Certain owners have converted their balconies into permanent living areas. This is a big “no-no” because the balcony is not designed for permanent living. It is a code violation that exposes that unit owner and the association to potential lawsuits. I’ve seen this done many times over and it could be simple innocence, but in some situations, owners are in fact renting this space out.
Let’s go back to basics: Balconies are your space to “chill.” They’re not for AC units or refrigerators or for conducting yoga classes. They are for you to “RELAX,” so let’s work together to fix them and use them correctly.
Figure 5: Walkway with extensive dry rot damage.
Figure 6: Exterior dry rot that signals possible wall damage, but we don’t know until this is opened.
We have also observed balcony areas with clear visible damage of obvious unsafe conditions; a clear danger that is not being addressed by some associations. This could be a potential big problem of liability and culpability for both property management companies and owners. Figures 4, 5, and 6 show the “ugly” that no one wants to face.
LESSON TWO You Can’t Hide from Mother Nature
Owners need to face the “ugly” and deal with these issues directly. My job as a consultant and structural engineer is to educate, inform, inspect, and advise. That’s the best any consultant can do for their owners. Engineers are your “doctors” and you should listen to your doctor and act accordingly, otherwise the consequences will be dire. Simply deferring maintenance to another day will not make the problem go away. At some point, “another day” arrives.
LESSON THREE
Costs Never Go Down, They Only Go Up In my 41 years in this industry, I can safely state with one hundred percent certainty that life does not get cheaper. Never have I ever seen construction costs going down. For sure we can argue about the rate of increase with inflation, the Federal Reserve policies, and other financial issues, but the end result is costs WILL RISE. So what might cost $100,000 today will be more in 2024, and beyond. If you must resolve these matters, then waiting is certainly not a good strategy.
My firm has observed that certain owners use their balconies as “arboretums” with beautiful gardens. I love nature, but if your intent is to create a bird sanctuary for your yoga studio with that $2 million view of the ocean, no problem. But you need to take appropriate precautions. Make sure the drainage works. Make sure the waterproofing is there. Potted plants are lovely, but they are heavy and they leak water onto the deck. You are literally destroying your own structure (and possibly your neighbor’s) with your noble intentions. Garden balconies are beautiful, but if not done right, they will cause structural damage.
Figure 7: Potted plants on balcony
—Dr. Khatri is a Structural Engineer with 40 years of experience in structural design, construction, and project management. Dr. Khatri is Principal of Khatri International Inc. (
www.khatrinternational.com) based in Las Vegas, NV, and Arcadia, CA, and works nationally with multi-family properties, residential projects, corporations, institutional clients, government agencies, and property owners.
Figure 8: Residential rental space on the balcony
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