Florida condo & HOA news
Plain-English Florida condo and HOA law updates for owners, volunteer board members, managers, and everyone navigating community-association life.
Read the latest articles ↓From the front lines
Written by Eric M. Glazer · Florida attorney
The Florida Legislature is in full swing. Each year lots of bills get filed, but few make it to the finish line and become law. Here’s an update on two bills that are moving towards becoming law: SB 394: This is my mandatory education bill, requiring directors to get certified by attending a course. Senator…
Read more → I mean no disrespect to anyone who suffered from Covid or who had a family member suffer from Covid over the last two years. My sympathies are with you wholeheartedly. However, in terms of having unit owners participate in the affairs of their communities by way of telephone or ZOOM, Covid was the kick start…
Read more → Senator Anna Maria Rodriguez filed our mandatory condo education bill in Florida’s Senate. But if you think she’s done trying to change additional condominium laws, you would be very wrong. She also filed Senate Bill 274 which creates the Condominium Fraud Investigation Pilot Program. According to the bill…
Read more → Ifirst want to give you some good news. On the more broad scale, I want you to know that the listeners and viewers of this show, along with yours truly, really count in the eyes of The Florida Legislature. There have been many times when I drafted legislation and I asked each of you to call your local…
Read more → So, I get a call a few weeks ago from a reporter at The New York Times. He was doing a story about the incredible number of condominiums in Miami and how fast they were all built. How the entire skyline on the coast changed dramatically in the past 40 years or so and if it,s possible that The Champlain…
Read more → I’ll tell you something – I give a lot of credit to Kathy Fernandez Rundle, The State Attorney for Miami-Dade County. She actually prosecutes cases of condo fraud, years ago she assembled a grand jury to make recommendations to the state legislature regarding condo crimes, kickbacks, conflicts of interest…
Read more → After the financial crisis of 2007 and 2008, The Florida Legislature passed the “bulk buyer” statute. The purpose of the law was to get large companies to purchase a bulk of units in a condominium without being labeled as a “developer”. If you are a developer you may owe lots of responsibilities to the…
Read more → So unfortunately we seem to be ending the year with the Covid numbers just creeping up — and that vaccine just can’t get here fast enough. I’m getting calls and e-mails every day, every hour, from communities that are simply scared to have their meetings in person – even if it’s the annual meeting or the…
Read more → So all this talk about the Presidency lately has got me thinking about an issue that comes up every week in my practice for the past 30 years or so. I get a call from someone on a Board of Directors. And they tell me that they have a President on the Board who is a real dictator. He or she doesn’t listen to…
Read more → Igot a call this week from The Sun Sentinel. They asked if I had heard about the prominent developer who approached the owners of the other Champlain Towers buildings that are still standing, offering to buy out all of their units. I had not, but I’m not surprised in the least about it. In fact, it’s…
Read more → Most community associations have their budget meeting in the month of November for the upcoming year. By doing it in November there is plenty of time to print new coupon books and let the community members know what the new monthly assessments will be for the coming year. In terms of notice, in a…
Read more → When the original bill was filed that required condominiums to have a website, the statute was only going to apply with condominiums of 500 units or more. In effect, the statute would have applied to less than one percent of all condominiums in the state. I met with the legislator who drafted the bill and…
Read more → This is such an important topic that is often times difficult to teach. In a nutshell however, assume the following: Your condominium or HOA was created in the year 2000. That was when your declaration of condominium or declaration of covenants was recorded. Your declaration only adopts The Florida…
Read more → Prior to July 1st, 2021 if a condominium dispute arose, the parties were forced to first arbitrate the matter before the Department of Business and Professional Regulation. The law has now changed and reads as follows: (a) Before the institution of court litigation, a party to a dispute, other than an…
Read more → Idon’t envy Judge Michael Hanzman, the judge who is assigned to decide the fate of the property where The Champlain Towers South Condominium once stood. The question of what to do at this sacred site is not easy. Some families want no re-development and only a memorial. The City of Surfside needs to see…
Read more → Afew weeks ago, I wrote a blog called It’s Time To Stop A True Florida Farce. The blog spoke about the fact that members of community association boards of directors can still get certified without taking an educational class. Instead, they can sign a rather silly piece of paper that states they have read…
Read more → Over a decade ago The Florida Legislature thought it was a good idea for members of condo and HOA boards to become “certified.” Sounds like a good idea. The problem is that the legislators allowed for two ways to become certified. One way is by going over to your computer and printing a form that is on…
Read more → Imagine a world where accountants can examine your heart and give you an opinion regarding its condition and your life expectancy. Suppose an auto mechanic can examine your kidneys and liver and give his opinion on whether or not they are healthy. Perhaps one day you can walk into my office and one of the…
Read more →Read it. Then watch it.
