An owner who doesn’t smoke is fighting with a neighbor who does. The non-smoking owner says the second hand smoke seeping into his unit is a health hazard and has threatened to sue the board if we don’t “do something about it.” The smoking owner says he has a right to smoke in his unit and has threatened to sue if we do anything to interfere with that right. What should the board do?

Cyber fraud targeting condos and property management companies is no longer theoretical, it’s the stark reality of today’s world of electronic communications. A recent incident involving a management company illustrates how quickly a seemingly ordinary transaction can become a financial nightmare, and how easily liability disputes can follow.

Ask board members about their property insurance coverage and you’ll probably get a knowing if somewhat pained look. Questions about fidelity insurance, on the other hand, are more likely to produce a blank stare, because many board members either don’t know what it is or assume they don’t need it. Fidelity insurance covers losses resulting from theft, fraud or other criminal acts. Fortunately, these losses for condominium associations are relatively rare – but they aren’t unknown. The recent collapse of a large Massachusetts condominium management company accused of stealing several million dollars from the more than 200 associations it managed provides a recent case in point, illustrating why all condo associations need this essential insurance coverage.

There are many things that make attorneys cringe, but there is one phrase that makes them want to pull the covers over their heads:  “After I signed the contract….”  That’s like saying, “After I jumped in the pond, I realized it was infested with snakes.”  There’s not much an attorney can do for you at that point, except call an ambulance or an undertaker. 

Poorly drafted contracts, unlike snake bites, aren’t going to be fatal for a condominium  association, but they may contain conditions that could be expensive and harmful.  That’s why the association’s attorney should always review contracts before you sign them.  (You knew I was going to say that!) It is also why I’m going to concentrate here on the provisions boards either want to include or want to avoid in construction contracts and contracts with their vendors. 

Marcus Errico Emmer & Brooks, P.C. is pleased to announce the recovery of nearly $600,000 on behalf of a small South Shore condominium association in a construction defect and water damage dispute against its developer. The association had long been burdened by serious construction defects and resulting water damage that the developer had failed to adequately address. Nearly three years ago, the association presented the developer with a pre-suit demand of $300,000 — a figure the developer declined to meaningfully engage with at the time. Unwilling to leave the association without recourse, litigation partner Seth Barnett filed suit to protect the association's interests and hold the developer accountable.

On May 22, 2026, HUD issued a memorandum titled “Enforcement Guidance – Assessing Requests for the Use of an Animal as a Reasonable Accommodation Under the Fair Housing Act.” The memorandum states that, “effective immediately,” HUD requires a reasonable accommodation only for animals trained to provide disability-related assistance. HUD explained that “an entire industry has emerged to convert pets into emotional support animals” and stated that it had not intended its earlier, broader guidance to be treated by courts as requiring the allowance of emotional support animals.

To rent or not to rent association amenities to non-owners. That is a question boards often ponder as they eye opportunities to increase their revenue. But third party rentals also entail risks that boards must recognize and weigh against the potential benefits. 

Liability is the most obvious risk but it isn’t first on the list.  That distinction goes to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).  By renting space to third parties, a community association might be classified as a “place of public accommodation” subject to the ADA and thus required to make common areas and amenities accessible to individuals with disabilities.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have recently updated their guidelines for condominium loans. Will lenders now revise the questionnaires they submit to condominium associations and do associations have to answer all questions?

It’s spring. The snow is gone.  Birds are singing and the green thumbs of condominium residents are itching to plant the flowers of which they’ve been dreaming all winter.  They will need the board’s permission before they start digging anywhere, however. 

That is true not just in common areas, where, with rare exceptions, owners should not be allowed to plant anything, but in limited common areas designated for an owner’s exclusive use, where boards can and should control what gets planted and where.    

Pretty roses adjacent to the owner’s fence  shouldn’t pose any problems, but bamboo, which  can pop up several feet from where it is planted (in the yard next door, for example);  English ivy, which spreads quickly, both horizontally and vertically and tends to attract rodents; and poison ivy, which poses other obvious problems, are likely to prove unpopular with the neighbors. 

The Problem: The local Board of Health determined that the association’s heat pump must be replaced before the pool can be opened for the season.