It’s no secret that foreclosures are crippling the condominium industry. Record numbers of unit owners are in or dangerously close to foreclosure. Many condo associations are struggling to keep occupancy levels up and wondering how to deal with so many vacant units at once. And amid this foreclosure crisis comes yet another – condo owners are delinquent on their condo fees. In some cases, the delinquencies total in the hundreds of thousands.
Such is the case for one Florida-based condo association, whose association board announced recently that its residents are delinquent to the tune of $675,000. That figure represents half of the West Palm Beach-based Palm Beach Grande association’s resident population. With 106 of its 304 units facing or in foreclosure, it’s a crisis situation for the condo association. Read more…
Be careful what you wish for. That’s the hard lesson learned by one Pittsburgh-area condo association board. The board fought for, and won, independence from the local township when it came to roadwork and maintenance. The condo association won its private-road status from the township.
However, privacy can be pricey. The condo association board now faces a costly final project phase – a storm water system – and they’ve gone back to the township, hats in hand, looking for some help. Help, it appears, isn’t forthcoming. Moreover, the project plans were expected to follow township regulations involving setbacks and structure placement. On closer look, the township and the condo association members realized compliance was rather spotty.
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If your condo association has bylaws in place that restrict the community members to a certain age group – say over 55 only – you’d enforce that, right?
One condo association in Florida is doing just that. Yet the media furor and outrage from surrounding communities is enough to cripple business as usual for the group. The bylaws for the over-55 community are clear: no one under 55. Yet tell that to Kimberly Broffman, whose grandparents were awarded custody when Kimberly’s mother was deemed unfit to care for the little girl.
It’s a no-win situation. The grandparents are in violation of the rules of the condo association. Residents want the girl out.
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It’s tough being the Grinch.
A Florida-based condo association upset its residents recently by barring a Jewish-specific religious display on condo property. The condo association members were clear – no temporary alterations to condo’s common property, including a Sukkah, a hut used by the Jewish faith to celebrate Sukkot, an eight-day celebration in which the faithful eat their meals in a temporary hut. The condo association attorney stated that to let one resident put up a religious display on common property would mean the association would have to allow all residents the same permission. Read more…
Suppose your condo association has no employees to speak of. Suppose all work is performed by contractors carrying their own liability insurance. Suppose all condo association members are volunteer. So why would you need workers compensation insurance?
Some states take a very broad view of the definition of “employer-employee” relationship under workers compensation coverage and claims. If your association has any volunteers on staff, you could be setting yourself up, in appearance, for the law to define your relationship as employer-employee. Your volunteer is instructed by your board to complete work that causes injury to the volunteer. Your general liability policy will more than likely not cover such activity because under the general liability description on your condo association insurance policy, those completing work for your association are generally not included or may be specifically excluded. Read more…
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