Following the release of a report evaluating the Montgomery County Commission on Common Ownership Communities, the Montgomery County Council in Maryland enacted legislation that requires training and certification for board members of common ownership communities. Read the article…………
New Year, New Legislation Relating to Community Associations (FL)
With the new legislative session beginning January 12th, 2016, we begin the New Year introducing new proposed legislation relating to community associations and note their possible effects on community associations. Representative John Cortes filed three separate bills in late November that aim to redefine the roles of several association departments, boards, and regulations. Read the […]
The State of Cooperative and Condominium Law in 2015 (NY)
The greatest changes in cooperative and condominium law this past year did not come from the Legislature or from the courts but from the New York Attorney General’s office (NYAG). This article will review some of those changes and the most significant appellate cases affecting co-ops and condominiums.
New laws on managing and living in strata (Australia-NSW)
The NSW parliament’s approval of major strata reforms will, among other things, impact how strata schemes are managed. Owners and tenants will be affected by these reforms, which include new rules around voting, proxy farming and representation at meetings, as well as new model by-laws on pet keeping and smoking, and extended powers for tribunals […]
New Laws for Associations Effective July 1, 2015 (FL)
The Florida statutes for Homeowner Associations were updated on July 1, 2015 been New Laws for Associations recently updated and are now officially in effect. These updates may change the way you and your association do things, so it’s important to understand what changes have been made and how your community will be affected. Here […]
Florida Associations Must Embrace New Laws – Part 1
It has been a month since HB 791 went into effect. How has your Association adapted to the change? This law did a wonderful job of bringing Associations into the present by allowing electronic voting. It also clearly defined the applications of payments and distributing fines and penalties, as well as official records and membership […]
FL Community Associations: Amendments to Chapters 718 & 720, Florida Statutes
On July 1, 2015, recent amendments to Chapters 718 and 720, Florida Statutes went into effect which will impact all condominium and homeowners’ associations in the state of Florida. Chapter 720, Florida Statutes was officially renamed the “Homeowners’ Association Act,” and among the more significant changes, the procedure for fining unit owners for violations of […]
Condos: 2015 (Texas) Legislative Update
The 84th Texas Legislature made multiple changes to the laws affecting property owners associations. The majority of the changes impact single family HOAs, but one important change was made to Chapter 82 of the Texas Property Code, or the Texas Uniform Condominium Act (“TUCA”). Section 82.119 takes effect on September 1, 2015, and represents a […]
New Jersey 2015 Legislative Update A Look at New & Proposed Legislation
The second half of the 2014-2015 legislative session in Trenton is underway, and—as always—housing is on the agenda, with a large number of housing-related bills up for consideration. Read the article……….
New 2015 HOA Laws (UT) – Open Meetings
Continuing our summary of the new laws affecting HOAs in 2015, effective July 1, 2015, both the Utah Condominium Ownership Act and the Utah Community Association Act require board meetings to be open to each homeowner (or homeowner’s designated representative). Read the article………
Condo Terminations: Breaking Up Gets Harder to Do
On June 16, Gov. Rick Scott signed House Bill 643 into law, making sweeping changes to Section 718.117 of the Florida Condominium Act relating to terminations of condominiums. The changes, which are effective immediately, make optional terminations of a condominium more difficult. The number of optional condominium terminations rose during the recent downturn in the […]
2015 Condo and HOA Laws – Fines
This year was another busy year at the Utah legislature for the HOA world. Many changes and additions were made to the statutes that govern condominiums, community associations and nonprofit corporations. As always, refer to the UtahHOALaws app on your iOS device or Android device, or on the web at utahhoalaws.com for the current HOA […]
2015-16 New York Legislative Update
The 2015-16 New York State Legislative season is here, and on the table are many housing-related bills, many of which directly impact co-op and condo board members, managers and residents. Housing is also on the agenda in the New York City Council, although the main action is in Albany because most housing-related laws are state […]
Amendments to the Condo Act: the New Condo Authority and Condo Tribunal (ON)
As announced in our post of May 27, the province of Ontario finally released its much anticipated proposed amendments to the Condominium Act. If made into law, Bill 106 will serve to amend our 15 year old Condominium Act as well as other legislation pertaining to condominiums in Ontario. For instance, Bill 106 would amend […]
Second Community Association Bill Signed into Law (NC)
The bill concerns details in the early stages of a condominium. The NC Condominium Act previously required that funds for the purchase or reservation of a condominium unit following a public offering statement had to immediately be deposited in a trust or escrow account Read the article…………
Review of new laws affecting community associations (FL)
Today’s column is the second and final installment of my annual report on new laws affecting community associations. In the first installment, we looked at some of the changes for condominiums, cooperatives and homeowners’ associations in HB 791, the main bill affecting community associations. The remainder of HB 791 includes the following: Read the […]
Got an gripe with a homeowner association? State (DE) office created to handle disputes
A new state office is seeking to become a resource for troubleshooting conflicts between Delaware’s hundreds of homeowners associations and residents before the disputes reach the courts. Read the article…………..
New Laws for Virginia Community Associations Effective July 1, 2015
The Virginia General Assembly and the Governor have agreed on several changes to the Condominium Act and the Property Owners Association Act (POAA). As a member of the CAI Virginia Legislative Action Committee I want to let you know about these changes of which you should be aware: Read the article………..
(FL) Governor signs HB 643 making condo terminations more difficult
On June 16, 2015, Governor Rick Scott signed HB 643 into law, making sweeping changes to Section 718.117 of the Florida Condominium Act relating to terminations of condominiums. The changes, which are effective immediately, make optional terminations of a condominium more difficult. Read the article………….
Florida Legislative and Legal Update
When you’re up to your earlobes in alligators, it’s hard to recall that your initial objective was to drain the swamp. —Old Florida Proverb A long-standing annual rite in the Florida Legislature is passage of an omnibus shared-ownership housing bill for condominiums (Chapter 718 in the Florida Statutes), co-operatives (Chapter 719), and homeowners associations (Chapter […]
X law permits homeowners to install solar panels during neighborhood construction
…..a new Texas law, which starts Sept. 1, allows homeowners to add solar, even in communities still under construction. The Texas Association of Home Builders has said it supports the new law. Read the article………
First NC Community Association Bill Signed into Law
House Bill 513 “Real Property/Technical Corrections” (with a long title of “An Act to Make Technical Corrections and Other Conforming Changes to the General Statutes Concerning Real Property”) was ratified by the North Carolina General Assembly on May 28, 2015, and signed by Governor McCrory earlier today (June 4, 2015). As a result, HB 513 […]
Nevada Passes HOA Super Priority Lien Fix
On May 28, 2015, Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval signed into law Senate Bill 306, which will fundamentally alter the HOA foreclosure sale landscape in Nevada. Following the Nevada Supreme Court’s decision in September 2014 in SFR Investments Pool 1, LLC v. U.S. Bank (holding that NRS 116.3116 was a true priority lien and an HOA […]
Florida condominium and homeowners associations legislation
As a result of the Florida’s House of Representatives walking out of the 2015 legislative session several days early due to a disagreement with the Senate over Medicare and the State’s overall budget, the much anticipated “Estoppel Bill” (House Bill 611 and the companion Senate Bill 736) which showed all signs of becoming law, did […]
Religion in the Community (TX)
Representative Matt Krause from Tarrant County has filed a House Joint Resolution, HJR No. 125. The bill proposes a constitutional amendment relating to a person’s free exercise of religion. It specifically states: “A homeowners’ association may not burden in any way a person’s free exercise of religion unless the burden is: (1) necessary to further […]
California Assembly OKs bill barring HOA bans on fake grass
California homeowner associations couldn’t stop members from installing fake grass on lawns under a bill moving through the Legislature. AB349 advanced out of the Assembly Thursday on 69 to 2 vote. It would prohibit bans on artificial turf and synthetic grass. Read the article……….
Personal Agriculture and Your HOA (CA)
On January 1, 2015, AB 2561 added Section 1940.10 and 4750 to the Civil Code. What’s important to know is that Section 4750 grants homeowners in HOAs the right to utilize their backyards for “personal agriculture.” More importantly, this right supersedes any provisions in a HOA’s governing documents that restrict or prohibit such use. But, […]
NC Community Association Legislative Roundup – May 14, 2015
Thursday, April 30, 2015 was the all-important “crossover deadline” in the North Carolina General Assembly. Without getting too much into the weeds, bills that are “non-budget” must generally have passed one chamber or the other by the crossover deadline to be eligible for consideration during the 2015/2016 session (although House and Senate rules are slightly […]
North Carolina Community Association Legislative Roundup
April 14 at 5 pm was the deadline for filing legislative proposals for this session other than appropriations or finance bills. Since most all bills that could impact North Carolina homeowner or condominium associations have now been filed, let’s take a look at them. Read the article………….
Maryland General Assembly Passes Bill That Will Limit Condo and Homeowner Association Liability For “Errors and Omissions” In Resale Certificates
A bill that was originally intended to limit fees charged by condominium associations for providing resale certificates has passed both houses of the Maryland General Assembly with amendments that limit the association’s liability for inaccurate information contained in those certificates. The Maryland Senate has joined the House of Delegates in passing an amended version of […]
Six homeowner association bills signed (UT)
This legislative session Utah Gov. Gary Herbert signed six laws changing the way homeowner associations operate, including how they deal with rental units, conduct board meetings and make disclosures. The six bills are multi-faceted pieces of legislation and impact the associations in varying degrees. Some address procedural matters, while others will directly affect how association […]
North Carolina Community Association Legislative Roundup
Ah. Flowers are blooming. Birds are chirping. Community association legislative proposals are being filed. It must be spring! Both the North Carolina House and Senate are back in full swing with the two-year 2015-2017 legislative session. While there are numerous bill deadlines, here are some of the important ones. Read the article………
New laws (MD/DC) next year mandate bicycle storage, training for board officials
If you are a member of a community association board of directors in Montgomery County, as of January 2016 you will be required to take basic training within 90 days after being elected. And if you live in an apartment in the District and own a bicycle, your landlord may be obligated to provide storage […]
2015 General Assembly Update for Virginia Community Associations
The legislation that passed the 2015 General Assembly Session is mostly helpful to Virginia HOAs–clarifying issues created by some legislation, and providing solutions for owner apathy and bank foreclosure problems for associations. Read more……….
Florida Statute Chapter 558: Changes Are Brewing
Florida Statute Chapter 558 was adopted to serve as an alternative method to resolve construction and design disputes in order to reduce the need for litigation, while protecting the rights of property owners. While the nuances of Florida Statute Chapter 558 are outside the focus of this post, there are some proposed changes making their […]
New Mexico Legislation re: Transfer Fees
(Scroll to 2nd item) A bill by Rep. Monica Youngblood to cap what a homeowners association can charge for releasing documents required before a property transfer is moving to the full Senate. Youngblood, R-Albuquerque, a real estate agent, said she is backing HB 380 to limit what she said is the “gouging” of certain homeowners […]
Debunking the Myths of SB 177 (CO): Installment Number 2
A week ago, I started a series of blog entries intended to debunk the myths being disseminated on Senate Bill 15-177 (“SB 177”) by a coalition of special interest groups led by the Metro Mayors Caucus and Denver Chamber of Commerce. This coalition has one goal and that is to destroy the rights of homeowners […]
Sandoval signs bill to reform Nevada construction defect law
Gov. Brian Sandoval on Tuesday signed the first major Republican-backed reform bill of the 2015 session, a measure making changes to Nevada’s construction defect law. Read more……….
Homeowners Bill of Rights legislation unanimously passes Virginia house
Legislation protecting property owners from overzealous homeowners associations passed the Virginia House of Delegates unanimously Thursday, action that sends it to Gov. Terry McAuliffe’s (D) desk for approval. Read more……..
Washington Supreme Court Limits HOAs’ Ability to Create New Restrictive Covenants
The Washington Supreme Court issued a published opinion this past April that significantly limited the ability of homeowners associations to create new restrictive covenants that have no relation to existing covenants. The case involved a dispute between a homeowners association and a group of owners over the validity of a majority-approved covenant amendment prohibiting short-term […]
Common Interest Ownership Act
The Uniform Common Interest Ownership Act (UCIOA) was originally promulgated in 1982 by the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws (Uniform Law Commissioners or ULC). It is the act that succeeds and subsumes the earlier Uniform Condominium Act (1977) (1980), the Uniform Planned Community Act (1980), and the Model Real Estate Cooperative Act […]
Texas homeowners may have drought-resistant lawns
he Texas Legislature has guaranteed the right of landowners to install drought-resistant landscaping. The Senate passed a bill Monday denying homeowners’ associations the power to ban landscaping designs intended to save water. The bill now goes to Gov. Rick Perry for his signature. Read more…
Utah LAC Issues Statement on SB 64 (Reserves)
As many of you may know, the 2013 General Session of the Utah Legislature is in full swing on Capitol Hill. A few bills enacting or amending HOA laws are in the works and I’ll be summarizing and commenting on those over the next couple of weeks. Read More……
Iowa – Common interest redux
The common interest ownership bill may have some life left in it. Representatives Isenhart (D-Dubuque) and Highfill (R-Polk) have filed House File 122. This bill is essentially the same as the bill that the House Judiciary Committee approved in the last session. Read More……
Common Sense and Affordable Legislative Approaches Must Be a Priority
As Chair of CAI’s Colorado Legislative Action Committee (“CLAC”) and a political junky, I avidly follow federal and state legislative and regulatory initiatives relating to HOAs. If you follow our blog, you know that on Friday Representative Su Ryden introduced HB 1134 which significantly increases the obligations and authority of the HOA Information Office & […]