Lenders Are Asking More Questions about Condos; Managers Are Wondering Who Should Answer Them

Lenders financing a condominium purchase typically and understandably require basic information about the community association’s governance and finances, which association managers have provided more or less willingly for many years.  But what had been a reasonably smooth process has turned bumpier of late.  More lenders are refusing to accept the standardized form most Massachusetts managers have been using for more than a decade, insisting that managers complete the lenders’ own questionnaires instead, and increasingly seeking information the standard form doesn’t include.   Read more

Times Are Tough, Get Creative

The economic crisis facing our country today is undoubtedly impacting everyone.  Given the size of the crisis, countless individuals and companies nationwide, including homeowner associations, are forced to make very difficult decisions.  But there is a silver lining to a crisis like this.  It forces everybody to consider options they would not otherwise consider and get creative.  As the crisis has grown, we have seen a number of creative solutions implemented to help associations get more from less in their day-to-day business.   Read more

Association Basics for Committees

As a volunteer organization, a community association faces the unusual challenge of running a corporation with part-time leadership. Volunteer homeowners have varied experience and limited time to dedicate to their roles. Even with professional managers managing the day-to operations of an association, board members are still called upon to fulfill roles for which they do not have the resources (time or experience) and this is where committees can be particularly valuable. The three types of committees are:

• Mandatory committees
• Standing committees and
• Ad-hoc Committees

Read more

Educating Residents to Save Lives and Property

Whether it affects a small portion of one unit or the entire association, a fire is easily one of the most devastating and destructive events that can happen in any multifamily building. New technology and current regulations have made fires easier to prevent, control and extinguish, but residents and building staff still must be educated about what to do in an emergency situation, as well as how to prevent a fire from occurring in the first place.    Read more

Audits of Financial Statements and Income Tax Considerations

With year-end approaching, thoughts naturally turn to the holiday season and hopes for a happy and healthy new year.  Shortly thereafter, most community associations (that is, those associations with a calendar year-end) close their books and prepare their year-end financial statements.  As we know, those associations with annual......    Read more   (PDF)

Budget for HOA Success

Every homeowner association needs a well crafted annual budget to calculate the fees to be paid by the members. For most HOAs which have a fiscal year starting in January, the fall prior to that is budget review time. A review and revision should happen each year without exception because costs change every year. Failure to revise (read "increase") each year will put the HOA deeper and deeper in the hole. There are number of areas that every budget review should include:    Read more

What to Do With Uncollectible Debt

In today's economy of rampant foreclosures and bankruptcy filings, it is becoming all too common for associations to be confronted with the unpleasant task of "writing off" uncollectible debt.  There are a few common instances when a debt becomes uncollectible.  When an owner files a bankruptcy and obtains a discharge from the court, then all debt owed prior to the bankruptcy filing is not collectible from the owner.  If the owner is foreclosed upon by the first mortgage holder, then the association's lien is extinguished, and the debt is not collectible from the property.  If both of these scenarios apply to the same property, then the debt owed is truly uncollectible.    Read more

Outsource Day to Day Accounting Tasks

You may be ready to consider a different solution to handle your community’s financial work either because your treasurer is moving or you want to improve your process or maybe you have full management but are considering self-management to save money but want some extra support.  Help is available, there is an option.   Read more

Fighting Accounting Fraud: A Real-Estate CPA Tells You How

No organization is immune to fraud, and regardless of its size, the effects can be devastating. Despite this, co-ops and condos often don't take the basic measures needed to prevent and detect fraud, leaving you exposed to potentially devastating economic losses. In May 2006, for instance, a former accountant for one of the largest co-op developments in Queens was charged with embezzling more than $90,000 between July 2002 and August 2005.   Read more

Getting Stiffed...

Since my area of practice is primarily condominium law, I have had the opportunity to observe the effect of foreclosures on our market over the last year and a half. It is a phenomenon that we haven’t seen before and hopefully will not see again. However, it is real and will continue to impact our market for another six months to a year. Obviously, foreclosures have a real impact on the group of owners who have been foreclosed. Primarily, these fall in to two groups: (1) those who over-speculated on the market, closed on the units and have attempted to cash flow through rentals but found that they cannot keep up; and (2) those who bought units after Hurricane Ivan but before Hurricane Katrina at the peak of the market whose units are now worth less than they owe (by far, this is the larger group).    Read more

This was an interesting story in yesterday's news.  I placed it in the articles area to give a little more play.

 Brookside Square now has both neighborhood and homeowners' associations     In Brookside Square, a subdivision bordered by Smiley Lane and Sullivan Street in north Columbia, residents have formed a neighborhood association because of their concerns about fire protection, crime and construction. The association was formed in an area where there is already a legal entity in place, a homeowner’s association, but residents were concerned that their interests were not fully represented by it.   Read more

TX: Condo builder misled plaintiffs about units' safety behind Galveston seawall  A Galveston County couple and a California woman claim a Galveston condominium builder misinformed them about the ability of the Galveston seawall to protect the property from hurricanes....

CO: Smoking ban idea snuffed at Centennial in Aspen  A propertywide smoking ban at Centennial condominiums in Aspen went up in flames Tuesday after an overwhelming number of homeowners voted against the idea....

WI: Condo Owners Sue Brookfield over Snow Plowing  Imagine every time it snows, you have to pay for your neighborhood streets to be plowed. Some residents have to do it, and now they're fed up....

IL: Former condo association president charged with theft   The former president of the Thatcher Woods Condominium Association has been charged with the theft of $118,750 in association funds...

FL: HOA Allows Only Married Couples To Rent
A Central Florida homeowners association covenant prohibits owners from leasing their homes to anyone who is not a married couple, raising the ire of gay rights advocates and homeowners who can't locate tenants....

GA: Treasurer accused of stealing HOA funds
A Peachtree City man has been charged with 16 counts of fiduciary theft for writing $29,000 in checks from his homeowner's association to himself and two of his companies....

FL: Legislator plans to push for ombudsman of homeowner associations  State Rep. Julio Robaina told leaders of homeowner associations Monday he wants feedback before crafting legislation to overhaul associations across the state...

FL: Judge: Parking restrictions "unreasonable"
A Hillsborough County homeowners' association now faces thousands of dollars in legal fees after losing a lawsuit against one of their residents...

CT:Condo Activist In Madison Defends Himself Against Charge Of Attempted Bribery
Not long after arriving, Perrelli started battling with the condominium association, and he eventually filed four lawsuits against the group and its board members. The association countersued, and the clashes dragged on for years with Perrelli acting as his ow...

CA: Wind turbines not all that neighborly
The blades of a spinning turbine blur, pumping electricity as the wind whips through them - but it's not Altamont Pass, rather it's the home of Brad Laschinske, Oroville, Calif., resident and alternative energy enthusiast....

CA: Clotheslines an easy way to cool off planet
Ever since dryer sheets took the place of the summer breeze, clotheslines seemed to have gone the way of the porch radio - quaint traditions of previous generations, now confined to black and white photos and period films...

AZ: San Tan Heights HOA in financial bind
The homeowners association for the San Tan Heights neighborhood is showing signs of splitting apart after a perfect storm of home foreclosures, developer mismanagement and personal bankruptcies have plagued the Pinal County community south of Queen Creek....

FL: HOAs cry foul over foreclosures
Local homeowners' associations and condo boards say banks are unfairly getting a break on how much back dues they have to pay when they take back a home in foreclosure....

LA: State's attorney will not pursue charges against homeowner association
state's attorney will not pursue charges against a homeowners association president whose Internet comments about "spraying poop" spurred local officials to believe he threatened them....

GA: Neighborhood Security Cameras Create Controversy   The City of Roswell and one of its subdivisions have reached something of an impasse and neighborhood security is at the heart of the problem...

CA: Condo tenants fight for their homes in Torrance   That's because the homeowners association at Village Palos Verdes where she lives has levied a $75,000 special assessment on her and the other 180 homeowners to pay for a $13.5 million exterior renovation project....

AZ: Residents: HOA Wants Bailout, Too
One Valley homeowners' association is more than $1 million in debt and has asked its residents to bail it out....

Controversial New Pool & Spa Safety Act Will Create Public Pool Closures   Most of the 300,000 public pools and spas in the U.S. are required to close on December 19, 2008 according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) if they do not comply with the Virginia Graeme Baker Pool & Spa Safety Act...