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
Before you know it, The Florida Legislature will be in session. In terms of legislation for condominiums and homeowner associations, 2019 was a complete bust. There wasn’t a single change to Florida Statute 718 or 720. For reasons beyond my comprehension, there are differences between these two statutes…
Read: DUMBFOUNDING DIFFERENCES → 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 4 → Insurance is a very strange product. Everyone is scared to death to be without it, but when it’s time to put in a claim, everyone is scared to death to use it. Delay in reporting a claim to your insurance company can be a costly mistake. Every policy contains provisions that require the insured to report…
Read: DON’T WAIT TO REPORT A CLAIM → If there is one discrepancy between condominium and homeowner association law that makes absolutely no sense, it’s the laws regarding...
Read: WHERE DO WE START? IN COURT? MEDIATION? ARBITRATION? → We all know that condominium and homeowner associations sue and get sued all the time. Are there any specific obligations to inform the unit owners that the association has filed suit? Are there any specific obligations to inform the owners or potential buyers that the association has been sued? Believe…
Read: LITIGATION LIMITS → With the thousands of condominium and HOA communities built in the last two decades or so, it was inevitable that The Florida Bar would, and has now officially, recognized Condominium and Planned Development Law as an area of the law where practicing attorneys can distinguish themselves by becoming Board…
Read: CONDOMINIUM AND PLANNED DEVELOPMENT LAW RECEIVES SPECIAL RECOGNITION → In response to the Miami Dade Grand Jury Report that blasted officers and directors, management companies and the DBPR, but ignored the fact that prosecutor’s offices often turn a blind eye toward condo and HOA crime, Senator Rene Garcia and House Member Jose Felix Diaz filed a bill that attempts to do a…
Read: In response to the Miami Dad → In response to the Miami Dade Grand Jury Report that blasted officers and directors, management companies and the DBPR, but ignored the fact that prosecutor’s offices often turn a blind eye toward condo and HOA crime, Senator Rene Garcia and House Member Jose Felix Diaz filed a bill that attempts to do a…
Read: March 6, 2017In response to the Miami Dade Grand Jury Report that bla → Attorneys like me who have spent their careers litigating will tell you that litigation in court is grueling, expensive, lengthy, aggravating and time consuming. And those are the good points. As a result, and due to the need to un-clog the court system, The Florida Legislature created mandatory…
Read: CAN A JUDGE BE BOUGHT…………LEGALLY? → As you all know by now, condo and HOA directors must get certified within one year prior to getting elected or appointed to the board or within 90 days of actually getting elected or appointed to the Board. They can do so in one of two ways. The first way is the chicken’s way out and quite frankly is an…
Read: JOIN US ON NOVEMBER 15TH → Despite the fact that legislative progress has been made in getting owners access to association records, there is still confusion as to whether or not associations and/or management companies can charge an owner for such access and for photocopies of the records. Let’s address the law for both condominiums…
Read: ACCESS TO RECORDS – SO IS THERE A COST OR NOT? → 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. There’s a lot that goes into my…
Read: IT’S BACK TO SCHOOL TIME-PART 2 → We already blogged about a new law that will bring further chaos and confusion to the association election process, and that is the law that now allows voting via the internet if a plethora of conditions are met. The Florida Legislature passed some other association laws as well this year. Let’s see what…
Read: SOME OTHER NEW LAWS THAT MAY OR MAY NOT APPLY IN YOUR ASSOCIATION → Last week I blogged about how associations go about selecting counsel for the association. Lots of you gave some tips about what associations should be searching for in the law firm they eventually choose. Some of you thought track record was important. Others thought the won/loss record mattered most.…
Read: WHAT YOUR ATTORNEY EXPECTS FROM YOU → It’s the end of the summer. I watched my kids suck it up this week, pack their school bags and head off to school to return for another year of learning. Millions of kids across our state did the exact same thing. And if they can do it five days a week for the next ten months, each of you can do it for a…
Read: BACK TO SCHOOL TIME-PART 1 → Funny how things work sometimes. Over the past 23 years, I have noticed an interesting pattern in Florida community associations. When money is tight and foreclosures are soaring, associations are far less likely to engage in litigation. Suddenly, nobody really cares what color someone painted their house…
Read: YOU MAY WANT TO WAIT BEFORE YOU LITIGATE → (4) MANDATORY NONBINDING ARBITRATION AND MEDIATION OF DISPUTES.—The Division of Florida Condominiums, Timeshares, and Mobile Homes of the Department of Business and Professional Regulation shall employ full-time attorneys to act as arbitrators to conduct the arbitration hearings provided by this chapter. The…
Read: FLORIDA STATUTE 718.1255 → While an education requirement is not mandatory for condo and HOA board members, I wish it were. The more educated Board members are about the legal requirements of running their community, the less likely it is that the association will have costly disputes with the owners whether it be in mediation,…
Read: GET READY FOR A FUN DAY! →Read it. Then watch it.
