Maine Condo & HOA News
- Davis Island residents seek selectmen’s help with disaster relief funding (ME) February 27, 2024Three December storms resulted in severe flooding at Davis Island properties and a resident is now looking for help. John Allen requested Feb. 20 Edgecomb selectmen assist their homeowner’s association with submitting a Maine Emergency Management Agency application for natural disaster funding. Read the article…………………………….
- Lewiston nonprofit helps renters buy their first home by turning apartments into condos (ME) December 13, 2023From renting to owning, a nonprofit is developing condos in Lewiston’s “Tree Streets” neighborhood. A two-bedroom condo at 51 Howard Street is available for $150,000. The other two floors will be up for sale next year. Read the article……………………………
- Saco retirement development plagued by problems, some residents say (ME) December 10, 2023More than half the homeowners at The Cottages at Pine Meadow have complained to the attorney general’s office but have not gotten any recourse. The developer and builder, meanwhile, deny the claims and have criticized the owners. Read the article………………………..
- Falmouth mother says she’s not taking down her Pride flags despite complaint (ME) June 24, 2023Brooke Hackett said the homeowners association told her all signs and flags are banned in her neighborhood, a rule that she says was never enforced until now. Read the article………………………..
- Washington County condo complex near Cutler Navy base deals with water pollution by “forever chemicals” (ME) May 20, 2023Several types of PFOA and PFAS, which stand for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, were found in more than half of the 60 wells the Navy tested in the area, including those providing water for the 64 condominiums in 2019. Read the article………………………..
Maine News Archives
Maine Condo & HOA Articles
- Holding Orderly, Efficient Annual Meetings – It’s Not as Hard as It Seems!Talk to anyone familiar with common-interest community governance anywhere in the country, and they will tell you the same thing: apathy is rampant among residents of co-ops, condos, and HOAs. Not only is it difficult to get owners and shareholders to run for their boards of directors, but it’s a struggle to even get them to show up to the once-a-year meetings held to elect those board members and to update the community on what is happening in their home ...
- Boards & Boundaries: How ‘Available’ Should You Be?In multifamily residential communities, where neighbors share common space, amenities, and maintenance—if not actual walls—establishing and maintaining boundaries can be a bit tricky. Read the article…………………………….
- Emergency Preparedness in the Era of Climate Change: Preparing for the UnpredictableThe acceleration of global warming and the accompanying climate crisis is affecting shared-interest residential communities all over the United States and around the world. This past September was the wettest ever recorded in the eastern United States, with nine times the normal rainfall. Scientists warn that excessive rain and wind, extreme heat and cold, as well as increasingly intense discrete weather events like hurricanes and tornadoes, will continue and likely worsen as the planet continues to heat. Read the article………………………………..
- Powering E-Devices Safely: There Are Fires … And There Are E-Device FiresAll over the news, from coast to coast, reports of fires and explosions caused by lithium-ion batteries describe blazes that are out of control, difficult to extinguish, and excessively smokey. Tragically, many have resulted in fatalities and serious injuries, and certainly all have caused extensive damage to properties and the environment. Read the article………………………..
- Holding Elections: Every Board’s DutyShared residential communities such as condos, co-ops, and HOAs are modern examples of classic Athenian democracy: citizens governing themselves through active participation in governance. The key to that governance is the regularity of elections to the community’s leadership—which in this case is the board of directors. Read the article………………………………
- Maintaining Your Elevators: Regular Care Can Help Avoid Huge Replacement CostsThe elevator is one of those inventions—along with running hot and cold water and indoor plumbing—that have been around for so long we take it for granted. But elevators obviously weren’t always a part of the architectural landscape. Without them we’d still be living in a world of six-story buildings (maybe seven for the strong-legged), and we’d be climbing stairs all day long. Read the article……………………………..
- Effective Committees: Maximizing Use of Community VolunteersIn a typical condo, co-op, or homeowners association, residents have a lot to say about how their building or community is or should be functioning … but few actually step up to run for and serve on the board that does the actual governing. One reason is that board service can be a heavy lift, requiring time, energy, and diplomacy that the average homeowner might be unable or unwilling to give on a volunteer basis. Read the article……………………………….
Maine Article Archives
Maine Laws
Condominium Act applies to all Maine condominiums created after December 31, 1982
Unit Ownership Act applies to all condominiums formed prior to January 1, 1983
Maine Condo & HOA Resources
Community Associations Institute – New England Chapter
Maine Condo – This site is provided by Joseph Carleton, Attorney at Law, for Directors, Officers and owners of Maine Condominium and Homeowner’s Associations. Feel free to browse this site for ideas about governance of your association and links to other sites with further information.