If you are the owner of a Los Angeles multi-unit residential apartment building, or the home association of a condo building, you are probably familiar by now with California Senate Bills 326 and 721, otherwise known as the “Balcony Inspection Laws”.  These two new laws require mandatory safety inspections and repair of damaged balconies, decks, stairs, catwalks, and other “Exterior Elevated Elements” (also called “EEE”).

At Weinstein Construction, we have provided our clients and the public with essential information on the inspection and repair requirements of these new laws, and if you’d like to revisit this material, you can do so by clicking here on our Balcony Repair Services description, as well as our updates on the subject, which were published on February 28, May 15, and December 3, 2022.

Over the past few weeks, we have had many of our clients call us, wanting to know what would be their balcony inspection cost, as well as balcony repair cost, and as such, we thought it would be useful to discuss the various pricing considerations of such projects.

How Much Does A Balcony Inspection Cost?

The cost of a balcony inspection will depend on a number of factors, including:

  • The number of EEEs that must be inspected in order to achieve the high confidence level required by the law.
  • Whether the inspection requires: (i) a simple visual assessment (e.g., when EEE framing is visible); (ii) drilling a small hole in the EEE (e.g., so that we can use a borescope instrument to view inside) or (iii) removing an area covered by a stucco finish (e.g., when the EEE’s framing is covered by stucco).
  • Whether or not the EEE has a soffit which will need to be removed.
  • The height of the EEE from the ground (i.e., the difficulty in reaching the EEE).
  • Whether or not access is provided to individual apartments or condos.
  • Whether or not inspecting the EEE requires the use of specialized lift equipment.

Generally speaking, the balcony inspection cost will average between $1,250 to $2,500, which includes inspection and reporting on up to four EEE.  For each additional EEE (beyond four), a fee that averages between $200 to $300 will apply.

How Much Do Balcony Repairs Cost?

With respect to the balcony repair cost, it really does depend upon the damage we see in the inspected EEEs.  For example, cost considerations include whether or not we see faulty construction and deficiencies in the EEE, the extent of the water damage to the EEE, the extent of wood rot and cracking in the EEE’s framing, the extent to which the waterproofing materials (e.g., membranes, coatings, sealants) need to be replaced, the height of the EEE from the ground, etc.

Having said that, Weinstein Construction professionals will have many different remediation options for you to choose from, at various price points.  We do pride ourselves on always making sure our clients receive the best quality, at the most reasonable price!

Get Your Balcony Inspection Today

Don’t delay.  As the inspection due date looms closer, the small numbers of inspectors, engineers, and qualified balcony repair contractors in the Greater Los Angeles area, will be struggling to cope with inspecting and repairing thousands of apartment and condo buildings!  This means inspection fees and construction repair costs will soar, the closer you get to the inspection deadline!

call Weinstein Construction today at (888) 412-8363 to schedule your free “California Balcony Law” consultation!  Take advantage of lower prices today and get help in planning for this important and mandatory inspection program!