LA condo seismic retrofit rules: soft-story, concrete and what owners pay

The LA condo seismic retrofit rules come from two City of Los Angeles programs created in 2015: one for wood soft-story buildings, mostly finished for condos, and one for older concrete buildings, whose first big deadline arrives around November 2027. For a condo owner, a retrofit means engineering, permits and usually a large special assessment. For a buyer, an open order is something the lender will ask about.

This page covers both programs, the deadlines, how retrofits get paid for, and how they affect a loan and a sale. The rules described are for the City of Los Angeles unless we name another city.

The two LA programs

Ordinance 183893, effective November 22, 2015, created both mandatory retrofit programs. Ordinance 184081 amended it in 2016. The Department of Building and Safety (LADBS) runs them, sends each owner an Order to Comply, and publishes the addresses on its retrofit program pages.

	Wood soft-story	Non-ductile concrete
Which buildings	Pre-1978 wood-frame, two or more stories, open or weak ground floor (often tuck-under parking). Residential buildings of three or fewer units excluded.	Concrete buildings with a roof or floor supported by concrete walls or columns, submitted for plan check before January 13, 1977.
Clock, from the Order to Comply	2 years for plans or proof of retrofit, 3.5 years for permits, 7 years to finish.	3 years for a checklist, 10 years for plans or proof of retrofit, 25 years to finish.
Condo timing	Orders for condo and commercial buildings began November 6, 2017, so most condo deadlines fell around late 2024.	First orders went out in November 2017, so the first 10-year plan deadlines arrive around November 2027. Completion runs to about 2041 to 2042.
Status	Mostly completed for condos.	Just under 1,200 buildings. As of January 2024, 61% had filed checklists, 11% plans or proof, 6% completed (NBC Los Angeles).

Wood soft-story

A soft-story building has a ground floor that is weaker than the floors above, usually because it's open for parking. In the 1994 Northridge earthquake, that floor was where many of these buildings failed. The fix is typically steel frames or new shear walls at the ground floor.

For condo buildings, the seven-year clock that started with orders in late 2017 has mostly run out, and most condo soft-story retrofits are done. What remains for a buyer is paperwork: proof the work was completed and signed off, and whether the cost was paid or is still being collected through an assessment or a loan the association took out. Our hillside and boutique condo guides cover the building types where tuck-under parking is common.

Non-ductile concrete

Non-ductile concrete buildings were designed before code changes in the mid-1970s that added the steel reinforcing needed to bend without breaking. The concrete program is the one that matters now for condo towers built in the 1960s and early 1970s.

The schedule is long but it isn't slow for an association. Three years for a checklist, ten years for engineered plans or proof the building was already retrofitted, and 25 years to finish. For the first orders, sent in November 2017, the 10-year deadline lands around November 2027. Plans require engineering studies, and the studies tell the association what the work will cost.

A year built before 1977 doesn't mean a building is on the list, and the list doesn't mean a building is unsound. Some older towers were already retrofitted, or are steel-framed. LADBS is the source: its program pages list the buildings that received orders, and the building's own records show what was filed. Our building pages show year built; our high-rise guide and Westside guide cover the areas where many mid-century towers stand. The Wilshire Corridor is the subject of our post on the Wilshire Corridor and Century City.

LA County was drafting a separate high-rise concrete ordinance for unincorporated areas in 2024. We haven't confirmed that it was adopted.

Who pays, and how

In a condo building, the retrofit is a common area cost, so it lands on the association and then on every owner. Concrete retrofits in large towers can run to millions of dollars. The usual tools:

• Special assessments. Boards can levy up to 5% of budgeted gross expenses a year without a vote, with exceptions for court orders and threats to health and safety (Civil Code 5605 and 5610). A city order can fall into those exceptions.
• Association loans, repaid through higher dues over years.
• Reserves, if the reserve study planned for it, which older studies often didn't.

The budget's statement on anticipated special assessments (Civil Code 5300) and 12 months of board minutes are where a buyer sees what's coming. Our reserve requirements page explains why a large retrofit and the new 15% reserve line can pull a budget in two directions at once.

What an open retrofit order does to a loan

Fannie Mae's critical repair rule makes a project ineligible for repairs affecting safety or structural integrity, including failure of a mandatory state or local inspection and unfunded repairs over $10,000 per unit due within 12 months (Selling Guide B4-2.1-03, dated August 5, 2026). Lenders may treat an open order, or a retrofit that is due and unfunded, as a critical repair. Treatment varies by lender, so ask yours how it handles an open order.

Loan type	Open or unfunded retrofit
Conventional (to $1,249,125)	Can be treated as a critical repair; ineligible until funded or done.
Jumbo	Lender by lender.
Non-QM and portfolio	Case by case.
Cash	No loan test. The assessment is the cost.

A building that has completed and documented its retrofit is in a different position from one that has only filed a checklist. The full rule set is on our warrantable vs non-warrantable and condo loan rules pages.

Santa Monica, West Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Culver City

Each city runs its own program, and the details differ:

• Santa Monica: a 2017 ordinance covers five building types, including soft-story and non-ductile concrete, with deadlines from the date of the city's order. The city publishes its list of potentially vulnerable buildings on its open data site, and being listed doesn't by itself mean a retrofit is required. We haven't confirmed condo-specific deadlines.
• West Hollywood: Ordinance 17-1004 (effective April 1, 2018) requires soft-story retrofits of pre-1978 wood buildings, with notices sent in 2019. The city's grant program says soft-story condos are included, while non-ductile concrete and pre-Northridge steel condo buildings were exempted.
• Beverly Hills: Ordinance 18-O-2767 runs a mandatory soft-story program, about 84% complete by mid-2024 (Beverly Hills Courier).
• Culver City: a mandatory soft-story program; current deadlines not confirmed.

What buyers, sellers and boards can do

Buyers: check the LADBS program pages for the address, and ask the association for any Order to Comply, the engineer's report, the cost estimate, and how it's being paid for. Read the minutes. Then give it all to your lender early. The buyer checklist lists these with the rest of the package.

Sellers: if your building has an order, buyers will find it. Have the status, the funding plan and any completed sign-offs ready. Our seller checklist and sell your condo page cover preparation.

Boards: for concrete buildings with 2017 orders, the November 2027 plan deadline means engineering now. Funding decisions made in the 2027 budget affect both the retrofit and the reserve line lenders test from January 4. The HOA board brief covers both.

Common questions

What is the deadline for the LA concrete building retrofit?

Under LA's non-ductile concrete program, owners have 3 years from the Order to Comply to submit a checklist, 10 years for plans or proof of a prior retrofit, and 25 years to finish. The first orders went out in November 2017, so the earliest 10-year deadlines arrive around November 2027 and completion around 2041 to 2042.

Are LA condo soft-story retrofits finished?

Mostly. LA began sending soft-story orders for condo and commercial buildings on November 6, 2017, with seven years to complete, so most condo deadlines fell around late 2024. A buyer should still ask for proof the work was completed and signed off, and whether any assessment or association loan for it is still being paid.

Who pays for a seismic retrofit in a condo building?

The association pays, because the structure is common area, and the cost passes to owners through special assessments, higher dues or an association loan. Boards normally need a member vote for assessments over 5% of budgeted expenses a year, but California law has exceptions for court orders and threats to health and safety.

Can a retrofit order affect a condo loan?

It can. Fannie Mae treats repairs affecting structural integrity, failed mandatory inspections and unfunded repairs over $10,000 per unit due within 12 months as critical repairs that make a project ineligible. Lenders may treat an open or unfunded retrofit that way. A completed and documented retrofit is in a different position. Ask your lender how it treats an open order.

This page is general information about published agency guidelines, statutes and ordinances. It is not legal, tax, lending or insurance advice, and we are not lenders, attorneys or insurance brokers. Lenders apply their own overlays, and only a lender’s review decides whether a specific loan in a specific building works. Rules and dates change: confirm anything that affects a decision with your lender, attorney, insurance broker or association. Facts are current as of October 27, 2026.