Budget Season 2021-22: New Factors to Consider Post Pandemic and Post Tragedy
Preparing an annual budget is by no means an easy task. Those charged with preparing condominium or HOA budgets will soon begin reviewing costs, gathering data and projecting expenses for the coming year. A well-defined, well-written budget is a powerful financial tool allowing funds to be saved and/or allocated for specific costs and projects; budgeting […]
Anticipating the Costs of a 40-Year Recertification
While it’s relatively easy to find a lot of information online to help you understand what a 40-year recertification is, it is much harder to find information about the cost of an inspection. The best way to find out how much a 40-Year Recertification will cost is to – of course – call around and get multiple […]
Tapping Reserves in a Time of Financial Hardship or Uncertainty
It’s a question we’re asked all the time: “Can we use reserves to cover an operating fund shortfall?” Under normal circumstances, our standard response would be an emphatic “No!” — because reserves are for major repair and replacement projects. But now, in a time of (inter)national crisis, reserves may play a valuable additional role at […]
Property Insurance Basics: What Boards Need to Know
Property insurance, by definition, is a guarantee of compensation for a specific loss or damage to physical property or equipment. Within that broad and simplified explanation there is room for multiple interpretations—and more than enough confusion to go around. An all-volunteer condo or co-op board of directors may be intimidated just thinking about what constitutes […]
Hosting Virtual Meetings via Zoom | What You Need to Know
Contributing Author: Jeffrey A. Rembaum, Esq., BCS, Kaye Bender Rembaum The most asked question of 2020 is this: Can our association host our board and annual meetings using Zoom or another similar virtual/electronic platform? There is no doubt that technology will always advance faster than legislation. In fact, advances in technology seem to take place […]
Four Tips to Neutralize Discrimination in a Community
This topic is not intended to be provocative. It is unfortunate that Boards not only have to deal with unruly behavior, but that they also have to – from time to time – deal with racism and discriminatory behavior, too. Here are five suggestions for stopping such behavior, curated from interviews with several attorneys, managers […]
Dealing with the Liability of ‘Difficult’ Residents
Bad neighbors are something that everyone living with shared walls fears—and not without cause; co-op or condo, small or large, chances are there’s at least one chronically objectionable person who seems to do his or her level best to annoy, thwart, and agitate his or her neighbors, and otherwise disrupt the peaceful functioning of the […]
Condominium Owners Get Access to Association Records
Florida’s Condominium Act goes a long way to ensure transparency in governance and operation of a condominium association. The earliest version of the Act required associations maintain accounting records in accordance with good accounting practices. Associations were not only required to “balance the books,” but also to keep copies of invoices, receipts and similar documents. […]
Understanding How Your Condominium Insurance Works—The Individual vs Master Policy Coverages
A condominium can be defined as a single real estate unit in a multi-unit development in which a person has both separate ownership of a unit and a common interest, along with the development’s other owners, in the common areas. Insuring your condominium is often not so easy, especially since it usually requires that you […]
Golf Carts and Your Community
Golf Carts, in addition to the obvious use on the golf course, are increasingly being used for short-distance trips in communities as an alternative to the family car, for example, carrying children and pets from home to the club house or recreation center. Golf Carts share an Association’s common element roads with other motor vehicles, […]
Distinguishing between Statutory and Non-Statutory Reserves under the Florida Homeowners’ Association Act
Considering the fiduciary responsibilities officers and directors have to the homeowners’ association’s members, it is important to understand not only the importance of including reserve accounts in an association’s budget, but also to understand when reserve funding is mandatory under the Florida Homeowners’ Association Act. Unlike condominium associations, maintaining fully funded reserve accounts is not […]
CAI Civility Pledge Can Help Promote Harmonious, Respectful Living in Communities with Associations
The contentious presidential election and political divisiveness of the months leading up to it – that is now continuing beyond the election – caused the Community Associations Institute, the leading organization which represents the interests of communities with associations, to issue an important reminder. In its blogs and emails, CAI recently appealed to communities to […]