Florida’s unscrupulous HOAs contribute to our high cost of housing (Op/Ed)

A year ago, the headline above a Miami Herald editorial posed a provocative question – “Is America’s worst homeowners’ association in Miami? – and then answered: “It’s starting to look that way.”  The editorial was a follow-up to a series of Herald reports on what authorities had found once they were finally able to peel […]

DeSantis says Citizens isn’t solvent. What would happen if it can’t pay out claims? (FL)

Florida homeowners shouldn’t rely on Citizens Property Insurance if a severe storm strikes the Sunshine State in the upcoming hurricane season, is the message relayed by Gov. Ron DeSantis on CNBC’s “Last Call,” which aired on Tuesday.  Echoing concerns serious enough to instigate an investigation by the Senate Budget Committee into whether Citizens could afford […]

Florida family in legal fight with HOA over backyard pool construction (FL)

Who knew a tiny pool could cause such a major headache? Leo and Maidolys Aguado saved for years to build a pool for their six and twelve-year-old daughters. However, they made a big mistake by hiring the contractor before asking the Whispering Oaks Home Owners Association for permission for the project last August.   Read the […]

NSB stops new development in Venetian Bay neighborhood until flooding issues are resolved (FL)

The City Commission Tuesday voted unanimously to adopt an emergency ordinance temporarily halting building permits issued in New Smyrna Beach’s Venetian Bay neighborhood.  The recurrence of flooding incidents in the area has resulted not only in property damage concerns but also in public health and safety concerns for affected residents, who are calling for a […]

Budget conference: After brief snub, Senate agrees to $30M for condo-hardening program (FL)

After briefly offering nothing, Senate lawmakers have agreed to spend $30 million on a proposed pilot program to help condo owners strengthen their properties against seasonal storms.  House lawmakers proposed the nonrecurring expenditure Tuesday. Meanwhile, the Senate held out on committing anything to the program.  That changed Wednesday at 9 p.m., when the Legislature’s upper […]

Pasco golf course-turned-forest nears resolution, at least for some neighbors (FL)

Now the Lowman Links property is under contract with Ryan Homes, which plans to build 218 homes, a developer’s representative told Pasco planning commissioners last week. Part of the agreement also included an offer to two of the community’s village homeowners associations that back up to the golf course property.   Read the article…………………………….

Jewfish Key homeowners seek separation from Longboat Key (FL)

The Longboat Key commission is navigating legal waters around Jewfish Key.  The Jewfish Key Preservation Collective, which acts as a homeowner’s association for property owners on the key, requested disengagement from the municipal boundaries of Longboat Key Dec. 19, 2023.   Read the article…………………………….

Term Limit Law Still 2 Years Away (FL)

Q: My condominium association will be having its annual meeting soon, which will include an election for members to the board of directors. Some of our board members have served for numerous years, and I understood that there are now term limits on the number of years a board member could serve. What is the […]

Florida’s Condo Prices Are Falling As Cost of Insurance and HOA Fees Skyrocket

Prices of condos in major Florida metros are dropping year over year, and sales are declining. New condo listings are soaring as sellers try to offload their properties. That differs from the U.S. as a whole, where condo prices are rising, sales are holding steady and new listings are increasing at a much slower rate.  Read […]

Suspects in Arlington condo graffiti incident have agreed to turn themselves in, pay for damages (FL)

In an act of taking responsibility, three individuals who were videotaped vandalizing condominiums in Arlington have agreed to turn themselves in and pay for the damage they caused.   Action News Jax has been following this story since Saturday when surveillance video reportedly captured several people vandalizing homes at Teakwood Villas.     Read the article…………………………….

Justice Dept. seeks forfeiture of Russian businessman’s Bal Harbour condos (FL)

Authorities announced Thursday that a civil forfeiture complaint was filed against the condos owned by sanctioned Russian businessman Viktor Perevalov, the co-owner of a Russia-based construction company that was sanctioned for building a highway in Crimea, a Ukrainian peninsula that Russia seized in 2014   Read the article…………………………….

Arlington vandalism suspects have until Friday to avoid charges, condo’s HOA said (FL)

Several suspects accused of vandalizing Arlington condos have until Friday to avoid charges. That’s according to the complex’s HOA.   Neighbors and the HOA were ready to make some improvements to the property this week. But they found explicit pictures and swear words on walls and stairs that might change those plans.   Read the article…………………………….

Magnolia Point residents challenge amenity fees imposed by Community Association (FL)

Magnolia Point Golf and Country Club is quietly nestled behind guarded gates, surrounded by a matrix of moss-draped oaks and magnolia trees. The community is a sanctuary of solitude and affluence, where a semi-private golf course ambles throughout the 1,000-acre development.  But hidden in seemingly picture-perfect seclusion is chaos. The stylish, if not privileged, setting […]

Miami Herald Column on Addressing the Presence of Crocodiles in Community (FL)

he article, which is titled “Crocodile in Community Generates Effective Response Chronicled in TV Newscasts,” focuses on a couple of recent news reports on 7 News Miami (www.wsvn.com) that illustrated how potentially dangerous wildlife incursions can impact local communities. It reads:  . . . The first report chronicled how residents at the Bay Colony Club […]

Demolition Underway at Deteriorating Condo Building in Coral Springs (FL)

Demolition is underway of a decrepit condominium in Coral Springs, despite a request from a potential investor to save the building.  In 2021, the city declared the former Villa Bianca condominium at 3990 Woodside Drive to be unsafe, leading to the relocation of residents in 15 of the 16 units.    Read the article…………………………….

Association ‘Sunshine Laws’ Questioned (FL)

Q: I was recently elected to the board of my condominium association. I thought we had to follow Florida’s sunshine laws, but our long-time president said this is not true. She claims we can meet whenever we want as long as no votes are taken, or assessments are not going to be made. Is this […]

‘Heartbeat of this HOA:’ Ocoee woman helps make neighborhood a community (FL)

Here at News 6, we get a lot of emails about neighborhood homeowners associations.  Most are complaints that go to our investigative or consumer units.  But residents of one Ocoee neighborhood felt so strongly about someone on their board, they nominated her for the News 6 Getting Results award.    Read the article…………………………….

Mother-daughter-boyfriend trio accused of defrauding West Kendall HOA; 2 arrested (FL)

Thirty-eight-year-old Yasnely Pedroso had once been fired from the Westwind Lakes Garden Homes Condominium Association, Inc. for destroying records, among other things, according to police.  Enter her mother, Idoris Pedroso. According to Miami-Dade police, when the 63-year-old became board president, she rehired her daughter as an assistant.    Read the article…………………………….

Erosion causes concern for beachfront condominiums in Palm Beach (FL)

Concerned residents of Palm Beach oceanfront condominiums told the Town Council this week that erosion is a growing concern — and Palm Beach staff say help is on the way, though not before hurricane season.  Representatives from two condominiums spoke to the council during Tuesday’s meeting, saying properties on the town’s South End were hit […]

Inside the battle for the Hammocks HOA’s future leadership (FL)

Over a year after five people were charged with running a massive fraud at the Hammocks, the homeowners association is again embroiled in contention.  Court-appointed receiver David Gersten has been overseeing the HOA since the November 2022 arrests of four ex-board members and a fifth person.   Read the article…………………………….

Florida storm-proofing grant program may expand to condos

There is bipartisan support in the Florida House for a proposal giving condo associations money to harden their buildings against hurricanes.  The proposal (House Bill 1029) is a pilot program designed to expand the My Safe Florida Home Program. It would allow condo associations, like residential homeowners, to pursue matching grant dollars    Read the […]

Florida Lawmakers Advance Bill Cracking Down on Condo Boards

Since the tragic Surfside condo collapse in 2021 that killed 98 people, Florida lawmakers have passed several laws to improve safety. Today, the Senate appropriations committee advanced a bill that will help control rogue condo boards and provide residents more oversight.     Read the article…………………………….

City orders evacuation at Panama City Beach condo (FL)

“On Thursday night, February 8, 2024, the city received a concerning report from Slider Engineering Group, Inc., following a structural inspection of all guardrails in Calypso Tower III,” city officials wrote in a letter to the condo owners. “The findings reveal significant structural integrity issues, particularly with the guardrails on the east side of the […]

New condo requirements bringing financial burdens to Volusia County owners, renters

“That was this was a wake-up call because what’s been going on, was there are millions of dollars of repairs at certain buildings, and the condo associations are hamstrung because you have to either have the reserves or you don’t,” said John Cadden, Condominium Advisory Group managing principal.    Read the article…………………………….

Spanish Main Yacht Club installs $1M of potable water pipes (FL)

Chairman of the Water Committee Tom Freiwald said Spanish Main Yacht Club was a 55-plus community in both the age of its residents and potable water lines.  Due to repeated system failures, the Spanish Main Yacht Club had to replace its potable waterRead the article……………………………. lines, which were original to the condominium’s construction in 1966.

Strike-all Amendment to HB 1021 (FL)

Representative Lopez’s HB 1021 just passed the Regulatory Reform & Economic Development Subcommittee with a strike-all amendment without objection and will be heard next in the State Administration & Technology Appropriations Subcommittee. The Senate counterpart to this bill, Senator Bradley’s SB 1178, does not currently match up.     Read the article…………………………….