Community Associations Network Industry News

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla., Sept. 21 /PRNewswire/ -- Las Olas River House, touted as Fort Lauderdale's tallest and nicest condominium building, is being scrutinized for misleading owners about the square footage of residential units.

Some Las Olas River House owners are claiming that the actual square footage of River House units is significantly less than the advertised square footage. According to attorney Robert Kelley of Kelley / Uustal, PLC, "Unit owners are coming to us complaining that the units were as much as 500 square feet smaller than the advertising materials claimed. With the fair market value per square foot at around $500, these unit owners may be entitled to hundreds of thousands of dollars." One of Kelley's clients, and one of the first residents of Las Olas River House, noticed the discrepancy while having his unit measured so that flooring could be installed.

According to the Las Olas River House website, the 42 story luxury residential condominium offers 287 residences with floor plans allegedly ranging from 1,200 to more than 9,000 square feet of living space.

Other than location, the most important factor in home buying to a consumer is the actual square footage. Inaccurately reported square footage is the subject of numerous complaints made each year. A small percentage of cases involve willful misrepresentation (knowingly giving incorrect information).

"You can see the advertised square footage in marketing materials on the River House's internet site at http://www.lasolasriverhouse.com and through the Las Olas River House sales office. Owners should compare that to their actual square footage," Kelley said.

The first law suit was filed by Kelley / Uustal, in the Circuit Court in and for the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit in and for Broward County. "Our clients seek justice. The Developers and Sales Group had a responsibility to provide accurate and honest information," concluded Kelley.

Robert Kelley and John J. Uustal are partners in the law firm of Kelley / Uustal, PLC. The firm is headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, with offices located at Courthouse Law Plaza, 750 S.E. 3rd Avenue. Mr. Kelley and Mr. Uustal can be contacted at (954) 522-6601. Additional information about Kelley Uustal may be obtained from the firm's website at http://www.shiftthepower.com.

Posted by Joe at 11:31 AM | Permalink

Michigan Avenue Tower, in the city's South Loop neighborhood, is poised to become the first residential condominium in Chicago to use 100 percent renewable energy to power its 29-floor building.

Following in the footsteps of major corporations such as Whole Foods and Johnson & Johnson, the building's association has approved a contract to purchase renewable energy credits from an Iowa wind farm. The clean renewable energy will go into the electric grid to alleviate some of the system's demand for coal, gas and nuclear power-producing facilities.

Felix Friedman, the association's president, proposed the idea of creating a "green" building. The condo association brokered a deal to purchase "green credits" from Midwest Renewable Energy Credits in the amount that offsets the total quantity of electricity used by the building. Friedman said the decision was made to help the environment, and to attract environmentally-conscious real estate owners.

Friedman researched similar purchases to estimate that the annual carbon dioxide emissions reduced by this purchase would be equivalent to planting 30,000 trees. "What a lot of people don't understand is that more than half of today's pollution is caused by the home -- running the appliances, air conditioning and these days, two or three computers," Friedman said. "We're offsetting the pollution that we're creating by making sure that every kilowatt of energy we consume is coming from clean renewable energy."

The cost of purchasing wind credits to association members will be approximately $7 per unit per month, but the association plans to pick up the tab through smart investing of its reserves from its annual budget. The purchase of these credits will help fund the construction of a new wind turbine in Winnebago County, Iowa. The condominium's name will be on a plaque on the turbine recognizing the association's contribution to its construction.

Steve Dryden, the president of Midwest Renewable Energy Corporation, which brokered the deal, said it was just a matter of time before the residential market embraced cleaner forms of electrical energy.

"It's an obvious trend to go green," he said. "Those residents that go green now are probably going to see higher resale values of their property and, more importantly, are making their small contribution to control global warming and help the earth."

Posted by Joe at 10:16 AM | Permalink