Among the most important elements of building maintenance is inspecting and securing the facade, whether it’s brick, stone, stucco, glass, or some other material. Improper installation, neglected maintenance, and plain old natural deterioration over time can all destabilize your building’s exterior, posing a serious risk to both residents and passers-by in the form of falling debris, or even structural collapse.

That’s why it’s vital to schedule regular inspections of your building envelope with a qualified professional—for both safety and peace of mind, and to satisfy the requirements of your local government, regulatory agencies, and lenders. 

Proactive Prevention 

Bruno Bartoli, Director of Management Services for Evergreen Management in Bedford, New Hampshire, advises association managers to make regular exterior inspections of every building they manage. “Inspection is the first step to identifying any issues the property façade or exterior may have, and provides an opportunity to find those issues or problems in their early stages,” he says. “Management and the board can stay ahead of any issues that might put the structure of the building or residents at risk; that not only avoids accidents, but also saves money. 

“Regular exterior inspections are crucial for the safety of residents, staff, and passers-by,” says Antonio Argibay, managing principal of Meridian Design Associates, with offices in New York and Miami. “By maintaining the building’s integrity, inspections reduce risks and ensure compliance with safety standards.”

The Prime Suspects

Facades, by their very nature and purpose, are exposed and subject to the elements. While those may differ in form from region to region—freezing and thawing in the north, and heavy rain and wind in the south—they share a common ingredient: water. Infiltration of water into facades can damage the bricks, pointing, and even the steel of a building’s interior structure. That’s not to mention what that same water can do if it reaches the interior of individual units, damaging floors, ceilings, and walls.

 “Over time, weathering and wear can compromise structural elements,” says Argibay, “leading to hazards like falling debris. Routine checks help identify issues early, ensuring safety and preventing costly repairs.”

Douglas Weinstein, senior vice president of operations for AKAM Management, with offices in both New York and Florida, adds that “it’s incumbent upon ownership and management to do inspections regularly to prevent a tragedy, such as masonry falling off and striking a pedestrian.

 “It is very important—crucial, really—to have both building exteriors and the interior of parking structures inspected regularly,” says Giulia Alimonti, vice president for building exteriors with Entuitive, a Canadian based engineering firm with offices throughout the United States. “Inspections are crucial to the maintenance of both the buildings themselves as well as the residents and passers-by. Because of the age of housing stock in places such as New York, Boston and even Miami, we have continuing deterioration due to weather.  In the northeast that’s mainly from freezing. I

While water is arguably the most common and serious culprit in facade erosion, it can cause a whole menu of distinct problems, depending on the form the water takes, its salinity, the material exposed to it, how long the exposure has been going on, prevailing weather conditions, and so forth. 

For example, a condition known as spalling can cause major damage, not only in and on the façade, but the façade’s steel under-structure as well.

“Concrete spalling,” Weinstein explains, “is when water gets into masonry and attacks the steel joist or rebar inside, making it rust. The steel components expand as they rust - up to seven times their original size. This expansion forces the masonry out. It cracks and loosens. It happens all the time.”

Along with spalling, in the Northeast, the cycle of freezing and subsequent thawing in colder months can cause much the same situation. Bartoli notes that deterioration from water infiltration can affect more than just facades; balconies and decks can be affected, too. Water infiltration can also cause roofing issues, window and door failure—even foundation settling and cracks.

The age of a building plays a role as well, explains Alimonti.“The most common defect we find is deterioration due simply to aging of building materials. Aging is a result of exposure to weather year after year. In the Northeast, we have warm weather in the summer and cold and wind in the winter. The water gets into small gaps and ice expands and causes cracking.  Year after year the cracks get deeper and deeper, and if they’re not repaired as part of a regular maintenance program, you can get very unsafe conditions. Many buildings in the city also have parking structures in them. The concrete in a parking structure can get wet right down to the steel. When the steel gets wet and starts expanding, it eventually cracks the concrete. That’s very dangerous, because steel corrodes and loses both material and strength. Inspectors look for things that are out of order,” says Alimonti, “bulging bricks, leaning parapets—anything that looks like it couldn’t have been built that way. Cracks are the number one red flag. Missing parts, spalled brick and limestone, and discoloration from efflorescence” are other signs of trouble.  

“Falling debris from buildings is often fatal, and in severe cases of neglect, structural collapse can occur, also resulting in loss of life,” says Argibay. “Roofs and their waterproofing, when compromised, allow moisture intrusion and mold growth. Roof inspections typically focus on assessing the wear of roofing materials, as leaks are usually addressed quickly. In contrast, the damage and risks of a compromised façade are less visible and often go unnoticed.”

Mandatory Inspections

Regular inspections can bring the kinds of problems just mentioned to the attention of community administrators, and allow them to be corrected before a disaster occurs. This has become a particularly important issue in the aftermath of the Surfside building collapse disaster in Miami in 2021 that killed nearly 100 people and cost over $1 billion in insurance claims alone.

In New England, Bartoli explains, “Each manager conducts inspections differently. Managers are not general contractors, and should use their preferred vendors to provide a more in-depth inspection if a specific part of the building seems to be failing. If a roof visually seems in bad shape, a follow-up inspection from a certified roofing company would be very important to determine whether the roof just needs a repair, or may be at the end of its useful life. 

“In addition to a qualified inspector specific to the trade and local vendors for expert opinions,” Bartoli continues, buildings should “complete a reserve study and take that study into account when trying to identify the useful life of the building’s infrastructural components. If the maintenance team or a preferred vendor finds a serious problem with the exterior of the building, this needs to be communicated immediately to the association manager or to the board [if the building is self-managed]. Repairs should be made as soon as possible, and in accordance with local government requirements and standards.”

The takeaway, says Bartoli, is simply that maintaining your building’s façade and making necessary repairs quickly is critical for the health of your physical plant, its residents and its visitors, as well as passers-by: “The key is for the board and community to be proactive about correcting these problems in a timely manner.”                                               

A.J. Sidransky is a staff writer/reporter for New England Condominium, and a published novelist. He may be reached at alan@yrinc.com.