US 19 out of St. Pete is 25 to 35 minutes, and we take Alt 19 when 19 is stacked. Beach work adds a layer: Clearwater Beach is over the Memorial Causeway, Sand Key over the Belleair, then it's a service elevator and a building engineer. Stacked units are the ugly ones. A supply line lets go on eleven and four units below are soaked before anyone notices.
Inland it's slower. Fifties-through-seventies slab ranches have cast iron giving out; Countryside and Coachman brought polybutylene in the eighties. Alligator and Stevenson Creek come up on a hard afternoon rain, no storm required.
Beach high-rises, mainland slab, creeks that don't need a hurricane
The condo association says the building handles water damage. Do I still call?
Call anyway. The association covers structure and common elements; your finishes, flooring and contents are usually yours. Drying starts regardless of who pays.
Water came in during a rainstorm, not a hurricane. Is that covered?
Depends how it got in. Roof or window intrusion is usually covered; water that rose off the ground near Stevenson Creek is flood, a separate policy. We document the entry point.