The quiet Riverview community of Paddock Oaks has a new crime-fighting tool that tracks your whereabouts by scanning your license plates. “I like the fact that it supports the police department’s efforts to try and reduce crime,” said Bill Staley, president of the Paddock Oaks homeowner’s association. “If they come into the neighborhood thinking they’re […]
Extension granted in Springboro dam lawsuit (OH)
The lawyer representing a Springboro homeowners association has been given more time to respond to a state lawsuit over the condition of a dam in the Settler’s Walk neighborhood…….The lawsuit filed Aug. 2 claims the HOA and MCS Development, owner of a strip center anchored by Dorothy Lane Market, failed to take action after multiple […]
Power struggle at Aspen Mountain Lodge lands in district court (CO)
A power struggle at an Aspen lodge has prompted a bank to freeze its financial accounts and seek a judge’s clarification on whom should be able to access the operation’s money. Read the article…………………………In the meantime, checks have bounced to employees and vendors of Aspen Mountain Lodge, a 38-room condominium-hotel on the 300 block of […]
Suspected thief caught on cameras while in the process of stealing them (OK)
Police are searching for a man caught on camera stealing a southwest Oklahoma City neighborhood surveillance system. “And of course, they were on camera, stealing the cameras,” said Rick Shoffstall, who lives in the neighborhood. Read the article……………………….
Strata Alert – The Federal Election – What Strata Corporations Need to Know (QC)
With the 2019 federal election now underway, some strata corporations may have questions regarding how they are can or should respond to campaign signage or canvassers. Read the article………………………..
Whose Notice is it Anyway?
The Condominium Act, 1998 provides that an owner is entitled to notice when a condominium corporation takes action to perfect and enforce a lien, however, the recent decision in Mei Ki Ching v Carleton Condominium Corporation No. 203 demonstrates that a spouse that is not a registered owner of a unit may be entitled to […]
Is the CAO responsible for creating the forms? Maybe in the near future…
There is a new proposal to have the CAO assume responsibility for 19 forms under the Condominium Act, 1998 and its regulations. The idea is that the proposed changes would “support the condominium community in being able to more easily access and use certain forms under the Condominium Act, 1998.” The proposal is for 17 […]
How HOAs Can Address Marijuana Legalization in Illinois
The legalization of marijuana in the State of Illinois as of January 1, 2020 is a hot topic, and it will affect many aspects of living in Chicago. Not surprisingly, it could also affect building operations, and many HOAs are discussing how to address these changes. The main thing HOAs may be concerned about is […]
Initial estimated assessment costs for homeowners may increase significantly after purchase (FL)
I have never lived in a manufactured home before, and when my cousin bought this place for me, the lot rent was supposed to be $325 per month. After we signed and I moved in, it all of a sudden jumped to $570 per month! They said it would possibly be a 5% increase every […]
How Communities Can Rebuild after a Flood
Tropical storm Imelda battered much of Southeast Texas with heavy rains. More than 40 inches of rain fell in just over 72 hours in Jefferson County, which is 80 miles east of Houston along the coast, according to the National Weather Service, making it the seventh wettest tropical cyclone in U.S. history. The storm left […]
License plate cameras may be watching your Tampa Bay neighborhood (FL)
Atlanta-based Flock Safety has provided 14 area communities with high-speed, high-definition cameras for surveillance. Read the article………………………..
Who controls campaign signs at the Ridge? (WA)
Political campaign signs at Snoqualmie Ridge have been getting extra focus lately. Several candidates for city council received emails from the Snoqualmie Ridge Residential Owners’ Association (ROA) stating their staked political signs were in violation of ROA policy and needed to be taken down or that the ROA would remove them. Read the article……………………..
Condo association tells woman her Bahamian friends displaced by Dorian aren’t welcome (FL)
A woman trying to take in long time family friends who were displaced from the Bahamas by Hurricane Dorian, is being told by her condo association that it’s against rules, and if she keeps it up, she’ll start getting daily fines. Read the article………………………..
Court Expands Condo Lien Notification Requirements (ON)
In a not yet reported case, courts appear to have expanded the notice requirement when liening a condo unit. Failure to properly notify the owner’s spouse may render the lien invalid as against said spouse, even if she neither owns, nor occupies the unit. Read the article………………………….
Condo column: Who is responsible for insurance on high impact windows? (FL)
Q: I replaced my condominium windows a few years ago with high impact glass. The original building provided by the developer did not have hurricane glass. My condominium documents provide that I am responsible to repair, replace and maintain the windows in my unit. Can you please let me know who insures the windows? Read […]
Ask a real estate pro: Cellphone mast causing too much interference at our condo (FL)
Q: Our condominium association rents space on our roof for a large cellphone antenna. We thought it would be great for getting some extra money into the community, but we did not count on workers banging through the stairwell at all hours carrying heavy equipment and leaving behind a mess. What can we do? Read […]
New Short-term Rental Trends in Community Associations
Less than a decade ago, CAI began tracking rental legislation impacting community associations. At that time, only a handful of states were legislatively addressing the issue. Fast forward to 2019, CAI is tracking 79 rental related bills in 29 different states impacting community associations. New trends in short-term rentals are surfacing as community associations navigate […]
Hebron couple seeks help from lawmakers to address homeowners association concerns (OH)
Overgrown grass, a 50-foot burrow pit, and fences growing algae are a handful of complaints Hebron residents Wayne and Nelva Carruthers have about their homeowners’ association. In a letter to The Advocate, Wayne Carruthers said he and his wife knew of the HOA upon moving into their Lake Forest home. But what they didn’t know […]
Mental health issues in condominiums: Steps to obtain psychiatric assessment (ON)
According to the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH), by the time Canadians reach the age of 40, one in two will have, or have had, a mental illness. Moreover, in any given year, CAMH reports that one in five Canadians will experience a mental illness or an addiction problem. With condominium living on […]
North suburban residents seek to get rid of neighbors’ dogs after man hospitalized in attack (IL)
Several residents in a northern suburb are fearful of their neighbors’ dogs after a series of attacks, including one that put a man in the hospital. On Friday, 55-year-old Jose Gutierrez nearly lost his life when answering a call for a tree trimming estimate from the owners of three dogs in Hawthorn Woods. Read the […]
Glendale mayor suggests HOA, already under fire, discriminated against his Latina wife (CA)
Glendale Mayor Ara Najarian said he now has reason to believe he and his wife, Palmira Perez, were asked to leave a recent local homeowner’s association event because of her Latino heritage. Already accused by Glendale City Councilman Vartan Gharpetian of ethnic discrimination for being told to leave the same event on Sept. 8, the […]
LEGAL CORNER: Do HOA rules prohibiting political signs violate 1st Amendment rights? (LA)
Question 2: Do Home Owner Association rules violate property owner 1st Amendment rights, Freedom of Expression by forbidding the owners from erecting political signs which endorse a candidate on their property. Read the article…………………………
Vancouver condo owner takes offence to Airbnb rental’s risqué business (BC)
Todd Skene hadn’t planned on having the birds and the bees talk with his four-year-old son. That changed Saturday morning. Two women wearing next to nothing were bumping and grinding on an apartment balcony 20 feet from his son’s window.
City Council vote gives more power to condo owners who want to keep homes (IL)
A trend of turning Chicago condos into rental units may slow down after a Wednesday vote by the City Council gives more power to condo owners who want to keep their homes. Condo owners will need to persuade more of their neighbors to sell all the units in a building to a developer under an […]
Wildwood condo building that suffered catastrophic deck collapse was built 90 years ago, mayor says (NJ)
State housing officials plan to inspect the Wildwood condo building involved in the deck collapse over the weekend that injured more than 20 people, the city’s mayor said Tuesday. “The building is a 90-year-old,” Wildwood Mayor Ernie Troiano said while touring the Wildwood Boardwalk. “It’s an unfortunate situation.” Read the article……………………..
State Lifts Cap on Application Fees for Co-ops and Condos (NY)
The pushback against the Housing Stability and Tenant Protection Act has begun. And for co-op boards, it has produced its first burst of good news. The New York Department of State has just issued a Guidance for Real Estate Professionals that addresses one of the law’s numerous provisions that had infuriated many co-op boards and […]
Don’t Just Trim the Trees — Managing Your HOA’s Urban Forest
Whether you’re the manager of a four-plex with 2 trees, or the on-site manager of a master planned community with 10,000 of them (yes, we have those in SoCal), you my friend are responsible for managing an urban forest (add that to your business card!). Read the article………………………
Vendor Bid-Outs: A Guide to Choosing the Right Vendor for Your HOA
Whether it be for a single task or an ongoing project, selecting a vendor to perform work for your association can be a daunting process, but it doesn’t have to be. In selecting a vendor, it is important to consider various factors such as dependability, liability, cost-to-quality ratio, reviews, and expertise. Fortunately for SpectrumAM customers, […]
Two retirees now work to make their community safer from the threat of wildfire (NV)
Janet Ouren and Kathi Delegal met about six years ago, by chance, sharing a ride in a golf cart in Incline. That ride sparked a friendship and partnership between the two retirees that has paid dividends to the residents of ArrowCreek in south Reno. Working with the community’s homeowners association, the two have been the […]
Condo Smarts: Withdrawing owners’ votes without evidence is bad idea (BC)
Dear Tony: We are a mid-sized condo building of 55 units. Our units are mostly retired owner-occupied, as we have a very desirable location. At our annual meeting, we routinely have at least 50 per cent or more of the owners attend. This year at our meeting, our new property manager advised five owners when […]
Can an HOA hand over residents’ email addresses?
Can an association turn over residents’ email addresses to an outside party? Our community wants to share our addresses with a local radio station so it can send news alerts, which would be specific to our area. Residents can opt out. Read the Q&A……………………………..
Promenade Boulevard Condo In Rogers Damaged By Early Morning Fire (AR)
An early morning fire damaged a condo in a multi-use building on Promenade Boulevard in Rogers on Wednesday. Firefighters were called to 2000 South Promenade Boulevard at 1:09 a.m., said Rogers Fire Battalion Chief Dusty Qualls. A small fire was reported in a third-floor condominium there. The sprinkler system in that condo had kicked on […]
Residents suing developer, home builder over ‘sewage nightmare’ in far north Bexar County (TX)
Loosening the septic pumps behind his home has become a dreaded routine for Villas at Timberwood resident Tom Marty. But it was the call that summoned him away from church Easter Sunday that has stuck with him the most: the mosquitoes that covered him as he moved a PVC pipe up and down in an […]
Association Documents, Policies and Business Systems Need Regular Maintenance Too
The temperatures are still screaming summer, but the calendar is whispering that fall is near. And for condominium boards and managers, that means it’s time to bring out the fall maintenance checklist to make sure the community’s buildings, operating systems and grounds are ready for the cold weather to come. But buildings and grounds aren’t […]
What to do when a condo board member resigns (MI)
Q: Someone resigned from the board of directors of our condo association in the middle of their term, and the other board members just decided to choose a replacement. Can they do that? Seems to me we should have an election. Read the Q&A……………………..
6 Things Your HOA Needs to Know About Biometric Technology
Biometric technology is steadily growing in popularity in many areas, including many HOAs. This technology offers a number of advantages, including the ability to more tightly control access to common areas in your community. Unfortunately, biometric technology also comes with a number of challenges, including the fact that not every member of your community is […]
How To Handle Bullies On Your HOA Board
A homeowner’s association (HOA) can accomplish great things with the right people sitting on the board. However, bullies can often be the clog that hinders a well-oiled machine from performing effectively. A board bully can be annoying. They often belittle other members’ proposals and forcefully push their own. If you are reading this, there is […]
Fuming over ‘gigantic’ 96-gallon trash cans in Palm Beach County? So are your neighbors (FL)
There’s a new kind of trash can littering some of Boca Raton’s gated and homeowners association communities, blocking carports and driveways and snagging people’s daily routines. The “gigantic,” 96-gallon gray trash bins don’t fit in garages. They’re too heavy to move. And some homeowners associations don’t allow them to be kept outside, according to residents […]
Four lakes along Guadalupe River will not be drained after settlement reached (TX)
A settlement has been reached, which will keep four lakes along the Guadalupe River from being drained. This was a big victory for those who like to take a boat out onto one of the lakes. Although the drainage is delayed, it’s not permanently decided on. Read the article……………………..
New rule on electric equipment sparks neighborhood opposition (CA)
Residents who enjoy the benefits of having all electric equipment underground in their neighborhood and who wish to keep it that way for the foreseeable future will have to pay that privilege under Palo Alto’s new rules Read the article………………………….
Loomis community takes crime fighting into their own hands (CA)
The Sierra de Montserrat Community is doing what it can to help police and deter criminals. Community leaders installed license plate readers that capture the license plates of people going in and out of the neighborhood. The data can also help catch speeders and possibly stolen vehicles. Read the article……………………….
Golf carts could be legal on main roads in a local neighborhood (LA)
Driving a golf cart seems like it would be an easy thing. Get in the cart, drive it like normal, and go on about your daily life. However, right now, driving golf carts on the main road within the Frenchman’s Bend community is illegal. Read the article……………………….
Brooklyn condo discriminated against people with disabilities, HUD alleges (NY)
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development announced charges Monday against developers and architects of a Brooklyn condominium that allegedly discriminated against people with disabilities. The charges name Toll Brothers, Greenberg Farrow Architecture and others involved with the design and construction of North 8 Condominium — a 40-unit residence in Williamsburg. Read the article…………………………
Wake Forest family balks at HOA rule against flag pole (NC)
A Wake Forest family grieving the death of their son in a Feb. 2019 mass shooting in Illinois installed a flagpole to honor him – with the American flag at the top and an “Aurora Strong” flag below – only to find themselves at odds with their homeowners’ association. Read the article……………………..
Sandy Springs to vote on contract for final design of ‘high-hazard’ Lake Forrest Dam (GA)
After nearly 10 years of discussion, Sandy Springs is set to vote on a contract for a final design to repair the “high-hazard” Lake Forrest Dam at a Sept. 17 City Council meeting……The two cities have agreed to split the cost of the project because the dam rests on the cities’ border, but it is […]
Neighbors question ex-officer turned felon ‘patrolling’ Kissimmee community (FL)
Homeowners in a Kissimmee neighborhood said they are outraged that a former police officer, turned convicted felon, is being allowed to act as a security officer inside their community. Read the article…………………………
How to Deal with HOA Delinquency
Since association boards have a fiduciary duty to ensure that assessments are levied and collected, the best thing a community can do to avoid serious financial issues related to assessment delinquencies is to be—and stay—proactive. A formal collection policy is the first step in being proactive. Read the article………………………….
News 13 Investigates: Property Pitfalls (NC)
A News 13 investigation exposes a developer that’s facing hundreds of foreclosures and buyers who are faced with losing their investments. It’s happening in one mountain community development. Read the article………………………