Dear Tony: I suspect many condo owners have emailed and asked this question since the tragic collapse of the condo building in Florida. Are there buildings in British Columbia that could potentially experience a catastrophic collapse or failure that puts occupant lives at risk? Read the Q&A………………………
Hidden Damage – Life, Death, and Legislation?
When we first wrote on this topic twenty years ago, hidden damage—a cancer that can severely affect buildings but remain out of sight for decades—was primarily an economic problem. Community Associations found themselves deep in debt when the cost of repair of accumulated, but hidden, rot, corrosion, and other water damage, greatly exceeded cash reserves. […]
Ask the Builder: Condo collapse, rusty rebar and your home
Early reports indicate that the cause of the collapse may have been weakened concrete, as well as unstable soil under the structure. It’s going to take many months to complete a forensic study of this catastrophe, so keep in mind that much of what you see now in the news is speculation. Read the entire […]
The Surfside Tower Was Just Another Condo Building
After most of a condominium tower in Surfside, Florida, collapsed last week, the second-guessing began almost immediately. Some residents accused the building’s condominium association of acting too slowly to address known structural flaws identified in a 2018 engineering report. Recent news stories have emphasized dissension among the owners. Read the entire article……………………………….
Following Florida condo collapse, inspectors focus on Marina del Rey complex
Responding to safety concerns that have gained heightened attention following last week’s deadly building collapse in Florida, Los Angeles County building inspectors were taking a close look Thursday at the Marina City Club condominium complex, which consultants estimate is in need of millions of dollars in repairs. Read the entire article……………………………….
CAI Shares Condo Safety Resources in Wake of Surfside Tragedy
Condominium association residents and volunteer board members around the world understandably have questions about the safety of their own communities and are wondering how to protect their buildings after the tragic collapse of Champlain Tower South Condominium Association in Surfside, Fla. CAI is providing information and resources to help concerned residents and board members understand […]
Florida condo managers take notice of renovations at Jacksonville Beach high-rise
Along Duval County’s beaches, there are five residential buildings that are more than 30 years old and stand more than 100 feet tall. They are Pelican Point, Pablo Towers, The Waterford, Ocean 14 and Seascape. News4Jax is working to find out when they were last inspected and if any issues were found. Three of the […]
The Story Behind a Downtown Sarasota Condo’s Near-Collapse (FL)
By the time you’re reading this, Charlotte Ryan, a retired psychotherapist from New Jersey, will have accomplished what Sisyphus never did. She’ll have pushed her great rock to the very top of the mountain and crawled out from under her burden at last. The petite, smartly dressed Ryan will have taken the elevator up to […]
Upstairs/Downstairs: Living Floor-To-Ceiling in Community Associations
Hard flooring can be beautiful and easier to maintain than carpet. However, the impact on downstairs neighbors must be recognized. There are Association and legal requirements to address when considering hard flooring installation and addressing existing hard flooring. Read the entire article……………………………….
Using Tide to kill roof moss is a bad idea. Some B.C. condo owners learned that the hard way
An estimated 100 kilograms of the detergent was sprinkled over some 120 rooftops. Soon after began what might be described as a suds-flood. Read the entire article……………………………….
Co-op and Condo Boards Getting Sticker Shock From Facade Repair Costs (NY)
As of 2021, some 14,000 buildings in New York City must have their facades inspected to make sure they comply with Local Law 11. With COVID, of course, the landscape has changed. Yes, and there are two sides to that — the engineering side and the contractor side. The engineering fees have gone up dramatically […]
A Green Approach to Community Association Building Maintenance and Repairs (IL)
Today there is lots of chatter about sustainability, green building issues, and reducing our personal carbon footprints. There is also lots of talk about stimulus money and tax credits. Does that mean homeowners associations and condominium boards should be approving the installation of roof-mounted solar panels or wind turbines? Or how about a program to […]
Preventative Dryer Vent Care
While cleaning the dryer vent is not on the top of every owner’s to-do list, it is a crucial activity that, when neglected, can cause increased energy bills, expensive dryer repairs, and dangerous fire hazards. Thankfully, taking measures to keep these problems from arising is simple, only necessitating preventative dryer vent care. Read the entire […]
Dealing With Water Damages In Your Condominium Building? Here’s What To Do (NC)
In a recent “Ask the Experts” webinar, we discussed best practices regarding handling water leaks in condominiums. Though this piece will discuss some North Carolina laws, there’s also plenty of information on governing documents and insurance policies that will be useful to condominium board members in all regions. Read the entire article……………………………….
A Practical Guide to Community Association Roof Repairs
Most people would not consider roofing to be a hot-button issue unless managing a community association. HOAs and Condo Associations commonly find themselves facing conflicts regarding community roofing. Who pays for HOA roofing? How can members stay compliant with community roofing standards? Can you hire your contractor, or do they need board approval? These are […]
Make Your Roof Last Longer With Regular Maintenance
The roof is the one part of our home that takes quite a beating from the harshest elements day in and day out. While roofs are designed to last, the time will come when you have to replace them eventually. However, you can delay that for years with proper maintenance. Some roofing maintenance work can […]
Who Pays for Repairs When Ice Dams Cause Damage to a Unit? (MN)
In Minnesota, we often run into issues with ice dams on homes. Ice dams form when snow and ice on the roof melt and then refreeze at the edges and on the gutters, causing large dams of ice to build up along the edge of the roof. This, in turn, prevents melting snow from properly […]
Tips for HOAs and Condos to Safely Remove Icicles
Severe winter storms have pummeled the country this year with snow, ice, and below-freezing temperatures. On February 16, snow covered 73% of the U.S., according to the National Weather Service. One of the many winter hazards associations may be dealing with are icicles. While these appear to be harmless, icicles can hurt people and damage […]
How to Deal with Ice Damming Issues. A Community Association Primer for Board Members and Property Managers (IL)
Old Man Winter of 2020-2021 has hit Chicago area Condo, Townhome and HOA associations mercilessly. In some cases, the large amount of snow fall has affected outdoor parking issues as well as access in and out of outdoor parking lots. In other cases, the severe winter has caused significant ice damming that has resulted in […]
The Five Stages of a Co-op’s Elevator Grief (NY)
On one of many sleepless pandemic nights, I re-watched the 1979 musical “All That Jazz,” Bob Fosse’s take on his life and projected death. For the first time, I found myself focusing not on the dancing but on the scaffold that frames the story: Elisabeth Kübler-Ross’s “Five Stages of Grief” – Denial, Anger, Bargaining, Depression […]
Frozen Pipes and Finger Pointing (CO)
Given the sub-zero temperatures over this past weekend, we are getting many questions regarding who is responsible for water damage caused by the bursting of frozen pipes. To assist you, we are re-publishing our Altitude Community Education Newsletter of December 2018, entitled “Frozen Pipes and Finger Pointing.” This article will give you a step-by-step analysis […]
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 […]
Condos in crisis? The dangers of ageing condos and underfunded reserve funds
Looking at the devastation surrounding the collapse of the Champlain Towers South condo building in Surfside, Florida, it’s easy to wonder if that kind of disaster could ever happen in Canada. Read the article………………………..
Surfside association fighting in Florida was extreme, but it’s a familiar battle for HOAs
Before the Champlain Towers South Condominium collapsed, the owners and the complex’s board of directors spent years clashing over the cost and extent of safety and structural repairs for the 12-story building near Miami. Read the article………………………..
How To Ensure Your Painting Project Is Watertight (FL)
Does your association have a major painting project coming up? If so, you may be searching for painting contractors and manufacturers to complete your project. Read the article…………………………………
Water Damage In Your Condo? Who is Responsible?
Condo repair laws tend to define a line between resident and building maintenance. Everything inside one owner’s unit, from the walls out, is resident territory. Every home asset outside the unit walls is the HOA’s responsibility. But water damage blurs that line in an unpleasant and sometimes multiple unit-spanning way. Read the article……………………………….
Plumbing Torch Fire Safety
Quite often the headline reads “Plumbers Torch Blamed for Fire, Home Destroyed” while some of the headlines may not be accurate, enough of them are. In my opinion far too many fires are caused by careless use of a plumbing torch. Each Year in the US approximately 5,580 fires amounting to $208,000,000 damages are listed […]
Tackling Your Outdated Plumbing System (CO)
Are you dealing with leaks from an outdated plumbing system? Piping issues, whether defective or age-related, can be one of the worst problems a community can experience, especially given the potential damage to a building’s structure and personal property that can be caused by flooding, leaks, and mold. Facing the prospect of replacing and modernizing […]
HOA Homefront: Who decides on the HOA colors? (A neighbor hates mine) (CA)
Q: Help! During a monthly meeting, I presented a petition signed by many homeowners concerning the color they were going to paint the complex – we wanted a newer look. They wouldn’t consider the petition, saying the subject had already been decided. Shouldn’t the board take into consideration what a goodly number of owners want? […]
Drones and 3D Property Reconstructions for Homeowners Associations (CO)
For HOA’s, it can be very useful to have a tool to document a house or property to view later. Often, this would entail just taking photographs of anything relevant or particularly specific on a property. However, photos can only get you so far. Say perhaps you want to have a measurement on a wall […]
Sinking Millennium Tower Pile Retrofit to Start Next Month in San Francisco (CA)
Work on the nearly $100-million perimeter pile upgrade of San Francisco’s sinking Millennium Tower, to prevent significant future settlement, is set to start next month, now that litigation over the problem has been fully resolved. The 645-ft-tall residential tower settled about 17.3 in. since its completion in 2008. Millennium Tower Association, the homeowners’ group for […]
A Condominium Can Last Hundreds of Years, But Not Its Components (HI)
Dana Bergeman is the CEO of Bergeman Group, a local construction management company. He says many of Hawai‘i’s condominiums were built in the 1960s and ’70s and are reaching the point where they will need major infrastructure, cosmetic and architectural improvements to keep their value and remain liveable. Read the article……………………………….
Toronto condos forced to share plunger after new efficient toilets installed (ON)
Imagine having a new toilet installed in your condo, against your wishes, in the middle of a pandemic, and then having that toilet (and every other toilet on your floor) overflow regularly. Then, imagine that condo management — who insisted on sending random workers into your home during a state of emergency — says you […]
Finding the Source of Leaks in a New Condo Can Be a Detective Story (NY)
The quest to find the source of leaks in a building’s envelope can turn into a detective story. In such cases, the sleuths try to solve a pair of mysteries: What is causing the leaks? And who is going to pay for the repairs? Read the article…………………………….
As Construction Reboots, Rules Must Be Enforced (NY)
Though co-ops and condos were allowed to resume their nonessential construction projects on June 8, not all are comfortable doing so. “Some construction opened up, only to close again,” says Eugene Ferrara, president of the engineering firm JMA Consultants. “Residents are afraid when workers are passing by open windows on the scaffolds. They also don’t […]
Tips to Deal with Structural Issues in High-rises
At some point in their lifetime, high-rise buildings will experience post-construction issues. In fact, nearly all residential high-rises enter litigation for a variety of reasons stemming from construction defects or deferred maintenance. Board members, community managers, maintenance supervisors, and service providers must pay attention to their buildings and look for signs of a problem before […]
HVAC and your HOA – Who is Responsible?
Summer is around the corner which means rising temperatures and increased usage of air conditioning systems. After many months of sporadic use HVAC systems go into overdrive as the summer months approach; the increase in use gives rise to a number of problems often-times requiring repair or replacement. Read the article…………………………
Water Damage Behind Brick Walls: How Do You Deal With It?
Brick walls are a lovely addition to any community. Although brick improves the overall aesthetic of your HOA, underlying water damage behind brick walls is not uncommon. Here are ways to deal with water infiltration in your brick surface. Read the article……………….
Proactive risk management the best way to combat water damages
We’ve all heard the horror stories. A friend arrives back to their 22nd floor condo unit after a week on holiday in the sunshine. They walk in and throw their bags down, but instead of hearing the expected dry thud, they’re met with a ‘SPLASH!’ The floor is covered by a pool of water. The […]
Manager’s guide to electrical system maintenance
Canadians are lucky to enjoy a relatively robust and reliable electrical power infrastructure. Most of the time, we flick a switch and the lights turn on. The citizens of many other countries who experience frequent outages or fluctuating supply, however, are not so lucky. The stable nature of our infrastructure brings a certain predictable (yet […]
How to Handle a Water Leak (CO)
The last phone call an Association or its manager wants to receive is a call where the owner says “I have a water leak.” However, these calls happen and the Association must be prepared to efficiently and effectively deal with the situation. While leaks occur in all types of communities, single family, townhome, and condominium, […]
What Can the Association Do About Damage From Water Infiltration Through Brick? (NJ)
Brick is among the materials that are most commonly used as an exterior cladding material on condominiums and other residential buildings in New Jersey. If correctly installed and maintained, it will usually last for the life of the building without allowing water to penetrate inside the wall cavity where it can damage sheathing and framing. […]
Advice for Hawai?i Condo Owners and Boards
Dana Bergeman, CEO of construction management company Bergeman Group, says many condo associations and unit owners look at infrastructure improvements as individual projects, but many can be consolidated. For example, combining a fire alarm or fire sprinkler project and a re-piping project can save condo owners money because contractors won’t have to open the walls […]
Why Condos Need to Plan Ahead for Major Repair Projects (HI)
The 353-unit 1350 Ala Moana condominium near Pi‘ikoi Street has a pool, grass-covered recreation area, barbecue area, exercise room and vast ocean views. The high-rise, built in 1968, has undergone a lot of work over the years, such as re-piping, spall repairs and renovation of its pool deck. Read the article………………………..
A Condominium Can Last Hundreds of Years, But Not Its Components (HI)
Dana Bergeman is the CEO of Bergeman Group, a local construction management company. He says many of Hawai‘i’s condominiums were built in the 1960s and ’70s and are reaching the point where they will need major infrastructure, cosmetic and architectural improvements to keep their value and remain liveable. Read the article………………………..
FAQs Regarding SB326, California Civil Code Sections 5551 and 5986 and the Balcony Bill
On August 30, 2019, Governor Newsom signed SB326 and it became law January 1, 2020. This law requires all California condominium associations with “exterior elevated elements” to have those elements inspected. We have been getting a lot of questions and this article is intended to address and answer those that we hear most frequently. Read […]
HOA Problems That Happen in Winter and How Careful HOA Planning Can Help
Summer may be the most exciting time of year in your community, and it’s certainly the homeowners association’s chance to show off a little bit, reminding residents of all the amenities that make your neighborhood or condo so great. A sparkling pool, newly surfaced tennis courts, colorful flower beds, and full playground speak for themselves, […]
Deck Police – The New Mandate for HOA’s Takes Safety to the Next Level (CA)
A recent California law will hold homeowners’ associations accountable for the safety of their decks. SB326 now mandates all homeowners’ associations to have decks inspected at least once every nine years by an architect or structural engineer to determine whether the decks are safe and waterproof. This law (Civil Code section 5551) follows SB721 which […]
Condo Water Riser Repair: Why Is It So Expensive?
Nothing is quite as unsettling as water pouring through your ceiling. Where is it coming from? How much is there? And how can you get it to stop? For condo owners and their management teams, plumbing issues are even more complex. Sharing walls and ceilings with other tenants makes the problem more difficult to solve. […]
The revival of condo lobbies — from gathering spaces to refrigerated package drop-off areas (NY)
The goal is to address changes to the way residents live — and to encourage them to stick around rather than simply walking through the lobby on their way to private units Read the article………………………….