Ca. new Balcony law for condos

Heads up to any one selling a condo that has balconies or just one balcony in your complex even if your unit does not have a balcony. Ca. has a new law that that the HOAs must examine the balcony. No big deal right. No. If you are selling your unit lenders requires to get the certification from the HOA however most HOAs have not done the certification and the sale will fall through because the buyer cant get a loan

Why is this law improper? The balcony is usually limited common area with the HOA responsible for maintenance. Even if the balcony is due for replacement, this is simply requiring the HOA determine it isn’t going to collapse and the railing intact.

In reality the law was adopted on 2019 and enacted in 2020 (see: CA Senate Bill 326 from Davis Stirling).

In 2025, CA Senate Bill 410 required that the inspection report be provided to the buyer (beginning January 1, 2026).

Therefore, your Association should have had an inspection starting in 2020.
It might not be the property managers fault, it may be the Boards fault for not authorizing an inspection.
Take a look at your Assocaitions Board meeting minutes from 2020 to today and see if the issue was brought up.

Best case, you might have an action against the Association for failing to comply with the law causing your sale to not go through (you would need to consult an attorney).
OR you may simply want to report the issue to the authorities to get the Board to act.

Dean,

You are correct.

The law requires an inspector to notify code enforcement for anything that they determine poses an immediate threat to the safety of the occupants.

Less urgent repairs requires the Association to apply for a permit within 120 days. However, it would take someone who has access to the inspection report to determine the 120 day deadline and make complaints to the permitting office (I guess).

That said, the only other authorities would be the courts.
From my second link:

"However, the legislation imposing EEE inspection requirements on CIDs (SB 326 of 2019) did not include any follow-up mechanism, and does not impose any consequences if an HOA does not take action in response to an inspection report that finds an EEE in need of repair. Instead, SB 326 deems EEE inspections to be part of an HOA’s ongoing maintenance responsibility."

Consequences appear to be pressure from members if sales fall through, potential loss of insurance coverage or being uninsurable. Again, from the second link:

"The author notes that many lenders, as well as Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, are now requiring compliance with the EEE inspection mandate as a condition of loan approval for a buyer of a CID unit. In some cases, repairs to unit balconies that are not connected to a sale have also been included as a prerequisite for loan approval. According to the California Association of Realtors, many transactions in CIDs have stalled because some HOAs have not provided inspection reports or conducted required inspections."