During this past session of the Florida legislature, new laws in regard to condominium association director and officer conflict of interest became effective July 1, 2017. These new laws are set out sections 718.302 and 718.112(2)(p), Florida Statutes, and when read together create quite a conflict themselves. As you soon discover there is a significant […]
Co-ops and Condos, Like Restaurants, to Get Letter Grades (NY)
In a flurry of activity on its last work day of the year, the New York City Council on Tuesday passed several-housing related bills – including one that will require large co-ops and condos to post a letter grade that rates their energy efficiency. The bill, known as Intro 1632, was introduced by Manhattan city […]
Court rules that tax foreclosure does not extinguish obligations in the master deed and that newly amended MCL 559.16
The Michigan Court of Appeals decided several important issues in favor of Michigan condominium associations on December 14, 2017 in Ferry Beaubien LLC v Centurion Place on Ferry Street Condominium Association, unpublished opinion of the Court of Appeals, issued December 14, 2017 (Docket No. 335571). Specifically, the court of appeals made the following rulings: Read […]
New Year, New Laws for California Community Associations/CIDs-2018
Recent legal Developments affect community association interests in a variety of ways. In 2017, the California Court of Appeal decided several cases concerning such issues as title to common area and board member liability. These cases may be instructive to board members and managers. Meanwhile, on the legislative front, new and pending laws affect association […]
Michigan Senate Bill 663: Michigan cracks down on fake emotional support pets
On November 28, 2017, Senator Peter MacGregor introduced Senate Bill 663, which would criminalize a fake request for an emotional support pet or service animal. Requests for emotional support pets and service animals continue to increase under the Federal Fair Housing Act and the Michigan Persons with Disabilities Civil Rights Act, MCL 37.1101 et seq. […]
Accounting changes will likely be an added expense (IL)
As I noted in the Nov. 18 column, new Section 1-45(h)(i) of the Common Interest Community Association Act and new Section 18.10 of the Illinois Condominium Property Act provide that: “An association subject to this Act that consists of 100 or more units shall use generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”) in fulfilling any accounting obligation […]
HOA Homefront: What Sacramento did for (or is it to?) HOAs in 2017 (Part 2) (CA)
Last week’s column addressed three bills recently passed into law by Gov. Jerry Brown and the California Assembly: Senate bill 2, Assembly bill 534 and AB 1412. Today’s column will tackle three other significant bills, SB 407, AB 634, and AB 690, which also were approved and take effect in 2018. SB 407 created Civil […]
HOA Homefront: What Sacramento did for (or is it to?) HOAs in 2017 (Part 2)
Last week’s column addressed three bills recently passed into law by Gov. Jerry Brown and the California Assembly: Senate bill 2, Assembly bill 534 and AB 1412. Today’s column will tackle three other significant bills, SB 407, AB 634, and AB 690, which also were approved and take effect in 2018. SB 407 created Civil […]
What’s New in Washington, D.C.
The news continues to keep us up-to-date on what’s happening here in Washington, D.C.; including scandals, Tweets, and the latest contention between the Democrats and Republicans. The one popular issue making headlines that directly impacts the community association housing model is Tax Reform. Key issues like proposed changes to the mortgage interest deduction, the local […]
HOA Homefront: What Sacramento did for HOAs in 2017 – Part 1
The California Legislature was quite active this year in creating laws affecting homeowners associations, as six bills take effect in 2018. This column will address three and next week’s column will address the other three. Read the article……………..
Is your Resale Certificate up-to-date? (VA)
If there is one thing we seem to be able to count on from the Virginia General Assembly, its frequent amendments to the statutes regarding association resale certificates and 2017 was no exception. Under the “News You Can Use” section of this site, Jeanne Lauer explained the new legislation regarding “For Sale” signs in condominium […]
New Jersey Court: Continuous Trigger Ends When Nature of Damage Is Known
Last week, the New Jersey Appellate Division issued a decision that may have a significant impact on insurance coverage for progressive property damage claims in the state. In Air Master & Cooling, Inc. v. Selective Ins. Co. of Am., No. A-5415-15T3, 2017 WL 4507547 (N.J. Super. Ct. App. Div. Oct. 10, 2017), the court first […]
Short-Term Rentals in Flagler County: The View From Home Owners’ Associations (FL)
Two weeks ago the Florida Senate Community Affairs Committee met in workshop to discuss short-term rentals across Florida, an issue that has bedeviled Flagler County since county government in 2013 and 2014 successfully led the way to a new state law that allows for a measure of local vacation-rental regulations, reversing a 2011 law that […]
Creating a state homeowners association czar is a bad idea (SC)
Last May, as the 2017 legislative session in Columbia drew to a close, a bill that had been passed by the House, designated H. 3886 and titled the South Carolina Homeowners Association Act, was put on the Senate calendar for consideration. After reviewing the bill and discussing it with several managers for community associations in […]
Unit owners can’t use records for solicitations (IL)
Q. I recently read about a change in Section 19 of the Condominium Property Act concerning books and records of an association. I understand owners will no longer have to state a “proper purpose” to examine and inspect certain books and records of the association. Can you describe what books and records requests this will […]
Electronic Signatures Can Now Be Used to Amend Restrictive Covenants (MI)
The legislative history of MCL 450.835a demonstrates that Michigan House Bill 5591 (2016) was originally introduced to deal with an extremely large Michigan Homeowners Association that was having difficultly amending its documents. The Lakes of North Association in Northern Michigan that had approximately 4,700 members and was composed of 8,028 lots. The restrictive covenants required […]
AB 634 Signed! Reduced HOA Control of Solar Energy System Installations (CA)
The Governor has signed AB 634 into law changing HOA control over solar energy system (“Solar”) installations. HOAs may no longer adopt policies and guidelines that prohibit Solar installations on common area roofs protecting HOA property and homes from damage and members are stripped of the right to protect common area property by membership vote. […]
Ham Radio Legislative Activity In The U.S. Senate
Last week, The U.S. Senate Commerce Committee was scheduled to mark-up S 1534 The Amateur Radio Parity Act (a.k.a. HAM radio legislation) when it was withdrawn from the docket. Florida Senator Bill Nelson and Hawaii Senator Brian Schatz cosponsored and filed an amendment with their fellow Senators on the Senate Commerce Committee. The original Senate […]
Condominiums and Conflicts of Interest: How to interpret the rebuttable presumption (FL)
The legislature recently amended Chapter 718 of the Florida Statues, relating to condominiums, to create a rebuttable presumption that a conflict of interest exist in certain situations.[1] A conflict of interest is a real or seeming incompatibility between one’s private interests and one’s public or fiduciary duties. Black’s Law Dictionary (10th ed. 2014). For example, […]
Summary of new laws affecting associations- Part 3 of 3 (IL)
This is the final installment in a three-part series. On Aug. 24, Gov. Bruce Rauner signed HB0189, and it is now known as Public Act 100-0292. The law amends both the Common Interest Community Association Act and the Illinois Condominium Property Act. The changes become effective Jan. 1. This is the third of three columns […]
New Maryland Laws Governing Condominiums and HOAs
Beginning on October 1, 2017, several new laws will go into effect in Maryland governing condominiums and homeowners associations (“HOA”). With so much of new residential real estate being developed as part of an HOA or a condominium regime, these new laws will affect many homeowners in Maryland. Read the article…………
New law affects how associations run (IL)
This is part 1 of a 3-part series on a new law affecting associations. On Aug. 24, Gov. Bruce Rauner signed HB0189, and it is now known as Public Act 100-0292. The law amends both the Illinois Common Interest Community Association Act and the Illinois Condominium Property Act. The changes will become effective Jan. 1, […]
More new laws that affect local HOAs (NV)
This is the second column in a three-part series about the recent state laws that will affect Southern Nevada homeowners associations. These laws were passed during the 2017 legislative session and will have an impact on our HOAs. Read the article……………..
Robert Bumgarner: Restoring free speech rights to homeowner association members (CA)
If you live in a community that’s managed by a homeowner association, you know that they often stifle the free speech rights of individual owners. That’s because First Amendment constitutional speech protections apply to governmental restrictions on free speech, not to private corporations like those that control common interest developments. This year, the legislature addressed […]
Connecticut Laws on Service Dogs and Emotional Support Animals
Under the federal Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Connecticut’s public accommodations law, people with disabilities have the right to be accompanied by their service animals in restaurants, hotels, stores, theaters, and other places that are open to the public. Connecticut’s law is more limited than the ADA, because it covers only dogs that assist […]
Several new laws affect local HOA boards (NV)
This is the first in a three-part series that covers new laws affecting Southern Nevada homeowners associations. It’s that time of year again to review the new Nevada Revised Statutes 116 laws that impact our associations. There will be a series of articles over the coming weeks. Many of these new laws will require associations […]
How Condo Law Change Will Impact New Development (MN)
Newsflash Minnesotans: our state laws governing condominiums and townhomes changed at the conclusion of the 2017 legislative session. For a business litigator who emphasizes a significant portion of her practice representing real estate developers in complex business disputes, I’ve been particularly interested in the evolution of these changes. Why? Because condominium development has stalled in […]
New Amendments to the Illinois Condominium Property Act and Illinois Common Interest Community Association Act
Legislation that will take effect on January 1, 2018 will impose new obligations on Illinois condominium associations, including a requirement that every association maintain an official unit owner list that includes every unit owner’s phone number and email address. The legislation also covers a wide range of other issues, including authority for boards to resume […]
SB 407 Signed! Legislation Broadens Assembly and Speech Rights within HOAs (CA)
New Civil Code 4515 will be added to the Davis-Stirling Act to ensure that homeowners association residents may exercise their rights of peaceful assembly and political speech. HOAs are playing an increasing role in the lives of California’s residents as compared to the roles traditionally played by cities and counties. HOAs are growing in number, […]
How a New Law Affecting Condo Associations Could Mean Brisk Business for Web Designers (FL)
Website developer Todd Paton knows it will likely be months before his new target market seeks him out, or even begins to pay attention to his pitches. Yet, Paton and his colleague Dhiren Chauhan are busy building a platform to service Florida condominium associations. Their target demographic has so far shown little interest in anything […]
New By-Laws Amendment Procedures Mandated by PREDFDA (NJ)
On July 13, 2017, a new law was enacted in New Jersey amending the Planned Real Estate Development Full Disclosure Act (PREDFDA). While the new law was created in reaction to litigation involving a community called the Radburn Association, which lacked by-laws that mandated fair and open trustee elections, it also includes provisions relating to […]
FHA Extends Condo Rules for Reverse Mortgages, Other Loans
The Federal Housing Administration this week extended its current rules regarding condominium lending as it continues to work on permanent updates. In a new mortgagee letter, the FHA implemented an open-ended extension of the existing condominium rules as laid out in previous letters released in 2012 and 2015 — essentially freezing the status quo until […]
Changes to the Common Interest Community Association Act and the Illinois Condominium Property Act
On August 24, 2017, Governor Rauner signed HB0189, and it is now known as Public Act 100-0292. The law amends both the Common Interest Community Association Act and the Illinois Condominium Property Act. The new law will become effective January 1, 2018. Below is a summary of the changes. Read the article…………….
Pool Contractor’s Ability to Work on Pool Electrical Wiring in FL
On March 29, 2017, the Florida Construction Industry Licensing Board (“CILB”), issued a Final Order, Department of Business and Professional Regulation, Construction Industry Licensing Board v. Michael E. Seamon, disciplining a Certified Pool/Spa Contractor (“CPC”) for replacing existing pool light fixtures. The Final Order adopted and was based upon an Order of the Division of […]
State Community Association Laws – Are they Uniform?
Per the Uniform Law Commission’s web site, the Uniform Law Commission (ULC, also known as the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws), established in 1892, provides states with non-partisan, well-conceived and well-drafted legislation that brings clarity and stability to critical areas of state statutory law. Read the article…………..
New laws impact community association financial reporting requirements (FL)
Q: My understanding is there are new laws that impact the annual financial reporting requirements for community associations as well as the right to waive these financial reports. Can you explain the changes? Read the Q&A……………
New Virginia Law Regarding Real Estate For Sale Signs
There seems to be some confusion about this new addition to the resale provisions in the Condominium Act and the Property Owners Association Act. As of July 1, 2017 there is a new Virginia law, passage of which was promoted by the Virginia Association of Realtors, which will impact unit owners and lot owners in […]
2017 Legislative Update for Florida’s Community Association Laws: Part III
On July 1st, the 2017 amendments to the Florida Statutes affecting community associations became effective. The 2017 legislative amendments to the Condominium Act and Homeowners Association Act are substantial. This post is Part III in a blog series detailing these legislative amendments, and focuses on changes to the law concerning conflicts of interest, member voting […]
New Virginia Law Regarding Real Estate For Sale Signs
There seems to be some confusion about this new addition to the resale provisions in the Condominium Act and the Property Owners Association Act. Beginning July 1, 2017 there is a new Virginia law, passage of which was promoted by the Virginia Association of Realtors, that will impact unit owners and lot owners in nearly […]
2017 Legislative Update for Florida’s Community Association Laws: Part II
On July 1st, the 2017 amendments to the Florida Statutes affecting community associations became effective. The 2017 legislative amendments to the Condominium Act and Homeowners Association Act are substantial. This post is Part II (click here for part I) in a three-part blog series detailing these legislative amendments and focuses on changes to the law […]
New legislation affecting condos, co-ops and HOAs (FL)
Last year the Florida Legislature was silent when it came to passing any laws affecting community associations. Not this year. This year four bills were approved and signed by the governor and one was vetoed. SB 398 applies to condos, cooperatives and HOAs and prescribes a “form” for estoppels certificates. We discussed that bill last […]
Mediation and Arbitration Study for HOAs and Condos (NC)
The General Assembly met yesterday (August 3) to consider several issues remaining from the legislative session. Bills that would impact North Carolina’s homeowner and condominium associations weren’t really on the agenda, but one proposal was adopted that has a provision concerning community associations. Read the article…………..
AB 1139 Imposes New Notice Requirements on Deed-Based Transfer Fees (CA)
On July 31, 2017, Governor Brown signed Assembly Bill 1139 (“AB 1139”) into law. AB 1139 amends California Civil Code Section 1098.5 with regard to deed-based transfer fees (“Private Transfer Fees” or “Fees”). Prior to AB 1139 becoming law, any individual or entity who imposed a Fee on real property on or after January 1, […]
Review of Legislation continues – Part 5 (FL)
Today’s column is the final installment of our annual review of legislation affecting Florida community associations. In prior columns, we reviewed Senate Bill 398 dealing with “estoppel certificates,” and House Bill 1237 which only applies to condominiums and contains changes to the statute including board member term limits, the use of debit cards, recalls, mandatory […]
2017 Florida Legislative Guide
From the Community Association Leadership Lobby Read the book…………..
Review of Legislation continues – Part 4 (FL)
Today’s column is the fourth installment of our annual review of legislation affecting community associations. So far, we have reviewed Senate Bill 398, dealing with “estoppel certificates,” and parts of House Bill 1237, pertaining to board member term limits, the use of debit cards, recalls, mandatory websites for certain associations, suspension of voting rights, year-end […]
Statute changes impose new conflict of interest rules (FL)
So far, we have reviewed Senate Bill 398, dealing with “estoppel certificates,” and parts of House Bill 1237, pertaining to board member term limits, the use of debit cards, recalls, mandatory websites for certain associations, suspension of voting rights, year-end financial reporting, and the imposition of criminal penalties pertaining to certain conduct involving condominium elections […]
AB 690 Signed! New Management Disclosures and Changes to the Escrow Document Disclosure Form (CA)
The Governor has signed AB 690 into law, which modifies several Code sections and adds two new Civil Code sections to the Davis Stirling Common Interest Development Act. Here is what you need to know about the new requirements: New Civil Code Section 5376 provides that the manager, management firm, or third-party contractor must facilitate […]
Governor (NJ) Signs New Legislation Securing Governance Rights of Owners Residing in Common Interest Communities
On July 13, 2017, Governor Christie signed into law bipartisan legislation amending and supplementing the Planned Real Estate Development Full Disclosure Act (PREDFDA). The new law provides, among other things, that all unit owners be members of their community associations and that such members have the ability to fully participate in the election of their […]
Review of new legislation continues (FL)
Today’s column is the third installment of our annual review of community association legislation. In the first two installments, we covered the requirements for “estoppel certificates.” Today, we will look at House Bill 1237, which contains some significant changes. HB 1237 only applies to condominium associations.