New Jersey P.L.2023, c.214: Structural Integrity Inspections and Reserve Study Law

Quick Answer

P.L.2023, c.214 (Senate Bill 2760) is New Jersey's structural integrity and reserve law, approved January 8, 2024 and effective immediately. It does three things: it requires structural inspections of "covered" condominium and cooperative buildings, requires associations of planned real estate developments to get a reserve study with a 30-year funding plan, and lets a board assess or borrow for structural repairs without an owner vote.

The most important point for boards is that the inspection duty and the reserve-study duty have different scopes. Inspections apply to covered buildings (condominium or cooperative buildings with a concrete, masonry, steel or hybrid load bearing system). The reserve-study duty applies to associations of planned real estate developments, with a $25,000 exemption. Parts of the reserve rules were later changed by P.L.2025, c.132.

At a Glance

What the Law Says

Structural inspections of covered buildings

A "covered building" is "a residential condominium or cooperative building that has a primary load bearing system that is comprised of a concrete, masonry, steel, or hybrid structure," including heavy timber and buildings with podium decks, but not an "excluded structure." Excluded structures include ISO type 1 or frame-built construction with combustible walls or roofs (but not a podium deck under it), a building that is not a condominium or cooperative and is primarily rental, and a single-family dwelling. The "primary load bearing system" includes the foundation and any connected or attached balconies.

The initial post-occupancy inspection must be done by a structural inspector retained by the covered building owner "within the earlier of" two dates:

• 15 years after the certificate of occupancy; or
• 60 days after observable damage to the primary load bearing system.

For buildings that already had a certificate of occupancy when the law took effect, the text sets a schedule keyed to building age. If the certificate was issued 15 or more years before the effective date, the inspection must occur "within two years following the effective date." If it was issued from one day to 14 years and 364 days before, the inspection must occur "within one year of the date 15 years following the date of the issuance of the certificate of occupancy." A building converted to condominium or cooperative ownership after the effective date follows the same two-part schedule.

The inspector's report must describe the condition of the system, set out required maintenance or repairs, be prepared under an American Society of Civil Engineers protocol or a similar nationally recognized protocol, and go to the municipal appointing authority, the construction official and the enforcing agency. Reports must be made available to any resident of a covered building on request. An inspector acting in good faith under those protocols "shall not incur any civil liability for injury associated with any inspection." Inspections may be combined with other required inspections, such as those under the Hotel and Multiple Dwelling Law.

Reserve study and funding

Section 6 (N.J.S.A. 45:22A-44.2) requires an association of a planned real estate development to undertake and fund a capital reserve study, performed or overseen by a credentialed reserve specialist or a New Jersey licensed engineer or architect. The study must include, among other items:

• reserve fund balances and anticipated income and expenses;
• an analysis of the physical status of common area components;
• estimated costs of future studies, study updates and the periodic structural inspections;
• estimated costs of any corrective maintenance; and
• a proposed 30-year funding plan.

Associations that had not done a study within five years of the effective date "shall undertake a reserve study within one year of the effective date." Associations formed after the effective date must do one as soon as practicable after owners elect a majority of the executive board, and no later than two years after that election. Studies must be reviewed and conducted at least once every five years. The section does not apply to an association with less than $25,000 in total common area capital assets.

Section 7 (N.J.S.A. 45:22A-44.3), as originally enacted, also contained a 10 percent catch-up rule, equal annual increases and limits on using reserve money beyond the study's allocation. P.L.2025, c.132 later deleted those rules and replaced the funding framework. Read the amended text, not the 2024 version, for current funding duties.

Board power to assess or borrow for structural repairs

Section 8 (printed as C.45:22A-45a) says "Notwithstanding the terms of a declaration, master deed, bylaws, or other governing document," the executive board "may, without the consent of the owners or approval of a developer," adopt an assessment payable over one or more fiscal years or obtain a loan to fund corrective maintenance of the primary load bearing system. Before doing so the board must determine the assessment or loan is necessary to maintain structural integrity and obtain a written report from a licensed engineer or architect stating that failure to act will:

• constitute an imminent or reasonably foreseeable hazard to health or safety;
• violate the inspection section; or
• materially increase the cost of the corrective maintenance if delayed.

The section does not prevent an association from suing over construction defects in any common element.

Developer duties

• Section 9: the developer must prepare a preventive maintenance document with a schedule, including periodic structural inspections, and budget the related operating expenses. It must be updated after structural inspections.
• Section 10: within 60 days after 75 percent of units are conveyed, the developer must relinquish control and deliver a list of records, including the preventive maintenance document and plans showing "all field changes impacting any component of the primary load bearing system."
• Section 5 amends N.J.S.A. 45:22A-26: the developer must make the new reports available to prospective purchasers before the contract date.

What This Means in Practice

For boards

Start with scope. Ask whether any building you maintain meets the covered building definition, and separately whether the association is above the $25,000 capital-asset threshold. A low-rise wood-frame townhouse community may be outside the inspection duty yet still inside the reserve-study duty (our reading, from the different definitions; confirm with counsel).

The corrective-maintenance assessment power is unusual because it overrides the governing documents. The text requires two steps before use: a board determination and an engineer or architect report tied to one of three findings. Keep both in the minutes and the file.

For owners

Inspection reports "shall be made available to any resident of a covered building upon request." Owners buying in a planned real estate development may also want to ask for current reserve information, since the law ties reserve funding to special assessment risk.

Deadlines and date math

The following dates are our computations from the statutory text and an approval date of January 8, 2024, not dates stated in the law:

• Initial inspection for covered buildings with certificates of occupancy issued 15 or more years before the effective date: January 8, 2026.
• First reserve study for associations with no study in the five years before the effective date: January 8, 2025.

Open questions (our reading)

The text is internally inconsistent on repeat inspections. Section 3(d)(2) says the report determines the next inspection but "in no event shall a secondary inspection occur more than the earlier of: (a) 10 years after the initial inspection has taken place; or (b) not more than 60 days after there is observable damage." Section 3(f)(1) says the inspector sets a reasonable period but any later inspection shall not take place "more than five years after a preceding inspection." We have not found an agency interpretation resolving the two, so we do not state a single interval. Ask counsel or check with the Department of Community Affairs before fixing a schedule.

Also unresolved is who counts as "covered building owner" for a building inside a larger association; the definition includes "the association of a common interest community." Confirm with counsel.

Timeline

Related New Jersey Law

• P.L.2025, c.132: reserve funding amendments
• N.J.S.A. 45:22A-44.2: capital reserve study
• N.J.S.A. 45:22A-44.3: reserve funding
• N.J.S.A. 52:27D-132.4: covered building inspections
• New Jersey HOA laws and regulations

Board Checklist

• Identify whether each building is a covered building under the statutory definition and the excluded structures list.
• Confirm the date of each certificate of occupancy and which inspection schedule applies.
• Retain a licensed structural inspector and confirm the report goes to the municipal appointing authority, construction official and enforcing agency.
• Confirm whether the association has a current reserve study with a 30-year funding plan and whether it is past the five-year review point.
• Check the $25,000 common area capital asset exemption with your reserve specialist before relying on it.
• Before any corrective-maintenance assessment or loan, record the board determination and obtain the written engineer or architect report.
• Decide how inspection reports will be made available to residents on request.
• Ask counsel how to handle the repeat-inspection interval conflict.

Frequently Asked Questions

When did New Jersey's structural integrity law take effect?

P.L.2023, c.214 was approved January 8, 2024 and states that it takes effect immediately.

Which buildings must be inspected?

Covered buildings: residential condominium or cooperative buildings with a concrete, masonry, steel or hybrid primary load bearing system, including podium-deck buildings, excluding the listed excluded structures such as ISO type 1 or frame-built construction with combustible walls or roofs and single-family dwellings.

How soon must a new building have its first inspection?

Within the earlier of 15 years after the certificate of occupancy or 60 days after observable damage to the primary load bearing system.

Can a board assess owners for structural repairs without a vote?

The statute says the board may do so "without the consent of the owners" for corrective maintenance of the primary load bearing system, after a board determination and a written engineer or architect report meeting one of three findings.

Is there a penalty in the law for missing a deadline?

The text we read states none. Whether other enforcement tools apply is an open question to raise with counsel.

Does the law apply to every HOA?

The reserve-study duty applies to associations of planned real estate developments with at least $25,000 in common area capital assets. The inspection duty applies only to covered condominium and cooperative buildings.

How often must buildings be re-inspected?

The text gives conflicting outer limits (10 years after the initial inspection in one subsection and five years after a preceding inspection in another). We do not state a single interval; confirm with counsel.

Where This Comes From

We read the corrected copy of P.L.2023, c.214 (S2760, fourth reprint) and P.L.2025, c.132 on the New Jersey Legislature's bill site. The session law is at pub.njleg.gov. We did not read the current codified sections on the Legislature's statute database, so section numbers are as printed in the session law header.

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Legal disclaimer: This article is general information, not legal advice. Laws change and associations differ. Confirm the current statute text and how it applies to your governing documents with a licensed New Jersey attorney before acting.