« May an HOA Board Take Action Without A Meeting? | Main | THE NEW ELECTIONS LAW »
June 6, 2006
CONDO CONVERSIONS - $$$$ DRIVES !@#$%&!@#
I receive questions, complaints and requests for assisting with condo conversions issues every other day. Its the rage - convert apartments or houses to condos. Make a bunch of money. Flip properties. But guess what? Conversions seem to breed problems.
Today the message was from siblings who bought condos converted from apartments and had just learned that the pipes in all the units were shot. The solution - complete repiping of a 30 year old building. The cost - sky high! They were facing a huge mess and wanted to know their rights to sue the developer. - Heading for a nightmare.
Two days ago it was from an owner who converted his house to three condos, and sold two units to a person who bought one to live in and one as an investment - to rent out. The original owner no doubt enjoyed the windfall gained from the sales, but was wondering what happens when there are two owners who cannot agree on anything. He was upset at having no control over choosing a renter, and also had no comprehension of the CC&Rs he had paid to have drafted that gave one vote to each unit, meaning the person who bought the two units would always hold the majority in all voting matters. (And some people wonder why I collect the fee up front!)
Last week it was an owner who wanted to convert a 4 unit building, and asked me to draft CC&Rs. When I sent a questionnaire asking many questions about what the owner wanted, on all aspects from the financials, the maintenance and use provisions, signs, pets, parking places, modifications etc., the feedback I received was that he had not thought about any of thoses things. He needed more time to ponder.
And on a regular basis - I am asked to step in and help resolve noise issues stemming from a too-close-living environment ... often involving converted apartments. The walls, floors and ceilings always fall short of sound-proofing expectations.This would be noise related to hard surface and laminate floors, doors slamming, cupboards opening and closing, washers and dryers vibrating the floors, music speakers booming, loud nightime intimacy, clickety clacking shoes, barking dogs, and children involved in running, dancing, singing and shouting.
Therein lies the problem. A too-closwe-living environment. Shortness of forethought. Lack of understanding of recorded land use restrictions. Love of $$$. Unwillingness to share. Unwillingness to seriously compromise. Struggles over power and control. Buildings that are built as apartments and residences with little regard to separation of facilities allowing for individualized maintenance. Failure of building condition and much needed upgrades leading to surprise assessments.
What is the solution? Inspections. Paying attention. Reasonable compromises. Thinking things through. Imagining best and worst case scenarios. Meaningful financial planning for shared expenses. Respecting other party's interests, comfort and privacy. And most of all: willingness to negotiate, conciliate, mediate and meditate ... yes - I said meditate.
Posted by Beth Grimm at June 6, 2006 10:34 PM