Quick answer: SB326 requires California HOAs managing condominiums with three or more units to have exterior elevated elements — balconies, decks, and walkways — inspected on a set schedule, with repairs following any deficiencies found. APLA Construction (CA Lic #1136359) performs SB326-related repairs for community associations across Los Angeles.
California law SB326 requires homeowner associations that manage condominiums to have exterior elevated elements such as balconies, decks, and walkways inspected on a set schedule. For HOA boards and condo communities across Los Angeles, staying compliant protects residents and avoids liability. APLA Construction is a licensed LA general contractor (CA Lic #1136359) that performs SB326-related repairs for community associations and property owners.
SB326 is part of the California Davis-Stirling Act and applies to community associations that manage buildings with three or more multifamily dwelling units, such as condominiums. It requires inspection of load-bearing exterior elevated elements that rely on wood or wood-based products, including balconies, decks, stairways, and walkways more than 6 feet above ground. SB326 is the HOA counterpart to SB721, which covers apartment buildings.
The inspection is performed by a licensed architect or engineer; the repairs are performed by a licensed contractor.
SB326 is often called “the balcony law,” but the statute is considerably broader than balconies. Civil Code § 5551(a)(3) defines the load-bearing components it covers as those that extend beyond the exterior walls to carry structural loads from decks, balconies, stairways, walkways and their railings. Three conditions have to be met for an element to fall in scope:
So an elevated timber walkway between buildings, an exterior stairway serving upper units, and a raised wood-framed deck are all in scope on the same nine-year cycle as the balconies. Associations that inventory only the balconies routinely under-count what has to be inspected. Civil Code § 5551(a)(2) also makes clear that the “exterior elevated element” is the load-bearing structure together with its waterproofing system — defined at § 5551(a)(1) as the flashings, membranes, coatings and sealants protecting it from water.
SB326 does not require every balcony and deck to be opened up. Civil Code § 5551(b)(1) requires a random and statistically significant sample, which § 5551(a)(4) defines precisely: enough units to give 95 percent confidence that the sample reflects the whole, with a margin of error no greater than plus or minus 5 percent.
Two procedural details are worth knowing before the first inspection, because they affect every cycle afterwards. Under § 5551(c), before the first inspection the inspector must generate a random list of the locations of every type of exterior elevated element the association is responsible for, and hand that list to the association to keep. Under § 5551(h), each subsequent inspection then starts at the next element on that list and proceeds in order — so the list is a long-lived association record, not a throwaway working document.
§ 5551(a)(5) defines a “visual inspection” as inspection by the least intrusive method necessary, which may be observation alone or observation combined with tools such as moisture meters, borescopes or infrared imaging. If the inspector sees signs that water or water vapour has entered the waterproofing system, § 5551(d) allows them to carry out a further, more intrusive inspection using their professional judgement.
Civil Code § 5551(e) sets out what a compliant report has to include, and boards should check theirs against it:
The report must also carry the inspector’s certification that a statistically significant sample was evaluated. Under § 5551(f) it must be stamped or signed, presented to the board, and incorporated into the reserve study required by Civil Code § 5550. Under § 5551(i), written reports must be retained for two inspection cycles as association records.
This is the part of SB326 with the shortest fuse, and it is where associations most often get caught out. Under Civil Code § 5551(g)(1), if an inspector determines that an exterior elevated element poses an immediate threat to occupant safety, then:
Civil Code § 5551(g)(2) additionally allows local enforcement agencies to recover their enforcement costs from the association. Once a report of this kind exists, the association is on a documented clock with a public agency, so having a licensed contractor ready to scope and permit the repair matters.
Civil Code § 5551(j)(1) places responsibility for complying with SB326 squarely on the association, not on individual owners. § 5551(j)(2) goes further: the continued and ongoing maintenance and repair of the load-bearing components and their waterproofing systems, in a safe, functional and sanitary condition, is the association’s responsibility as required by its governing documents. SB326 is therefore not only a nine-year inspection obligation — it is a standing maintenance duty that the inspection periodically measures.
One further timing rule is easy to miss: under § 5551(k), buildings whose building permit application was submitted on or after 1 January 2020 must be inspected no later than six years after the certificate of occupancy is issued — not on the standard nine-year schedule.
When an inspection finds dry rot, water intrusion, failed waterproofing, or structural deficiencies, APLA makes code-compliant repairs, from replacing framing and decking to installing new waterproofing and flashing. We coordinate permits and reinspection with your HOA and building department. This relates to our framing and structural services. For apartment owners, see our SB721 guide.
Condo associations across Los Angeles, from downtown high-rises to beach communities in Marina del Rey and Long Beach, must stay ahead of SB326. We help boards move from inspection findings to completed, permitted repairs efficiently.
It applies to homeowner associations managing condominium buildings with three or more units that have wood-based exterior elevated elements over 6 feet above ground.
Every 9 years, aligned with the association reserve study, after the initial 2025 deadline.
SB326 covers HOA-managed condominiums under Davis-Stirling; SB721 covers rental apartment buildings. Both require inspection and repair of elevated elements.
The formal inspection is done by a licensed architect or engineer. APLA performs the repairs and coordinates with your inspector and board.
It covers decks, balconies, stairways, walkways and their railings. Civil Code § 5551(a)(3) defines the load-bearing components in scope as those carrying loads from any of those elements where the walking surface is more than six feet above ground level, the element is designed for human occupancy or use, and it is supported in whole or substantial part by wood or wood-based products. An HOA deck inspection and an HOA balcony inspection are the same statutory obligation.
No. Civil Code § 5551(b)(1) requires a random, statistically significant sample rather than every element. § 5551(a)(4) defines that as enough units to give 95 percent confidence with a margin of error no greater than plus or minus 5 percent. However, § 5551(c) requires the inspector to first generate a random list of every exterior elevated element the association is responsible for, and § 5551(h) requires each later inspection to continue in order through that list.
Under Civil Code § 5551(g)(1) the inspector must give the report to the association immediately and file it with the local code enforcement agency within 15 days. The association must then take preventive measures immediately, including preventing access to the affected balcony or deck until repairs have been inspected and approved by the local enforcement agency. Under § 5551(g)(2) the enforcement agency can also recover its enforcement costs from the association.
APLA Construction performs SB326 balcony and deck repairs for HOAs and condo communities across Los Angeles. Licensed CA Lic #1136359 — verify on CSLB. Call (818) 818-4419 or email info@aplaconstruction.com for a free consultation.
SB721 and SB326 are state law and apply the same way across California, but the building department that permits the repair work is local. City-specific guides: