address, year built, stories, unit count and construction type.
- Roof: type, year replaced and the permit, plus any wind mitigation inspection.
- Openings: impact windows and doors or shutters, with product approvals or permits.
- The Building Safety Inspection Program report and proof that listed repairs were completed, if the building is 25 years or older.
- Flood documents: elevation certificate, flood zone, current flood policy and any history of water in the building.
- Security: the environmental design assessment, camera and lighting details, and training records.
- The rent roll, five years of loss runs, and current declarations pages for property, wind, flood, liability and umbrella.
Common questions
Who insures apartment buildings in Fort Lauderdale?
Private admitted and surplus lines insurers write most Broward apartment buildings, with wind sometimes placed separately. Citizens Property Insurance Corporation is the fallback when the private market will not offer coverage within the limits Florida law sets.
Does the Florida milestone inspection law apply to my rental apartment building?
No. Section 553.899 covers condominium and cooperative buildings of three habitable stories or more. A Broward rental building instead falls under the county’s Building Safety Inspection Program at 25 years and every 10 years after.
Why did my apartment building insurance go up in Fort Lauderdale?
Broward is in the High-Velocity Hurricane Zone, and wind pricing follows roof age, opening protection and rebuilding cost. An older roof, an open inspection item or a recent water claim can each move a renewal.
Does my apartment building policy cover flooding from heavy rain or king tides?
Generally no. Flood from rain, tides or storm surge is excluded from standard property policies and needs a separate flood policy, which under the National Flood Insurance Program typically has a 30-day waiting period.
What hurricane deductible will I have on a Florida apartment building?
Florida law requires insurers to offer apartment owners an annual hurricane deductible and a per-hurricane one, and a deductible of up to 10 percent of insured value may be offered only alongside a 3 percent option.
Am I liable if a tenant is the victim of a crime at my Fort Lauderdale building?
It depends on the facts, but section 768.0706 gives owners of five or more units a presumption against liability if they have substantially implemented its camera, lighting, lock, assessment and training measures. You carry the burden of proving that.
Does Citizens cover liability for an apartment building?
No. Citizens commercial residential policies exclude liability coverage, so general liability and umbrella are placed separately.
General information about insuring apartment buildings in Fort Lauderdale and Broward County, Florida, as of November 2026, not legal advice. Hurricane deductible, Citizens eligibility and premises-security rules are set by Florida statute, and inspection rules by Broward County; they change, so confirm your building’s obligations with the city building official and your attorney. Coverage depends on underwriting and the terms, conditions and exclusions of the policy actually issued.