HOAleader.com - Tip of the Week - February 12, 2010
Published: Fri, 02/12/10
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HOA Facilities: A Roadmap for Identifying Common Elements
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This week's tip answers the deceptively simple question: What is
a common or a limited common element?
"There are two classifications of common elements, limited and
general," explains Harry Styron, an attorney at Styron &
Shilling in Branson, Mo., who's drafted covenants for more than
100 subdivisions and more than 40 condominiums.
"A limited common element is one that's available or accessible
to fewer than all the units. Some of those are said to be
exclusive-use limited common elements. A deck that's accessible
to only one unit is probably a limited common element. The
association continues to have a regulatory function for limited
common elements. It may have a right to regulate them by doing
things like prohibiting animals from living out there or
prohibiting macramé flowerpots. But the responsibility for
maintenance generally goes with the owner it's attached to.
"Common elements," Styron adds, "are property not included with
any unit and owned by all the owners. In a normal condominium,
everything is either a unit or a common element, and all the
common elements are owned by the association." The association
bears full responsibility for maintaining and governing
activity in common elements.
Despite that clear and simple explanation, determining what's
actually a common element can get tricky. You may need to do
research, and even then, your governing documents may provide
little guidance.
To learn more about figuring out exactly who owns what in your
association, see our new article. You'll learn how to research
the common element determinations in your HOA or condo, and
we'll give you a plan of attack to follow when a determination
isn't clear.
You can read the new article here:
http://www.hoaleader.com/members/391.cfm
Best regards,
Matt Humphrey
President
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Recent articles posted at HOAleader.com:
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Mandatory Club Memberships May Land Your HOA in Court
This week's tip is a cautionary tale for homeowners associations
considering making club memberships mandatory in an effort to
generate additional funding.
Click here to read full article:
< http://www.hoaleader.com/public/390.cfm >
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Can Your HOA Make Club Membership Mandatory?
Cash-strapped homeowner associations in Florida, Oregon, and
Washington have been testing a new plan to generate income for
their communities--making membership in association clubs
mandatory for all homeowners. If you've been considering
generating revenue by amending your governing documents to make
membership in your HOA's golf or other club mandatory, read on
before you take any action.
Click here to read full article:
< http://www.hoaleader.com/members/389.cfm >
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HOA Finances: Think Twice Before Throwing a Party with Unused
Budget Funds
This week's tip deals with condo and homeowners associations that
take leftover money in a miscellaneous or contingency budget
account and fritter them away with things like parties. Be
careful before taking that step.
Click here to read full article:
< http://www.hoaleader.com/public/387.cfm >
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HOA Governance: Challenges Remain When Working with Lenders on
Delinquencies
Too many homeowners associations are struggling to deal with
absentee owners who've taken the "jingle mail" route--they've
walked away from the home they now owe too much money on, and
they've mailed the keys to the bank--before lenders have
foreclosed. Even when banks have completed foreclosure and own
association units, HOAs still have trouble collecting ongoing
fees.
Click here to read full article:
< http://www.hoaleader.com/members/385.cfm >
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Mechanic's Liens: What You Must Know, and How to Avoid Them
our project to add parking to your homeowners association has
been fraught with problems from day one. You've argued with the
contractor over all the additional charges that seem to
materialize out of thin air. Your board is sick and tired of
dealing with the constant frustrations and decides it will simply
nod and smile to the contractor until the project's done. Then
it'll simply refuse to pay all the additional charges the
contractor is trying to impose. This week's tip explains why that'
s like sending an engraved
invitation to a contractor to file a mechanic's lien against
your HOA, which is a very bad idea.
Click here to read full article:
< http://www.hoaleader.com/public/386.cfm >
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