HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES STAFF ANALYSIS
BILL #: CS/HB 429 Real Property
SPONSOR(S): Commerce Committee, Robinson, W.
TIED BILLS: IDEN./SIM. BILLS: CS/SB 756
REFERENCE ACTION ANALYST STAFF DIRECTOR or
BUDGET/POLICY CHIEF
1) Regulatory Reform & Economic Development 13 Y, 0 N Thompson Anstead
Subcommittee
2) Judiciary Committee 21 Y, 0 N Mawn Kramer
3) Commerce Committee 16 Y, 0 N, As CS Thompson Hamon
SUMMARY ANALYSIS
Currently, the Governor is authorized to appoint commissioners of deeds to take acknowledgements, proofs of execution,
or oaths in any foreign country, in international waters, or in any possession, territory, or commonwealth of the United
States outside the 50 states. The commissioner’s duties include authenticating acknowledgements in certain real estate
transactions outside of Florida but within the United States, and outside of the United States or within forei gn countries.
Chapter 721, F.S., the Florida Vacation Plan and Timesharing Act (Timeshare Act), administered by the Division of Florida
Condominiums, Timeshares, and Mobile Homes (DFCT) within the Department of Business and Professional Regulation
(DBPR), establishes requirements for the sale and operation of timeshare plans, including certain disclosures to
purchasers. The Timeshare Act authorizes the board of administration of any owners' association that operates a
timeshare condominium, or a timeshare cooperative, to make “material alterations” or “substantial additions” to
accommodations or facilities without the approval of the owners' association. However, current law does not authorize the
board of administration to “delete” accommodations or facilities without the owners’ association’s approval.
The Timeshare Act requires the managing entity of a timeshare plan to provide an “assessment certificate” within 30 days
after receiving a written request from a timeshare interest owner, an agent designated in writing by the timeshare interest
owner, or a person providing resale transfer services for a consumer timeshare reseller. However, condominium and
cooperative association purchasers are authorized to request that the seller provide an “estoppel certi ficate,” from the
condominium or cooperative association, which must be provided within 10 days after receiving a written request. An
estoppel certificate certifies the amount of any total debt owed to the association by a unit or parcel owner as of a
specified date, and provides other information about recurring assessments and other monetary obligations.
Operators of public lodging establishments or public food service establishments are authorized to remove or refuse to
accommodate persons for offenses such as drug use or intoxication. The Timeshare Act does not give the managing
entity of a timeshare project these same rights.
The bill:
Requires the Secretary of State, rather than the Governor, to appoint commissioners of deeds.
Revises the Timeshare Act, as follows:
o Authorizes the board of administration for a condominium or cooperative association to “delete” facilities
without the approval of the members of the association, provided the deletions are approved by a two-thirds
vote of the board of administration and consistent with certain fiduciary duties.
o Grants the managing entity of a timeshare project all of the same rights and remedies to remove and refuse to
accommodate as that of an operator of a public lodging or public food service establishment.
o Requires the managing entity of a timeshare condominium or timeshare cooperative to provide the
assessment certificate required under the Timeshare Act in lieu of the estoppel certificate relating to
condominium and cooperative associations.
The bill does not appear to have a fiscal impact on state or local government.
The effective date of the bill is July 1, 2024.
This docum ent does not reflect the intent or official position of the bill sponsor or House of Representatives .
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DATE: 2/8/2024
FULL ANALYSIS
I. SUBSTANTIVE ANALYSIS
A. EFFECT OF PROPOSED CHANGES:
Present Situation
Commissioner of Deeds
The Governor may appoint commissioners of deeds to take acknowledgements, proofs of execution, or
oaths in any foreign country, in international waters, or in any possession, territory, or commonwealth of
the United States outside the 50 states. The term of office is 4 years. Commissioners of deeds have
authority to take acknowledgements, proofs of execution, and oaths in connection with the execution of
any deed, mortgage, deed of trust, contract, power of attorney, or any other writing to be used or
recorded in connection with a timeshare estate, personal property timeshare interest, timeshare
license, any property subject to a timeshare plan, or the operation of a timeshare plan located within
this state; provided such instrument or writing is executed outside the United States.1
Transfers of real property are not effectual in law unless the transfer is recorded according to law. Nor
is any such instrument made or executed by power of attorney effectual in law unless the power of
attorney is recorded before the accruing of the right of a creditor or subsequent purchaser.2
To entitle any instrument concerning real property to be recorded, the execution must be acknowledged
by the party executing it, proved by a subscribing witness to it, or legalized or authenticated in one of
the following forms:
Within Florida – Acknowledgement or proof taken, administered, or made within this state by a
judge, clerk, or deputy clerk of any court; a United States commissioner or magistrate; or any
notary public or civil-law notary of this state.
Outside of Florida but within the United States – Acknowledgement of proof taken,
administered, or made by or before a civil-law notary of this state or a commissioner of deeds
appointed by the Governor of Florida, or other certain individuals.
Outside of the United States or within Foreign Countries – An acknowledgement, an affidavit, an
oath, a legalization, an authentication, or a proof taken, administered, or made by or before a
commissioner of deeds appointed by the Governor of Florida to act in such country, or other
certain individuals.3
Florida Vacation Plan and Timesharing Act
A timeshare interest is a form of ownership of real and personal property. 4 In a timeshare, multiple
parties hold the right to use a condominium unit or a cooperative unit. Each owner of a timeshare
interest is allotted a period of time (typically one week) during which the owner has the exclusive right
to use the property.
Chapter 721, F.S., the Florida Vacation Plan and Timesharing Act (Timeshare Act), administered by the
Division of Florida Condominiums, Timeshares, and Mobile Homes (DFCT) within the Department of
Business and Professional Regulation (DBPR), is the chapter of Florida law that governs vacation
plans and timesharing in the state. The purpose of the Timeshare Act is to:
Recognize real and personal property timeshare plans in the state;
Establish procedures for the creation, sale, exchange, promotion and operation of timeshare
plans;
Provide full and fair disclosure to purchasers and prospective purchasers of timeshare plans;
Require every timeshare plan in the state to be subjected to the provisions of the chapter;
1 S. 721.97(1), F.S.
2 S. 695.01, F.S.
3 S. 695.03(1)-(3), F.S.
4 See s. 721.05(36), F.S.
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Require full and fair disclosure of terms, conditions, and services by resale service providers;
and
Recognize that a uniform and consistent method of regulation is necessary to safeguard
Florida's tourism industry and the state's economic well-being.5
The Timeshare Act applies to all timeshare plans consisting of more than seven timeshare periods over
a period of at least three years when the accommodations and facilities are located or offered within
this state.6 The Timeshare Act governs vacation plans and timesharing,7 and multisite vacation and
timeshare plans that are also known as vacation clubs. 8
The term “timeshare plan” means any arrangement, plan, scheme, or similar device, other than an
exchange program, whether by membership, agreement, tenancy in common, sale, lease, deed, rental
agreement, license, or right-to-use agreement or by any other means, where a purchaser, for
consideration, receives ownership rights in or a right to use accommodations and facilities, if any, for a
period of time less than a full year during any given year, but not necessarily for consecutive years. 9
The term includes both personal property timeshare and real property timeshare plans.10
A “timeshare unit” is an accommodation of a timeshare plan which is divided into timeshare periods or
a condominium unit in which timeshare estates have been created. 11
A “timeshare estate” is a right to occupy a timeshare unit, coupled with a freehold estate or an estate
for years with a future interest in a timeshare property or a specified portion thereof. 12 The term also
includes an interest in a condominium unit, a cooperative unit, or a trust. Whether the term includes
both direct and indirect interests in trusts is not specified. An example of an indirect interest in a trust is
the interest of a trust beneficiary’s spouse or other dependent.
A “timeshare license” is the right to occupy a timeshare unit, which right is not a personal property
timeshare interest or a timeshare estate.13
A “timeshare interest” is a timeshare estate, a personal property timeshare interest, or a timeshare
license.14
Board of Administration
Each condominium, cooperative, and homeowners’ association is governed by a board of
administration elected by the association’s members or appointed by a developer prior to turnover of
the association. The board has those duties described in statute and in the association’s governing
documents, including association administration, policy development, and property maintenance. 15 A
board director also has a fiduciary responsibility to the association’s members and must use the highest
degree of good faith in placing the interests of the members above his or her own personal interests.16
5 S. 721.02, F.S.
6 S. 721.03, F.S.
7 Ch. 721, part I, F.S.
8 Ch. 721, part II, F.S.
9 S. 721.05(39), F.S.
10 S. 721.05(39)(a), F.S., defines a “personal property timeshare plan,” as a timeshare plan in which the accommodations are
comprised of personal property that is not permanently affixed to real property. Section 721.05(39)(b), F.S., defines a “real property
timeshare plan,” as a timeshare plan in which the accommodations of the timesh are plan are comprised of or permanently affixed to
real property.
11 See ss. 721.05(41) and 718.103(26), F.S.
12 S. 721.05(34), F.S.
13 S. 721.05(37), F.S.
14 S. 721.05(36), F.S.
15
See generally chs. 718, 719, and 720, F.S.; Florida DBPR, FAQs, http://www.myfloridalicense.com/DBPR/condominiu ms -and-
cooperatives/faqs/#1492784365590-e9ec1083-2ca1 (last visited Jan. 24, 2024).
16 Id.
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To ensure that a director is able to faithfully and competently exercise his or her duties, within 90 days
of being elected or appointed to the board, each newly elected or appointed director must:
Certify in writing that he or she has read the association’s governing documents; will work to
uphold the governing documents to the best of his or her ability; and will faithfully discharge his
or her fiduciary responsibility to the association’s members; or
Submit a certificate showing he or she satisfactorily completed the educational curriculum
administered by a DFCT-approved17 education provider within one year before or 90 days after
his or her election or appointment date.18
Application of the Condominium and Cooperative Acts
In addition to regulation under the Timeshare Act, a timeshare plan may also be subject to ch. 718, F.S.
(the Condominium Act) or ch. 719, F.S. (the Cooperative Act); where this is the case, the timeshare
plan must meet the requirements of all applicable chapters unless an exemption applies.19 Specifically,
if a timeshare plan subject to either the Condominium Act or the Cooperative Act is fully compliant with
the Timeshare Act, the timeshare plan is exempt from certain provisions of the Condominium Act or the
Cooperative Act, including provisions relating to:
Sales or reservation deposits prior to closing;
Filing prior to sale or lease;
Disclosures prior to sale;
The prospectus or offering circular; and
Conversions to the condominium or cooperative form of ownership.20
Timeshares Under the Condominium Act
Timeshare estates may not be created with respect to any condominium unit except pursuant to
provisions in the declaration of condominium expressly permitting the creation of such estates.21 A
declaration must, if timeshare estates will or may be created with respect to any condominium unit:
Provide a statement in conspicuous type declaring that timeshare estates will or may be
created with respect to units in the condominium; and
Define and describe in detail the degree, quantity, nature, and extent of the timeshare estates
that will or may be created.22
Unless otherwise provided in the declaration as originally recorded, an amendment to the declaration
may not authorize a timeshare estate to be created in any condominium unit unless the record owner of
each condominium unit and of liens on each condominium unit join in the amendment’s execution. 23
Timeshares Under the Cooperative Act
Original cooperative documents 24 must describe whether or not timeshare estates will or may be
created with respect to any cooperative units and, if so, the degree, quantity, nature, and extent of such
estates, specifying the minimum duration of the recurring periods of rights of use, possession or
17 A DFCT-approved provider must cover specified topics in its education program, which may include budgets; reserves; elections;
financial reporting; association operations; dispute resolution; and records maintenance. For a list of DFCT -approved education
providers, see http://www.myfloridalicense.com/dbpr/lsc/documents/CondoCOOPListofApprovedProviders2015.pdf (last visited Jan.
24, 2024). 61B-19.001 and 61B-75.0051, F.A.C.
18 This requirement does not apply to the board of directors for a commercial condominium. Ss. 718.112(2)(d), 719.106(1)(d), and
720.3033(1)(a)-(c), F.S.
19 S. 721.03(2), F.S.
20 S. 721.03(3), F.S.
21 The “declaration of condominium” is the instrument creating the condominium, as it is amended from time to time. Ss. 718.103( 15)
and 718.1045, F.S.
22 S. 718.104(4)(o), F.S.
23 S. 718.110(8), F.S.
24 “Cooperative documents” means the documents: creating the cooperative; evidencing a unit owner’s membership or share in the
association; or recognizing a unit owner’s title or right of possession to his or her unit. S. 719.103(13), F.S.
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occupancy that may be established with respect to any unit. 25 Unless the creation of timeshare estates
in any cooperative unit is authorized by the original cooperative documents, an amendment adding
phases to a cooperative that authorizes the creation of timeshare estates in any unit of the additional
phase requires the execution or consent by all unit owners other than the developer. 26
Public Offering Statement
Prior to offering any timeshare plan, a developer must submit a public offering statement, 27 which must
include certain information and disclosures, to the DFCT.28 Any amendment to an approved offering
statement must be filed with the DFCT for approval prior to becoming effective.29
Extension or Termination of Timeshare Plans
The Timeshare Act provides a statutory default provision for timeshare instruments that have been in
existence for at least 25 years and are silent as to how the plan terminates or is extended. A vote or
written consent of 60 percent of all the voting interests in the timeshare plan is required to extend or
terminate the term of a timeshare plan.30
If the term of a timeshare plan is extended, all rights, privileges, duties, and obligations created under
applicable law or the timeshare instrument continue in full force. If a timeshare plan is terminated, the
termination has immediate effect pursuant to applicable law and the timeshare instrument. 31
A termination, extension vote, or consent proposed for a component