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My22, 2007 Vol. 4 Issue 10

News

AZ: HOA academies

Some Valley cities offer "HOA academies", seminars that usually meet once a week for a few weeks, to educate HOA members on the responsibilities they have as homeowners in HOAs. Board members learn how to carry out their roles including enforcement, which often causes disputes and hard feelings.

NJ: Members upset by homeowners' groups

Angry members of homeowners' associations, representative of the way an increasing number of people are living, complained at a conference Monday that the elected boards governing their communities can behave like draconian governments.

AZ: Is 'artificial grass' coming to the side of Valley roads?

The turf war has begun in Sun City. It's real grass versus artificial turf and the winner gets the West Valley city's medians.

FL: Toxic Mold Growing in Local Condo

Inside the dry wall, the entire inside of their wall was covered in mold. Not just any mold -- toxic mold. Mold so dangerous, the two say the condo developer told them to get out and stay out until a mold remediation team, dressed in air tight suits, came in and cleaned until they finally deemed the condo clean.

LA: Condo groups run insurance gambles as fees spike Concerned higher insurance rates would drive condo fees through the roof, the association voted to drop wind and hail coverage, he said.

MO: Condo developer pleads guilty to asbestos violations The developer of a downtown Kansas City condominium project pleaded guilty in federal court Monday to violating federal standards for asbestos removal during renovation of the property last year,

NY: Condos Becoming Choosy Like Co-ops

A staple of urban difficulties are the financial and personal reviews of aspiring co-op buyers. The board review process before a purchase can be approved can be Torquemada-esque, where future hopeful neighbors are one's inquisitors.

VA: Day-Care Providers Battle Neighbors in Loudoun Downs is one of a dozen in-home day-care providers accused of violating the rules of the eastern Loudoun subdivision known as Lansdowne on the Potomac -- a charge they call unfair.

CO: Jury exonerates Chateau, property manager

An Aspen jury exonerated the Chateau Aspen Condominium Association and McCartney Properties Management Co. in a slip-and-fall complaint on Thursday.

NJ: Some say condo has been turned into a synagogue Some residents of an age-restricted community here believe a condominium has been converted into a synagogue in violation of the bylaws of the development.

WV: Putnam couple wins lawsuit over subdivision fees A Putnam County couple can recover court costs from an upscale homeowners association after it continued to try to collect delinquent fees owed by a previous homeowner, the state Supreme Court has ruled.

NY: YAI/National Institute for People with Disabilities Obtains Favorable Settlement in Washington Heights Condo Lawsuit

Claiming a major victory for the rights of all individuals with disabilities, YAI/National Institute for People with Disabilities (YAI/NIPD) yesterday reached a settlement with The Bennett, a Washington Heights condominium that had previously blocked the organization from purchasing two apartments to create a group residence for five individuals with developmental disabilities.

FL: Kings Point condo owners have new hope as repairs from Wilma finally done

More than 18 months after Hurricane Wilma destroyed their condos, some residents in Kings Point, a 55-and-over community west of Delray Beach, are finally getting their homes back.

FL: Deal gives condo residents a 'fast pass' for ER care Long emergency room waits are legendary in Palm Beach County, but one large local condo association thinks it has found a way around them.

New fluorescent bulbs pose a slight mercury danger At last report, the room in which Brandy Bridges dropped the CFL light bulb was sealed off, and Bridges was trying to come up with the money needed to bring in the boys in moon suits to clean up the mess.

OH: Help with recovery from flood gets closer

Painesville has taken a giant step toward getting $8 million it needs to buy and demolish 80 flood-damaged condominiums and return the site to greenspace on the Grand River.

NJ: Readington condo official admits stealing $200K A former community manager of the Whitehouse Village Condominium Association in Readington admitted Friday in state Superior Court to stealing at least $200,000 from the organization, authorities said.

CO: Ignorance of Darfur inexcusable (on sign in association) Rachel Amaru's yard sign reads: "Darfur: End the Genocide." And this innocuous statement has generated a minor controversy in the peace-loving town of Boulder. Turns out, Amaru's homeowners association says the sign violates covenants banning ... well, signs.

FL: Buzz off: Bees invade homes after construction The president of the local homeowner's association says that reason the bees are such a problem can be traced to construction shortcuts taken by the developer that built the neighborhood.

NV: Spring Creek candidate under attack

The usual topics of road conditions and strategic planning were addressed at Wednesday's Spring Creek Association board candidate forum, but another topic lifted its head as well - mudslinging.

AZ: Let the Sunshine In

You don't have to be Al Gore to believe solar power is a good thing. But try telling that to Lynn DeMuth's homeowners association.

CO: Condo board dispute engulfs all around it

The Sierra Pointe Condominiums look like any other large, impersonal housing complex. But things are getting very personal among members of the condo's homeowners association board.

VA: At-Home Businesses Banned In Lansdowne

Women providing child care services in their Lansdowne on the Potomac homes were told last week that they are doing so in violation of the covenants that govern their community and they must close their businesses.

PA: Men charged in terror plot damaged vacation house, drew attention

While staying in the Pocono Mountains to practice at a state firing range, some of the men who allegedly planned to attack Fort Dix damaged their vacation rental with paintball pellets and drew the attention of security guards.

2007 Advertising Policies and Rate Sheet
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Articles

Timing Is Critical and Advice Is Essential in Construction Litigation Claims

Thomas Moriarty

Judging by the press reports, construction defect litigation seems to have become something of a growth industry. A recent media scan turned up, in fairly short order, a $3 million judgment awarded to a Vermont community association and a $12 million settlement negotiated by a Colorado community to resolve their claims of serious construction flaws, along with a reference to the largest construction defect award to date – a $35 million judgment in favor of a California homeowners’ association. Read More

Defending Against Discrimination Claims

In what may prove to be a significant victory for cooperative and condominium boards sued for housing discrimination, an appellate court recently applied the protection of the business judgment rule to a discrimination claim for disability accommodation. In Pelton v. 77 Park Avenue Condominium, et al., the plaintiff—a unit owner suffering from muscular dystrophy—claimed that the condominium and the nine members of its board discriminated against him in violation of the New York City Human Rights Law. The plaintiff sought $23.5 million in damages, acknowledging that the condominium board agreed to some accommodations by purchasing a special wheelchair lift, providing special building access, granting exception to a house rule prohibiting in-unit laundry machines, and assessing $130,000 from unit owners for renovations to make the building handicap accessible. However, the board also denied requests for other structural modifications to building facilities and for reprioritization building-wide renovations. Read More

Volunteerism

Maybe you've seen the T-shirts that say “Stop Me Before I Volunteer Again!” Those are the same people sit on the association board, are active in the soccer league, scouts, church committees, school functions, and fund-raisers time and time again. The minute they move into a new community, they're asking how they can help. And while this may be accompanied by frayed nerves and time-management challenges, these folks feel genuinely rewarded by their volunteer contributions. On the other hand, sometimes those same volunteers stay because there doesn't seem to be any interest by others to step in. How can you attract new volunteer blood to your community?

HOA Wordsmithing

Richard Thompson Communication is both a skill and an art form. When babies cry, the motivation is to get their needs met. Meeting the needs of others is nowhere in a baby's method. While infant communication is primitive, it is highly effective. A crying baby gets fed, diapers changed, burped, etc. With maturity and training comes more sophisticated and usually less self-serving ways to communicate. Homeowner associations are charged with communicating with the members. The reasons for communicating vary including:

Connect to Communicate

One of the best ways to communicate with a large number of people is via a Web site. Most companies maintain Web sites as a way to promote their company or, in the case of property management, to enhance communication. Even individuals are maintaining sites on the Web through the relatively recent emergence of blogs, where they can post anything from pictures of their families to their opinions about the war in Iraq. A blog is a user-generated Web site where entries are made in journal style and displayed in reverse chronological order. But blogs are just one example of how technology has revolutionized our lives. Read More

Board Members Can Promote a Sense of Community

Currently, one out of every three people in California lives in some type of planned community governed by a homeowners association (HOA). More than 42 million people in the United States live under HOA rules. According to recent estimates by the California Department of Real Estate, up to 80 percent of all future residential communities will be common interest developments (CID) with an HOA. With that in mind, it's getting even more critical that new homebuyers who move into a CID fully understand the implications and benefits of an HOA and quickly develop a sense of belonging. Have you considered a neighborhood greeting committee whose purpose is to welcome new residents as well as inform them about the HOA? Do you send out information about how the association works to your new buyers? Do you have an association website to keep people informed of what's going on in the community? Read More

Water Efficiency: Gain, Not Pain

Most facility executives would probably agree that energy conservation pays off both financially and environmentally. But what about water conservation? Does it have a similar payoff?

For buildings in parts of the country plagued by drought, facility executives are already well aware of the importance of minimizing facilities’ water consumption. But in water-rich regions, chances are water conservation is not at the top of the priority list. Indeed, facility executives may have concluded that the cost savings from water conservation are not worth the effort.

Employers need to do more social networking

A study carried out in the UK by Capital Consulting shows has found that fewer than one in five (18 per cent) of employees work in organizations which encourage them to recommend friends or acquaintances. Yet a quarter said that they know someone they could refer to their employer straight away, suggesting that companies are missing out on rich pool of talent which they could access without incurring agency fees or other recruitment costs.

Read More

Company Loyalty– Whose Job is it Anyway?

Being loyal to company has several facets in my estimation – both internal and external. Internal facets include the interaction I have with my fellow employees, my supervisor, other offices, and the various departments. External facets include the public we serve – the Board members, homeowners, contractors, mortgage companies, insurance agents, home inspectors, municipalities, neighboring communities, etc. The list truly is as varied as it can be. Even though the facets are different, there are unifying approaches that tie both internal and external facets together in a set of techniques. As I considered these techniques, it occurred to me that there was an A-list and an I-list that applied. The A-list for company loyalty includes attitude, aptitude, and action. The I-list includes statements such as “I can...”, “I will…”, and “I apologize…” Read More

Don't Miss The Boat

Property owners along the gulf coast are keenly aware that hurricane season runs from the first of June until the end of November each year. Unfortunately, manufacturers and vendors of hurricane protection products said that planning around those dates can become a major pitfall to hurricane protection initiatives, putting many condominium owners and associations way behind the curve each year.