Condominium Insider

MEEB’s Condo Law Newsletter

Governance and Board Operations, Collections and Lien Enforcement, Construction Defect Litigation, General Litigation, Insurance and Risk, Fair Housing and Accomodations, Maintenance and Repairs, Rules and Enforcement, Lending and Finance, Landlord Tenant, Legislation and Regulatory Updates, MEEB Case Results, Resolutions and Amendments Mark S. Einhorn, Esq. Governance and Board Operations, Collections and Lien Enforcement, Construction Defect Litigation, General Litigation, Insurance and Risk, Fair Housing and Accomodations, Maintenance and Repairs, Rules and Enforcement, Lending and Finance, Landlord Tenant, Legislation and Regulatory Updates, MEEB Case Results, Resolutions and Amendments Mark S. Einhorn, Esq.

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.

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Rules and Enforcement, Governance and Board Operations, General Litigation Janet Oulousian Aronson, Esq. Rules and Enforcement, Governance and Board Operations, General Litigation Janet Oulousian Aronson, Esq.

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?

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Rules and Enforcement, Governance and Board Operations Carol Lang Rules and Enforcement, Governance and Board Operations Carol Lang

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. 

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Governance and Board Operations, Collections and Lien Enforcement, Rules and Enforcement Richard E. Brooks, Esq. Governance and Board Operations, Collections and Lien Enforcement, Rules and Enforcement Richard E. Brooks, Esq.

STORM WARNINGS

If condominium board members are compiling a list of New Years’ resolutions, a commitment to staying on top of association collections should definitely be on it. This is always important, but it is likely to be especially important this year for three reasons:

Inflation is increasing the cost of major projects, which in turn will increase the size of the assessments on owners and the association loans required to pay for the projects. 

Inflation is also forcing some associations to increase common area fees, adding to the financial strain on owners who are already struggling with rising costs. 

Slower growth and economic uncertainty could boost unemployment, creating another risk for households and for condo associations.

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General Litigation, Rules and Enforcement, MEEB Case Results Seth B. Barnett, Esq. General Litigation, Rules and Enforcement, MEEB Case Results Seth B. Barnett, Esq.

COURT REBUKES UNIT OWNER FOR UNAUTHORIZED ALTERATIONS: TRUSTEES PREVAIL AT TRIAL

In a sharply worded decision issued this Summer, the Suffolk Superior Court ruled in favor of Condominium Association represented by MEEB after a bench trial centered around rule enforcement and unauthorized modifications. The Court found that the unit owner “deliberately” violated condominium rules by installing her personal air-conditioning equipment in the building’s common areas without approval.

The Court ordered the owner to remove all unauthorized installations, restore the common areas, and pay more than $65,000 in attorneys’ fees and costs to the Association. The case was tried by MEEB Partner, partner Seth Barnett. After trial, the unit owner paid the judgment in full and removed the HVAC system at her own expense.

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