Mark S. Einhorn, Esq. 10/28/26 Mark S. Einhorn, Esq. 10/28/26

HOW TO DEAL WITH A ‘BAD’ CONDOMINIUM TENANT - CONTACT THE OWNER

If a condominium owner regularly plays loud music, rolls golf balls across an uncarpeted floor, otherwise disturbs other residents or violates association rules, the board’s response is clear: Notify the owner that he or she is violating the rules and fine him/her if the violations continue. But what if the annoying resident is a tenant, not an owner?

The response isn’t quite as straightforward. The board has no direct relationship with the tenant, no authority to enforce the association’s rules against him, and certainly no authority to evict him, unless the governing documents specifically grant that authority, which most do not. The board’s relationship is with the owner of the unit, who is the tenant’s landlord, so any actions the board takes should start there.

Mark S. Einhorn, Esq. 9/20/26 Mark S. Einhorn, Esq. 9/20/26

DEFERRED MAINTENANCE

We are working on the association’s annual budget and it is clear that our anticipated expenses are going to exceed anticipated revenues. Some board members have suggested that deferring some scheduled but nonessential maintenance projects would reduce expenses by enough to close this gap without increasing monthly dues. Are there other alternatives we should consider?

Richard E. Brooks, Esq. 8/19/26 Richard E. Brooks, Esq. 8/19/26

TRASH PICKUP RESTORED

It took ten years of hard work by Richard Brooks and CAI and the Framingham Condominium Coalition to convince The Town of Framingham to provide free trash pickup to condominiums in 2002.

Earlier this year the City of Framingham wanted to take it away.

However, on August 18th, the city reversed its position and decided it wouldn’t change the service for fiscal 2027 and condominiums would continue to receive trash pickup from the city.

Thanks to the hard work of some condominium board members and concerned unit owners, who flooded the city with letter and phone calls, FAIRNESS and EQUITY prevailed.

MEEB was involved in the ten year fight that resulted in trash pickup in 2002 and once again, MEEB worked pro bono on this issue to help restore trash pickup in Framingham.

Matthew W. Gaines, Esq. 8/19/26 Matthew W. Gaines, Esq. 8/19/26

REGULAR USE OF DRONES IS COMING

Amazon, Walmart and other retailers have said they will be relying increasingly on drones to deliver packages to consumers. Our board has many concerns about this plan, primary among them the damage falling packages (and falling drones) might do to property and residents, complaints about the noise drones will make, and ‘invasion of privacy’ complaints from residents who think the drones are spying on them. We’d like to avoid those problems if possible. Can the board prohibit drone deliveries in our community?

Matthew W. Gaines, Esq. 8/19/26 Matthew W. Gaines, Esq. 8/19/26

CRIME IS BOTH A CONCERN AND A POTENTIAL LIABILITY RISK FOR COMMUNITY ASSOCIATIONS

Are community associations required to protect residents from the criminal acts of third parties? This question usually arises after press reports of a crime committed in a condominium community for which the association is being sued. Until fairly recently, the generally accepted answer was – no. While boards might be required in some circumstances to address the criminal acts, or potential criminal acts of residents – for example, when one resident threatens to harm others – they had no obligation to protect residents from burglaries, assaults, rapes or other crimes committed by third parties who had no relationship with the association.

Janet Oulousian Aronson, Esq. 7/22/26 Janet Oulousian Aronson, Esq. 7/22/26

PROBLEM SOLVED – SMOKER VS. NON-SMOKER

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?

Mark einhorn 7/21/26 Mark einhorn 7/21/26

FRAUD RISKS MAY BE SMALL FOR CONDOS BUT FIDELITY INSURANCE IS ESSENTIAL

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.

Jonathan Klein, Esq. 6/7/26 Jonathan Klein, Esq. 6/7/26

THE GOOD, THE BAD AND THE HORRID IN COMMUNITY ASSOCIATION CONTRACTS

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.

Mark einhorn 5/1/26 Mark einhorn 5/1/26

RISKS VS. REVENUE

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.

Carol Lang 4/6/26 Carol Lang 4/6/26

WHERE DOES YOUR GARDEN GROW?

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.