Are your building’s balconies safe?

She was a college student from Dublin, spending the summer in California, when plans to celebrate her 21^st birthday with friends turned deadly – and ultimately led to stricter oversight of balconies, decks and other external elevated structures on apartment buildings.

Aoife Beary was one of seven students seriously injured when the balcony of a fifth-floor apartment in Berkeley sheared off, sending them tumbling 40 feet to the ground. Six other students were killed in the collapse.

A thorough examination of the balcony after the accident showed extensive dry rot in the wooden support beams holding up the structure. Hefty settlement claims and penalties followed.

Beary suffered a serious brain injury and was left with multiple injuries including broken bones and organ lacerations. Some speculate that the injuries were fatal, as she died following a stroke in January 2022 – seven years after the balcony collapse. She was 27 years old.[i]

A year after the collapse, Beary was advocating for stricter building oversight, testifying before the California State Legislature in support of SB465, which tightened down on surveillance and reporting of shoddy construction.[ii]

A second California law, dubbed “The Balcony Inspection Bill,” was enacted shortly thereafter – requiring recurring inspections of decks, balconies and other external elevated structures in multi-family residential buildings by a licensed architect, licensed civil or structural engineer, a specially licensed general contractor, or individuals certified as building inspectors or officials.

The inspections must take place once every six years, or sooner, if the property is sold. Initial inspections must be completed by 2025.[iii]

In 2019, Senate Bill 326 was passed and became law in 2020. It added Civil Code Section 5551, which requires homeowners’ associations to also have their balconies inspected, but every nine years.[iv]

Balcony collapses are more common than one might think. Most don’t make headlines.

But in January of this year, a man in Sydney escaped serious injury when his second-story veranda collapsed onto a parked car.[v] In November, two men were injured in a balcony collapse in Syracuse.[vi] A beachfront balcony collapse in Malibu last year made national news because it was caught on video as it happened.[vii]

These elevated structures are prone to damage from water, pests, and more. A porch collapse in Boston in 2013 injured 12 people, prompting at least one city official to express frustration.

“If you own property, whether it’s a rental property or your own home, you need to be aware that things like porches and decks don’t last forever,” Boston City Inspector Bryan Glascock told the Globe.[viii]

Too often, the telltale signs of a problem are ignored.

Prior to the Berkeley collapse, mushrooms had begun to grow on the outside of the fifth-floor balcony, according to lawsuits stemming from the incident. Yet in spite of that red flag, neither the property owner nor manager took steps to examine the structure to see if it was safe. Instead, they rented the property regularly until the collapse[ix].

Law and liability

Those liable in the balcony collapse paid millions in settlements.

The property owner and manager settled multiple lawsuits in 2015 for an undisclosed amount, but sources close to the families said it was as high as $20 million.[x]

The contractor who built the balconies was also liable – paying $6.5 million to settle lawsuits over the fatal collapse, which was likely caused by wood rot from water damage, and the use of substandard wood in construction.[xi]

The balcony inspection laws, (SB721 and SB326) require multifamily property owners, including HOAs, to get their balconies, decks, stairwells, raised walkways and other external elevated structures inspected by a certified professional. The first inspection must be completed by Jan. 1, 2025.[xii]

“The 2025 deadline seems far off,” Kelly Richardson, an attorney specializing in community association advice, wrote in the Orange County Register, “but prudent HOAs (and property owners) should start planning now.”[xiii] She answered these questions about the law:

What must be inspected? All wood building components extending beyond the exterior walls, including walkways, decks, balconies, stairways, and railings that are more than 6 feet above the ground. The inspection must also include waterproofing, be ensure the structural components are protected from moisture damage in the future.
How much of the building must be inspected? A “statistically significant sample” of the entire building – providing a 95% level of confidence that the sample represents the entire building. A random list of inspection points must be generated by the inspector.
What kind of report does the inspector create? A written report identifying the components checked, describing their condition, projecting the remaining useful life of the components, recommending any necessary repairs, and describing immediate threats to residents.
What happens if I don’t comply? Probably nothing, Richardson responded, until someone sues for noncompliance, or unless a building element fails and someone is injured. When that happens, there could be a severe liability for the property owner or HOA.[xiv]

There are significant fines if repairs are not completed within 180 days. Inspectors are required to report the owner to the local enforcement agency and give notice to the owner that this has occurred. If the repairs are not made promptly, the owner faces mandatory fines fixed by the local enforcement agency of up to $500 a day.

What does an inspection entail?

A thorough and accurate inspection requires the right knowledge and experience. Generally, inspectors will be looking for signs that a structure may be compromised:

Moisture damage and wood rot, not just on the exterior, but deep inside framing cavities. Horizontal and parallel beams that support the deck should be inspected. As moisture can lead to decay of support beams, proper moisture protection will also be considered to avoid future problems.
Waterproofing materials and applications, such as flashings, membranes, coatings, and sealants that protect the load-bearing components of exterior elevated elements from exposure to water and the elements, will also be inspected.
The construction of a structure may also be noted if connections are not installed with proper fasteners. Wobbly railings and loose stairs – usually the result of improper fastening – are also causes for concern.
Corrosion of metal fixtures and fasteners may indicate unsafe conditions.
Cracks in wood can be an indication of damage.
Flashing will also be inspected to ensure it was installed properly and is not allowing moisture into the wood.
Termite damage can also weaken structures.

The proper equipment can also identify problem areas with minimal intrusion to the building.

Endoscopes allow inspectors to see deep inside framing cavities for signs of damage, while keeping the exterior of the building intact.
Moisture sensors can also detect problem areas that may have dry rot or face the possibility of dry rot in the future. Dry rot involves wood decay caused by one of several species of fungi that digest parts of the wood that give it strength and stiffness.
Thermal imaging cameras help to identify the source of moisture intrusion.

What happens next?

The inspector alerts the building owner to any serious and/or threatening damage within 15 days. If emergency repairs are needed, they must be undertaken immediately, with notice given to the local enforcement agency. Nonemergency repairs must be completed within 120 days, unless an extension is granted by local authorities.[xv]

In nonemergency situations a formal report will be prepared and must be delivered to the building owner or HOA within 45 days.

The report must identify each type of exterior elevated element that, if found to be defective, decayed, or deteriorated to the extent that it does not meet its load requirements, would constitute a health or safety threat to occupants in the opinion of the inspector.

Load-bearing components and waterproofing elements of the exterior elevated elements must also be assessed with at least 15% of each exterior elevated element inspected.

Specific items must include:

The current condition of the exterior elevated elements.
Expectations of future performance and projected service life.
Recommendations of any further inspection necessary.

The report must include comprehensive details, including photographs, test results and a narrative specific enough to summarize the condition of the components inspected.

A section of the report must also address whether any of the elements evaluated pose an immediate threat to the safety of the occupants, and whether preventing occupant access is necessary before repairs are made.

Local law enforcement agencies will send a 30-day corrective notice to the owner of the building if repairs are not made on time, and civil penalties and liens can be applied against the property if the owner fails to comply.

The responsibility of building ownership

Building owners take on a lot of responsibility in their role as owner and landlord. Even when property management is provided by a third party, liability often falls back on the person or entity that owns the building.

As such, owners should be constantly on guard. That’s one of the reasons why risk management is such a rapidly growing field.

We are vigilant about identifying potential trip and fall hazards. We are careful to install fire sprinkler systems, fence off swimming pools and do our best to predict and prevent incidents before they happen.

The best way to prepare for disaster is to ask yourself, “What’s the worst thing that could happen?”

When it comes to structural safety, that means assessing damage from past experiences, identifying the near-misses or “thank goodness that didn’t happen” scenarios and searching out the best ways to counteract those possibilities before they strike.

Gordon Woo, a theoretical physicist and resident catastrophist at Risk Management Solutions, took this concept and coined it “downward counterfactual analysis.”

His goal is to develop foresight by studying events that could have turned out much worse. “It’s not that you’ll know when something will happen; you just know that something is a possibility.”[xvi]

Ultimately, it comes down to doing what’s smart – to protect you, your assets and your tenants.

The Optimum Seismic team can help you with these new balcony inspection and repair requirements. Call us at 323-605-0000 or visit www.optimumseismic.com to learn more.

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[i] Irish Times, Aoife Beary did not allow Berkeley balcony collapse to define her. https://www.irishtimes.com/news/social-affairs/aoife-beary-did-not-allow-berkeley-balcony-collapse-to-define-her-funeral-told-1.4771193

[ii] San Francisco Examiner, Berkeley balcony collapse victim Aoife Beary dies. https://www.sfgate.com/news/article/2015-Berkeley-balcony-collapse-Aoife-Beary-dies-16743962.php

[iii] California State Legislature, SB 721. https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=201720180SB721

[iv] California State Legislature, SB 326. https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billTextClient.xhtml?bill_id=201920200SB326

[v] The Canberra Times, Lucky escape from Sydney balcony collapse. https://www.canberratimes.com.au/story/7599952/lucky-escape-from-sydney-balcony-collapse/?cs=14231

[vi] Local SYR, Two injured in Baldwinsvill balcony collapse. https://www.localsyr.com/news/local-news/two-injured-in-baldwinsville-balcony-collapse/

[vii] ABC News, Video: Malibu balcony collapse. https://abc7.com/video-malibu-balcony-collapse-beach-pch/10623845/

[viii] Boston Globe, How often do balconies collapse: the tragic situation like the one in Berkeley has happened before. https://www.bustle.com/articles/90858-how-often-do-balconies-collapse-the-tragic-situation-like-the-one-in-berkeley-has-happened-before

[ix] Berkeleyside, Deadly Berkeley balcony collapse lawsuit settled. https://www.berkeleyside.org/2017/11/21/deadly-berkeley-balcony-collapse-lawsuit-settled

[x] Ibid.

[xi] Ibid.