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
Unfortunately, it looks as if we will still need to social distance when it’s time for our annual elections. So how do we do this practically? In a condominium, it’s much easier than an HOA to run the election with social distancing because the procedures allow for mail-in ballots. The association must…
Read: SO HOW ARE ELECTIONS GOING TO WORK? → After living at Peaceful Paradise Condominium for 10 years and minding her own business, Darlys Dogooder decides that she hasn’t done enough volunteer work in her life and chooses to become a Board member. In fact, Darlys goes on to be a role model board member, devoting countless hours to her condominium,…
Read: A LABOR DAY TRADITION CONTINUES5 → New Florida Statute 760.27 defines “Emotional support animal” as an animal that does not require training to do work, perform tasks, provide assistance, or provide therapeutic emotional support by virtue of its presence which alleviates one or more identified symptoms or effects of a persons disability.”…
Read: EMOTIONAL SUPPORT ANIMALS AND SOME NEW FLORIDA LAWS → As Rafael will tell you later this week, management companies will start working on the 2021 budget for your association when summer comes to an end. Remember, even in condos where reserves are despised, hated, frowned up and scorned, your budget must still include a reserve analysis, like it or not.…
Read: IT’S TIME TO PREPARE THE 2021 BUDGET AND IT MUST INCLUDE RESERVES IN YOUR CONDO → Florida Statute 718.112(2)(d)2. states: A board member may not serve more than 8 consecutive years unless approved by an affirmative vote of unit owners representing two-thirds of all votes cast in the election or unless there are not enough eligible candidates to fill the vacancies on the board at the time…
Read: DOES THE 8 YEAR RULE APPLY IN YOUR CONDOMINIUM? → Election season is approaching in community associations all across the state. We already learned that if the governing docs say “No signs” you can’t put out Trump or Biden signs on your property. But what about the people running for the Board in your own community? Can they at least campaign? Many…
Read: IS CAMPAIGINING ALLOWED IN YOUR ASSOCIATION ELECTION? → In light of the death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg on Friday and the controversy surrounding filling the Supreme Court vacancy, I thought it best to discuss the procedures required by our laws when there is a vacancy on a condo or HOA board of directors. For condominiums and HOAs: Unless otherwise provided in…
Read: DOES THE 8 YEAR RULE APPLY IN YOUR CONDOMINIUM? → It’s the end of the summer. Millions of kids across our state have to suck it up and return to school. And if the kids have to endure school for the next ten months, all of you can endure a measly three hours. I’m talking of course about Condo and HOA Board Certification and Legal Update Course. There’s a…
Read: IT’S BACK TO SCHOOL TIME-PART 5 → Dominic Devoted has been the President of Broken and Bruised Condo for as long as he cares to remember. He longs for Labor Day because he knows that even the condo trouble makers understand what Labor Day stands for. Even they know not to bother him on what should be the holiest of holy days for board…
Read: A LABOR DAY TRADITION CONTINUES-PART 3 → As promised a few weeks back, we need to discuss some very interesting pitfalls associations sometimes fall into in the area of collections. In light of the fact that mortgage delinquencies are at an all-time high, rest assured that owners will in a short while begin falling behind on condo and HOA…
Read: MORE ABOUT COLLECTIONS → This year you can thank the Coronavirus for getting an extension on the filing of your tax return. We normally know tax day to be April 15th. This year it’s two days from now or July 15th. Here is one thing you need to know. All Florida community associations must file a federal tax return even though…
Read: TAXES AND TAX RETURNS – WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW → Irecently explained how lucky the banks are when they foreclose on a unit or a home and take back ownership. The law protects them, and despite how much the unpaid condo or HOA assessments are, the bank is only responsible for the lesser of one year of assessments or 1% of the mortgage. Many of you are…
Read: WAIT – IT GETS WORSE → So here is what you need to know in a nutshell: Mortgage defaults are soaring. In fact, homeowners stopped paying mortgages in record numbers in April. It was the largest one month increase ever recorded. Under Florida law, that spells financial disaster for our condos and HOAs. Keep this in mind as you…
Read: FORECLOSURES AND WHY OUR CONDOS AND HOAs MAY BE IN TROUBLE → In a few days it’s July 4th. Our country’s birthday. USA flags will be flying everywhere, even in our community associations and even if the Board in that association says take it down. With the political upheaval sweeping the country, this year I anticipate receiving complaint about owners or renters…
Read: CAN I FLY ANY FLAG → So this blog will discuss the collection process from the association’s perspective. It will tell you what the association must do if it wants to attempt to collect from an owner who is not paying their assessments. It does not tell you what to do if the bank already started foreclosure proceedings or if…
Read: THE COLLECTION PROCESS–PART 1 → Sorry, but I’m just not interested this week about blogging about condos or HOAs. Not with the devastation I see on my TV. Not with the destruction I see to the city I grew up in. This week, we have larger, national issues to focus on. It simply bothers me when people post that our country is broken. No…
Read: WE'RE STILL THE BESE OF THE BEST → So things are coming back to normal little by little. Although, I still need a dam haircut. If I wait another week or two, I figure my dog and I can go together. To his groomer. The ”emergency powers” given to Boards of Directors expire today. The Governor is allowing public places to slowly re-open.…
Read: TO OPEN OR NOT TO OPEN → On May 20th, 2020 the Secretary of the DBPR entered an Order putting an end to the Emergency Powers that were temporarily granted to directors and officers of community associations, effective June 1st, 2020. So what does that mean? It means, back to the strict requirements of the statutes regarding…
Read: BACK TO BUSINESS AS USUAL →Read it. Then watch it.
