What goes in the ownership file for a Mid-Beach oceanfront condo?

Start with the condominium documents, the budget, the plans and the purchase agreement; add the deposit receipts, the title commitment, the insurance and the closing statement; finish with the recorded deed, the title policy and the warranties. On the ocean, add four papers: the survey showing the beach and the mean high water line, the association's master policy with its windstorm deductible, the flood zone and elevation record, and the reserve study. The three buildings on our file add their own. At The Perigon: the private elevator and terrace terms. At The Shoreclub Private Collection: the shared facilities agreement with the Auberge hotel and the landmark terms for the Cromwell House facade. At Ocean Terrace: the hotel, club and retail agreements and, in the resort tower, the furniture inventory.

For a new condominium bought from the developer, Florida law gives 15 days to cancel after signing or after receiving the required documents, whichever is later. Read these inside that window:

The declaration of condominium, which defines your home, the common elements and any limited common element such as a cabana, a parking space or a terrace.

The articles, bylaws and rules, including the rules on leasing, guests, beach use and staff.

The estimated operating budget, with the insurance line read first, because on the ocean it is the one that moves.

The plans by line, with the areas as the documents define them.

The purchase agreement and deposit schedule, naming the escrow agent.

Our page on the condominium documents in five sections shows where to look, and what to verify before buying an oceanfront condo in Mid-Beach covers the checks before the file begins.

The survey. In Florida the wet sand below the mean high water line is public; what a building can own is the dry sand above it. The Perigon publishes about 200 linear feet of shoreline on both sides of the property; Ocean Terrace publishes about 350 feet of ocean frontage; the Shoreclub publishes about three oceanfront acres. File the survey that shows where the line falls on each, and the beach club rules. Read what private beach access means in Florida.

The master policy. The association insures the building; the owner insures the interior and contents. File the master policy summary with the windstorm deductible stated as a percentage of insured value, and your own binder beside it.

The flood record. File the flood zone and the elevation record for the building, and the flood policy for your home if the lender or your own judgment calls for one. Read Miami Beach flood maps and insurance.

The reserve study. Florida requires a structural integrity reserve study for buildings of three storeys or more. File the developer's plan for the first study, its date and what it funds. Read what a beach building reserve study tells you.

The Perigon. The developer publishes private elevator entry to each of about 73 homes, wraparound terraces, 10-foot ceilings and floor-to-ceiling glass in OMA's diamond-shaped tiers, with a resident-only oceanfront restaurant and speakeasy. File the rules on terrace use and maintenance, since a wraparound terrace on the ocean is a waterproofing and railing question for the association; the elevator terms for your line; and the restaurant's operating agreement, because a resident-only restaurant in a building of 73 is a budget line owners carry. Sales are through Douglas Elliman Development Marketing. Read the Perigon ownership file.

The Shoreclub Private Collection. The developer, Witkoff, names Auberge Resorts Collection as hospitality partner on the same three acres, with about 49 homes in three forms behind the landmarked Cromwell House facade. File the shared facilities agreement that says who owns the pools, the Auberge spa and the beach club, who pays and in what share; the brand and service terms; and the landmark terms, because a protected facade carries obligations on the association that an ordinary building does not. Ask which form your home is, the Tower, the House or the Beach House, and file the plan that says so. Read which new Miami Beach condos have a hotel on site for what the hotel changes. Read the Shoreclub ownership file.

Ocean Terrace. Two towers on about five acres of parkland, with about 52 boutique residences in one, about 24 furnished resort residences in the other, a 42-key hotel in a restored Art Deco building, a private members' club with spa and about 15,000 square feet of street-level retail. File the agreements between the association and the hotel, the club and the retail; the rules on the adjoining public park and the fifth-floor terrace with its lap pool; and, in the resort tower, the furniture inventory for your home, furnished by RAMSA, with its condition at delivery. Sales are through Douglas Elliman Development Marketing. Read the Ocean Terrace ownership file.

Before closing: the closing notice, amendments to the documents, the title commitment, your insurance binder and the flood policy, the master policy summary, the inspection report and punch list, and the closing statement. Our page on documents before closing on a new Miami condo covers each. If the closing falls between June and November, read how a Miami condo closes during hurricane season first.

After closing: the recorded deed, the owner's title policy, the developer's statutory warranties and the manufacturers' warranties for the glass and the terrace systems, the association's yearly budgets and insurance summaries, each reserve study, each property tax bill, and the homestead filing if the home is your permanent residence.

You keep the file; your adviser keeps a copy. The Mid-Beach zone page places the three; for the coast to the north, read the ownership file for a Bal Harbour or Surfside condo. The desk reads the survey, the master policy and the shared facilities agreement with you before the 15 days end.