HOAleader.com - Tip of the Week - July 27, 2013
Published: Sat, 07/27/13
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Are These HOA Laws Heading for Your State?
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In this week's tip, we whet your appetite for news on trends in
HOA law that may soon be coming to a legislature near you.
In some states--like Minnesota--lawmakers have been as silent as
church mice. "Minnesota's legislature was pretty quiet on this
front this year," says Nancy T. Polomis, a partner at Hellmuth &
Johnson PLLC who advises homeowners associations. "They evidently
had bigger fish to fry, and there were no laws proposed worth
noting. It was pleasantly quiet."
Other states have been huming with condo/HOA activity. And they
may be a sign of things to come in other states. Here's a
rundown of noteworthy state legislative activity:
California-
"The civil code, which we call the Davis-Stirling Act, is about
to be completely renumbered and reorganized," explains Andrew
Schlegel, CCAM, executive vice president of community management
for Orange County and Los Angeles at Merit Property Management in
Aliso Viejo, Calif. "Not a lot of the provisions will change, but
all the references we're used to giving, like what section of the
statute applies in a situation, is all going to change. Attorneys
and managers will have to get up on those changes.
"Another potential change is in allowing electronic ballots,
which would permit owners to vote online in board elections," adds
Schlegel. "The law hasn't passed yet, and you never know what's
eventually going to be passed. But with online voting generally,
associations would obviously save a lot of money on paper and
supplies. E-voting would also make elections simpler on managers
in a lot of respects. However, you always fear, because people
contest elections all the time, that e-voting might open the door
even more for people to say there's some kind of chicanery going
on."
Florida-
In June, Florida's governor signed new laws governing condos and
HOAs that took effect July 1, 2013. Among the highlights are a
60-day deadline for election challenges and certain recall
challenges; a provision permitting owners to use electronic
devices to copy official records; and a board certification or
education requirement for cooperative board members like the
current requirement for condo board members.
Ohio-
"We have nothing pending that's been introduced," says David W.
Kaman, a Columbus-based partner at Kaman & Cusimano LLC, which
represents associations throughout Ohio. "However, bouncing
around are two different proposals. One is for a superlien, which
would give condos and HOAs payment preference in foreclosures
entitling them to six months of maintenance fees prior to the
payoff of the first mortgage. The second is for increased
disclosure requirements by the seller to the buyer on a sale."
Get more details on additional legislation in these states, plus
potential and coming legislation in other states, in our
new article: http://www.hoaleader.com/members/874.cfm
Best regards,
Matt Humphrey
President
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Recent articles posted at HOAleader.com:
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Legal Update: Trends in State HOA Laws
Some state capitals are humming with condo/HOA legislative activity.
Others are silent as church mice. Even if your state legislature seems to
have been lying low, it's important to keep up on proposed and passed
legislation in other states because what happens in one state often spreads
to others. Here's a rundown of noteworthy legislative activity in several
states.
Click here to read full article:
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HOA Boards: Investors Need Not Apply?
In this week's tip, we broach the touchy topic of restricting board
membership to association residents. Some states permit associations to
require board members to be community residents. Florida, however,
probably isn't one of those states, though it's not completely clear.
Click here to read full article:
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Special v. Emergency Assessment: What's the Difference?
In this week's tip, we address a reader's sneaking suspicion that the HOA
board pulled a fast one. It first tried to pass a special assessment, which
failed. Then it imposed an "emergency" assessment on owners. Is that legit?
Click here to read full article:
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Emergency Assessments: Are They for Real?
An HOAleader.com reader has complained that the home owners association
board tried to pass a special assessment, failed, and then imposed an
"emergency" assessment on owners. So what's an "emergency" assessment and
when can you impose one?
Click here to read full article:
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Six Red Flags Your HOA Manager is Too Tight with Vendors
Is your homeowners association manager benefitting more from vendor
relationships than your HOA? Managers who are affiliated with or work
exceptionally closely with vendors can be great, or they can end up costing
your HOA extra money it should never had to have expend. Here we offer six
signs that your management company is getting the better end of the deal when
it comes to your HOA's vendor relationships.
Click here to read full article:
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