The compassionate condo community

The graying of America continues. The number of Americans who are over 65 creeps upward. Today, that number is about 50 million. It is likely to expand to near 100 million by 2060.  And our longevity is creating a bit of a problem. When social security was enacted the average life expectancy was 65. Now, […]

Condo Board meetings are not for all (NH)

Regardless of how many units are in your association or how many members are on your board of directors, you still have to have an occasional meeting of the board. And that means you have to learn how to keep your board meetings on task and not let them devolve into chaos.    Read the entire […]

The appeal of appeals for condo owners (NH)

Last column I noted what can and should happen when a board of directors sanctions an owner without providing any evidence to an owner about the basis for the sanction.  But what if, instead of choosing not to show an owner any evidence at a hearing in front of the board, a board of directors […]

Condo World: Trials and tribulations of association violations (NH)

Not having been a philosophy major, I’ve never quite figured out the answer to the question, “If a tree falls in the woods and no one is around, does it still create a sound?”  I tend to think it does, just one that’s not heard. (And who’s to say other animals or even trees can’t hear […]

Condo World: Problems in the Poconos

Ahhhh, the Poconos of Pennsylvania. The soft rustle of the pine trees on a warm spring night, the smell right after a summer thunderstorm, the soft, powerful, yet soothing sound of a waterfall cascading over timeworn rocks, and the serene lakes stocked with fish and swimmers. So peaceful and rejuvenating.  But where there are condos, […]

Condo World: A better way to meet (NH)

Some of us are old enough to remember when Zoom was simply a kids’ show on PBS.  Now? It’s another noun that we’ve turned into a verb. We don’t search for things on the internet. We “Google” them. We don’t have meetings on the internet. We “Zoom” or “Skype.” (And have you ever noticed we […]

Condo World: Electronic condo association meetings now and in the future (NH)

One of the problems the pandemic has created is how to hold Association meetings, annual or special.  A current question in a number of associations is how to hold them when (1) there are state orders against large gatherings, (2) some people who would otherwise attend a meeting won’t because of a fear of lack […]

Fire in Gilford condominiums is contained (NH)

“To stop a fire in the middle units of a 4-unit condo is quite an accomplishment,” Carrier said. “Everyone did a great job. The alarm system provided notification; a back-up call from an occupant reporting smoke; and, great teamwork on the fireground limited the spread of the fire.”   Read the article………………………………..

Condo World: The coming kidnapping of condo associations (NH)

Let’s be clear. Your computer, where you store your condominium association’s records, or the association’s computer system, will get hacked. Make no mistake about it. To pretend otherwise would be a mistake.    Read the article…………………………………

Condo World: Association rental programs can be restrictive (NH)

Most of the columns that I have written over the past six years have been relevant to most condominium associations, such as the problems with ice dams, how to hire contractors, how to handle noise complaints and the powers and authorities of boards of directors. This is not one of those columns.   Read the article……………………………..

Condo World: Here it comes: Winter Tips, Part 2, Ice Dams (NH)

Before the holidays, I wrote a column about Winter Tips, primarily about what to insert into your association’s snow removal contract, and promised more thoughts.  So, let’s talk about ice dams, one of very few phrases in condominium law with such a loaded double meaning. Your association has likely experienced ice dams or you have […]

Condo World: Another chance for us to get it right (NH)

If there were any time to reassess, it is after the problems of 2020, with evictions, joblessness, financial constraints, and the mothballing of visits to friends, neighbors, families, and restaurants.  Those of us who are older used to think of Zoom as a PBS show for kids. We now have a different understanding.   Read the […]

Condo World: Here comes winter. Be ready. (NH)

With the longer, darker days come the longer, darker moods of winter. Whether we love it, like it, endure it, or hate it, winter is coming. Oh sure, it starts out nice. The first snowfall for most brings a smile to the face as snow gently settles on the ground and brings back memories of […]

Condo World: Tips for meeting during the pandemic (NH)

The second wave appears to be upon us. Now that summer has receded like the tide, people are returning to living and socializing inside and in close quarters, where all viruses have a greater chance of spreading.     Read the article……………………………….

CONDO WORLD: Keeping your money safe (NH)

Very few associations suffer the devastating effect of having someone (e.g. a board member, officer or a manager) steal the association’s money. But it happens.  One property manager in New Hampshire was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison and ordered to pay back over $900,000 stolen from 27 condo associations she was managing.   Read […]

Condo World: Freedom of speech and political signs in condominiums (NH)

Let me start with a clear, unequivocal statement. Owners in community associations, be they part of a condominium association or a homeowners association, do not have freedom of speech. Every arm chair constitutionalist will disagree, but it’s true.    Read the article…………………………………

Condo World: Best to stay out of neighbor noise disputes (NH)

“Oh, the Noise! Noise! Noise! Noise!”  I don’t hate Christmas. Far from it. But the Grinch’s comments would be applicable in almost all condominium associations. Someone, somewhere, at some time, in some condominium unit WILL contact its Board of Directors to complain about noise from a neighbor.    Read the article……………………………….

Condo World: To tow or not to tow, Part II (NH)

If a member of your board of directors suggests towing, be careful. Occasionally, you have the board member who always wants to tow vehicles to “send a message.” I always wonder what message it sends in a community association if the board is actively looking for vehicles to tow. Certainly not the right message.    […]

Condo World: To tow or not to tow, Part I (NH)

People do the darnedest things with cars. They park on the grass; they take the space or spaces of other units; they take up three or four spaces when assigned two spaces; they fail to move for the plow. The list can be long.  When these types of things occur, usually a board of directors […]

Condo World: Census taking in a pandemic (NH)

It’s census taking time. Even during a pandemic. Even in condominium associations. First, some background; then how the census taking usually works in condo associations; then how it works now as a result of the virus, with potential pitfalls.  Read the article…………………………….

War of the Roses, Caddyshack? These condo tales are even better (NH)

It has been a bit of a bad time for many lately with the pandemic limiting activities for some and having much more extreme effects on other families in condos and elsewhere. So I thought a bit of lightness may help.  What follows are a few silly things that have happened in condos around the […]

The rainy day is coming. Are you ready? (NH)

As a board, you’ve come to the long dawning realization that you can’t put off replacing the rot around windows, the failing roofs, the cracked and pothole filled parking lot and other needed repairs that have turned your once lovely association into something closer to a third world country. It’s time to get the work […]

Should HOAs and landlords ask if you have COVID-19? Should you tell them? (NH)

If you’re stricken with the COVID-19 virus, your first thought probably isn’t to warn your neighbors.  Yet that’s exactly what some homeowner associations and apartment managers are asking residents to do — self-report when they become sick with the coronavirus. It’s a request that pits an individual’s right to privacy against the immediate community’s right […]

Homeowner asks judge to step aside (NH)

Charging that a string of adverse rulings shows prejudice, a local property owner asked a Superior Court judge Friday to step down from presiding over a civil case being brought by the Governors Island Club homeowners association.  “Up to now you’ve been one-sided,” Richard Homsi said during a hearing in front of Judge James D. […]

Plan floated to allow deer hunters on private land in New Castle (NH)

A proposal to allow deer hunters onto private land in New Castle is stirring up concerns.  The Wentworth by the Sea Condominium Association Board of Directors has proposed allowing bow hunters to access private property, including on islands, to thin a herd of deer. The association represents 107 property owners by the Wentworth by the […]

NH Voices — Rep. Jim Webb: NH Condo law needs to be changed

DO NEW HAMPSHIRE condominium owners have the same rights as other homeowners? The answer is “NO.” Many condo owners in NH are upset over the change in the state condominium law that took place Aug. 1, 2016.   Read the opinion…………………..

Board deals blow to Airbnb-type rentals (NH)

Scott Palmer says that before he bought a condominium near Paugus Bay early this year, he checked with the city and the homeowners association and determined he could offer it for short-term, Airbnb-type rentals.  But on Monday night, the city’s Zoning Board of Adjustment told the Windham man that he is not allowed to use […]

Karyl Court water dispute spills over to other areas (NH)

The new president of the Karyl Court Condo Association is claiming $97,000 in gross damages due to the town’s position on supplying water to the Beech Street property, but Bristol officials say a history of code violations, neglect, and non-payment warrants a strong stance.  Norm Hebert, who assumed leadership of the condominium association last year, […]

Condo Association Asks to Raze Historic Grantham Farmhouse (NH)

A historic brick farmhouse that dates to the 1830s may soon be torn down.  A condominium association wants Planning Board approval to take down the farmhouse on Dunbar Hill, which it was required to preserve when the Gray Ledges condos were permitted 30 years ago.  After a discussion about the cost to save the deteriorating […]

Woman ordered to pay $66K in restitution in theft case (NH)

An Intervale woman has been sent to jail and ordered to pay more than $66,400 in restitution to a local condo association as a result of pleading guilty to theft.  Lynne Barry, 54, pleaded guilty to misdemeanor theft by unauthorized taking in Carroll County Superior Court on Nov. 3. She was sentenced to a year […]

NH Supreme Court issues key condo financing ruling

In NH Housing Finance Authority v. Pinewood Estates Condominium Association, the question was whether a foreclosing mortgagee could be held liable for the unpaid assessments incurred by a prior delinquent owner. The NHHFA had acquired, in a foreclosure sale, title to a condominium unit with substantial unpaid assessments that had been accrued by the prior […]

Board powers are broad powers

In an earlier column, I explained the occasional problem of a board whose powers have gone to its collective head and turned into a rogue board. But that’s a bit unfair because the vast majority of boards are well intentioned, well operated administrative bodies filled with volunteers who work really hard to make their place […]

The 2014 Legislative Agenda in New England

The old saying that the only sure things in life are death and taxes leaves out a third certainty: legislation. Across New England each year, thousands of bills get filed in state legislatures, many of them as mundane as the naming of a bridge or a new state “something”—like designating the Fluffernutter as Massachusetts’ official […]

Doctor Shot To Death After Altercation At NH Lake

Those who live along the lake say the shooter was another neighbor, and the two men had argued in the past over dock space.  “It’s a little isolated up here…sometimes we feel we’re part of a Stephen King novel or something,” said Tim Lewis, Vice President of the Stinson Lake Homeowners Association.    Read more…….