Florida ROC : Florida Mobile Home & RV Lawyer & Attorney : Scott Gordon : Lutz Bobo Telfair Eastman Gabel & Lee Law Firm : FL Condo & Homeowners Associations

We're only two weeks into 2012 and I've already had the opportunity to make a presentation on conducting elections in community associations for managers and board members on behalf of our local chapter of the Community Associations Institute and speak about the"55 and over" exemption and other Fair Housing issues at this month's meeting of EPROC at the Colony Hills community in Zephyrhills.   EPROC has grown tremendously in the two short years since its formation and this is in large part due to the efforts of Rebecca Gaddis, who recently accepted a new position with the San Antonio Citizens Federal Credit Union.   Since that's San Antonio, Florida (not Texas), and she'll be based out of Zephyrhills, EPROC will continue to benefit from Rebecca's involvement.  It was very encouraging to see so many communities represented at EPROC's January meeting and I'll look forward to returning to their April meeting to moderate a discussion on the various types of community management.

I'm pleased to announce the dates of our next set of seminars for managers and board members in resident owned communities:

• Tuesday, January 31 at Village on the Greens in Bradenton (formerly known as El Rancho Village--we had a great time at their very well attended "name change" celebration on January 5th!)
• Friday, February 3 at Camp Florida Resort in Lake Placid
• Wednesday, February 8 at Bonita Beach Trailer Park in Bonita Springs
• Thursday, February 16, at Sandalwood Park in Venice

We'll be covering a number of topics at these seminars, including the following:

• What every board member and manager should know about buying, selling, and transferring homes in resident owned communities
• Florida-friendly landscaping
• Updating the "55 and over" survey in ROCs

As always, we'll discuss any proposed legislation affecting resident owned communities and leave some time for questions and suggested topics for future seminars.

All of these seminars start at 10 a.m. but many attendees arrive a bit early to enjoy the refreshments and meet and greet attendees from other communities.  We'll aim for ending these seminars between noon and 12:30. 

Please call Karen Midlam or Kathy Sawdo at our office (941-951-1800) or email them at kmidlam@lutzbobo.com or ksawdo@lutzbobo.com to let us know which of these seminars you'll be attending, the number of members from your community that will be attending, and whether you'll need directions to the host community.

There's no charge to attend and enjoy some refreshments and the company of other ROC board members--and pick up some useful information!

I hope to see you at one of these seminars.

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We've got a very busy five or six weeks ahead of us with several chances for managers and board members in resident owned communities to hear from us:

• I'll be speaking about fines and suspending privileges as well as pet issues at the Mid-Florida ROC meeting at the Molokai community in Leesburg on Tuesday morning, November 29th.

Bill Korp and I will be making presentations on elections, budgets, and a number of other topics at our upcoming ROC "roundtables":

• Thursday, December 1, at Horizon Village in N. Fort Myers
• Thursday, December 8, at Venice Isle Estates in Venice
• Thursday, December 15, at Westwinds in Bradenton

Our "roundtables" begin at 10 A.M. and end between noon and 12:30.  These events are great for board members that want to learn and also network with residents from other communities.  Refreshments are served and there's no charge.   If you're interested in attending and haven't already rsvp'd, please email either Kathy Sawdo (ksawdo@lutzbobo.com) or Karen Midlam (kmidlam@lutzbobo.com).  Just let either of them know which one of these "roundtables" you'll be attending, how many will be attending from your community, and whether you'll need directions to the host community.

I'll also be speaking at Tamiami Village in North Fort Myers on the morning of December 21 for the monthly meeting of SWFROC and will be presenting a seminar on the procedures and requirements for the election of directors in ROCs after the January 4 breakfast meeting of the West Florida chapter of the Community Associations Institute.

I hope to see you at one or more of these events.

Have a happy and relaxing Thanksgiving surrounded by friends and family.   Go Gators and Go Blue!

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The very successful and well attended 2nd Annual Dowd, Whitaker & Associates Community  Festival was held in Venice earlier this week.   I was pleased to be one of the presenters at the Festival and had the opportunity to speak to an impressive number of members and managers of resident owned cooperatives throughout southwest Florida.

I covered a number of topics during my presentation but the one that generated the most discussion involved Florida Statute Section 719.303 and in particular the provisions relating to fines and suspension of  use rights for failure to comply with the cooperative documents or the association's reasonable rules.

Here are a few important pieces of information from that presentation:

1.   The authorization to assess fines or suspend use rights or voting rights does not need to be included in the community's governing documents.

2.   Fines cannot exceed $100 per violation or $1000 total but a fine may be assessed on the basis of each day of a continuing violation.

3.   Fines may not become a lien on a unit under this statute.

4.   Fines may not be assessed and use rights may not be suspended unless the unit owner (or, if applicable, the unit's licensee or invitee) is provided with reasonable notice and the opportunity for a hearing before a committee of other unit owners.   If the committee does not agree with the fine or suspension, the fine or suspension can not be imposed.   I do not see any provision in the statute that prevents board members from serving on this committee.

5.     Even if the association's bylaws specifically permit closed committee meetings pursuant to Florida Statute Section 719.106(1)(c), I'd suggest that the safer course of action may be to keep these hearings open to the general members--since the statute clearly provides that the committee's decision not to impose a fine or suspension prevents the board and the association from imposing the fine or suspension, I'm concerned that this committee may be held to "take final action on behalf of the board" and thus not be allowed to hold its hearings behind closed doors.  

The association can also suspend voting and use rights where a member is more than 90 days delinquent in paying any monetary obligation owed to the association.   There's no need for a hearing in these situations and I'll go into further detail in my next blog entry.

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We'll be presenting the last series of this season's ROC seminars during the end of March and the month of April. 

Our first two have been scheduled and here are the dates and locations:

• Wednesday, March 30th at Piney Point in Ellenton
• Friday, April 1st at Lake Bonnet Village in Avon Park

These events will start at 10 a.m. and we usually end around noon.  Two of the topics we'll be covering are "Top Ten Reasons to Update Your Community's Governing Documents" and "Reasonable Accommodations Under the Fair Housing Act".

We'll also provide you with legislative updates (which should be very interesting!) and leave time for our customary "open forum".

As always, attendance is free, as are the refreshments and you'll enjoy meeting and greeting fellow ROC residents.   Please rsvp by emailing Karen Midlam at kmidlam@lutzbobo.com, Kathy Sawdo at ksawdo@lutzbobo.com or me at sgordon@lutzbobo.com.

I'll also be speaking at the Mid-Florida ROC meeting on the morning of April 19th at Country Club Manor in Eustis.  I've had the pleasure of speaking at the most recent meetings of both the ROC Forum (last week at Four Seasons in Largo) and SWFROC (earlier this week at Carriage Village in North Ft. Myers) and also spoke about Advance Care Directives last week at Golf Lakes in Bradenton.  Thanks to all of those communities for their hospitality!

We're finalizing the dates and locations for seminars in Sarasota County and Lee and Collier Counties and I'll post them on the blog next week.

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I know everyone is busy preparing for the holidays but I wanted to post our January seminar schedule:

• Tuesday, January 11, at Spring Creek Village in Bonita Springs
• Monday, January 24,  at Venice Isle Estates in Venice.
• Wednesday, January 26, at Skyway Village in Palmetto

All of these seminars will start at 10 a.m. and will end between noon and 12:30 p.m. 

We'll be discussing requirements and procedures for properly and efficiently conducting meetings, issues involving swimming pools, and any proposed legislation making its way to Tallahassee for the 2011 lawmaking session that may impact resident owned communities in our state.

We'll conclude with our traditional "open forum" for questions and suggestions for future seminar topics.

As always, admission is free, refreshments will be served, and you'll have a great opportunity to mix and mingle with members of other ROCs in your area.

Please email Karen Midlam (kmidlam@lutzbobo.com), Kathy Sawdo (ksawdo@lutzbobo.com) or me (sgordon@lutzbobo.com) if you'd like to attend one of these events.  Just let us know which seminar and the number of residents from your community that will be attending.

I'll also be speaking at the Mid-Florida ROC meeting at Hawthorne  in Leesburg on the morning of Tuesday, January 25.

Our best wishes to you and yours for a very happy and healthy holiday season.   We're looking forward to seeing you in January!

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We've set the date and location of the seminar for the board members and managers of resident owned communities in the Lee, Collier, and Charlotte county area:

• Friday, December 3, at Imperial Bonita Estates in Bonita Springs.

This event will start at 10 a.m. and end around noon.  Just like the other seminars posted in my last blog entry, admission is free and so are the refreshments and opportunities to mix and mingle with fellow ROC members.  

We'll be covering several very interesting topics at our December seminars:

• Updates on dealing with pet and caregiver requests under the Fair Housing and Americans With Disabilities Acts
• Privacy issues facing managers and board members in resident owned communities
• Recent legislative changes to Florida's statutes governing ROCs
• As always, attendees will have time for questions and comments.

Please send an email to Karen Midlam (kmidlam@lutzbobo.com), Kathy Sawdo (ksawdo@lutzbobo.com) or to me (sgordon@lutzbobo.com) if you'd like to attend any of our December seminars.   Let us know which event you'll be attending, the number of attendees from your community, and whether you'll need directions to the seminar.

We hope to see you in December at one of these seminars.

There's a ROC group that 's been formed in East Pasco County (EPROC) and I wanted to post the dates of their upcoming meetings:

• November 19th
• December 10th
• January 14th
• February 11th
• March 11th
• April 8th

If you're a member of a resident-owned community in that area and want more information, please send me an email and I'll point you in the right direction.  The EPROC meetings begin at 9 a.m. and the November meeting is at Betmar Acres.

EPROC is off to a great start and I look forward to speaking at that November 19th meeting.

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We've scheduled three of the four seminars we'll be presenting in December for managers and board members in resident-owned communities. 

Here are the dates and locations:

• Thursday, December 2 at Paradise Bay Estates in Bradenton
• Tuesday, December 7 at Village at Riverwalk in North Port
• Friday, December 10 at Hammock Estates in Sebring

I'll be posting the location of the seminar for our Lee and Collier communities and a brief description of the topics we'll be covering within the next few days.

These events will start at 10 a.m. and run until about noon.    Admission is free and so are the refreshments.  Our seminars are a great opportunity  to meet and discuss common issues with members of other ROCs in the area.

If you'd like to attend, please email me at sgordon@lutzbobo.com, Karen Midlam at kmidlam@lutzbobo.com, or Kathy Sawdo at ksawdo@lutzbobo.com.   Let us know which event you'll be attending, the number of members of your ROC that will be attending with you, and whether you need directions to the host community. 

We'll look forward to seeing you in December!

The Florida Resident Owned Communities website has a very helpful calendar that lists the upcoming meetings of the ROC groups serving Lake, Sumter and Orange Counties (Mid-Florida ROC), Southwest Florida (SWFROC), and Pinellas County (ROC Forum).   I hope you'll find that calendar useful and will bookmark it for future reference.

Enjoy this great weather and we'll see you next month!

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I just wanted to post a quick link to the DBPR's website with the times and locations of the DBPR seminars in Sarasota on the evening of October 18 and in Clearwater on the evening of October 19.

You'll note that the seminar in Sarasota can be accessed online.

Also, don't forget the Community Association Festival in Venice on the mornings of October 19 and October 20.

We'll be posting the dates, times and locations of our first set of this season's ROC seminars within the next two weeks.

Enjoy this great weather--looks like autumn has arrived in Florida!

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It's always a pleasure to welcome a new member into the family of resident owned communities.

On September 15, the resident purchase and conversion of the communities of Country Lakes I and II in Manatee County was completed. 

The proud owner of this 471 site community is Country Lakes Co-op, Inc.  Kudos to the residents that participated in the purchase effort and especially to Marty Pozgay and his Florida Community Services Group for helping the residents realize their dreams of ownership.

The HOA officers received the 45 day notice from the owner of Country Lakes I and II on June 28, 2010.  At that time, about seventy per cent of the homeowners had left those communities for their summer residences and Marty and the remaining thirty per cent were faced with the daunting task of raising six million dollars for an earnest money deposit (to be applied to the total purchase price of 32.2 million dollars) in a very short period of time.  

The blanket loan was provided byBank of America and individual share loans were provided by Patriot Bank andWhitney Bank.

Congratulations to the residents at Country Lakes and to everyone that helped Country Lake Co-op, Inc. become the newest ROC in Florida!

Those of you in the Sarasota, Manatee, and De Soto County area, please don't forget to rsyp for the upcoming Dowd Whittaker Community Association Festival on either October 19 or October 20.   John Dowd promises a morning of education and fun for all and I'll be one of the speakers--plus you'll get to see me in one of my flashiest Hawaiian shirts.

See you there!

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I just read two articles in the New York Times that I wanted to bring to the attention of the followers of my blog.

• It's no surprise to anyone that Florida has been one of the states most heavily impacted by the foreclosure crisis.  The number of foreclosures continues to grow daily and our court system is struggling to find an answer to the increasing backlog of cases.   Gretchen Morgenson's and Geraldine Fabrikant's piece in the Business Day section of the September 4, 2010 of the Times is entitled "Florida's High-Speed Answer to a Foreclosure Mess" and paints a very distressing picture of the challenges we face in finding solutions to the problems created by the onslaught of foreclosure actions.   I think you'll find this a very eye-opening read.
• There's a battle being fought in a resident-owned community in Arizona over a flag that a homeowner (a former board member!!) is flying on his roof.  It's a yellow 'Don't Tread on Me" banner that (coincidentally?) has been adopted by the current "Tea Party" movement.    Marc Lacey's piece appears in the August 30, 2010 edition of the Times and is entitled "Homeowner's Fight Involves Flag Tied to Tea Party".   I recommend this piece for all members of ROCs who might otherwise think that these disputes occur only in our fair state.

I'll be speaking at the First Annual Dowd, Whittaker & Associates Community Associates Community Association Festival at the Venice Community Center.   All Board members and managers of ROCs are invited to attend from 9 a.m. to noon on either October 19th or October 20th.   The event is free to all and there will be prizes, food, drinks and music.   The suggested attire is "your tackiest Hawaiian shirt."    You'll find the link to register for the event right here:  http://events.r20.constantcontact.com/register/event?oeidk=a07e30dxr1rce2238b3&llr=vdb8x9dab

I hope everyone had a safe and restful Labor Day weekend and that the rest of the hurricane season remains quiet in our neck of the woods.   I'll look forward to seeing many of you (in your most colorful Aloha shirts) at Venice Community Center on either October 19 or October 20!

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While we're waiting for the next tropical system to form in the Atlantic (and as all Floridians know, hurricane season is just getting started), I thought I'd suggest a few articles for your reading pleasure:

• In today's Sarasota Herald Tribune, a very interesting story on how several law firms in the state that have been characterized as "foreclosure mills" have drawn the attention of Florida's current attorney general.
• An article from several weeks ago in the Herald Tribune about the attempts of owners of boats anchored in Sarasota Bay to create a "homeowners association".
• A very interesting column by Tom Lyons in the Herald Tribune about some real problems created by the revisions to the Florida Statutes that allow community associations to collect rent directly from a person renting a home or unit from an association member that is delinquent in his or her assessments, dues, and/or maintenance fees.  Mr. Lyons followed this column with an equally thought provoking entry in his blog--and the questions raised in both the column and the blog remain for the most part unanswered.

Finally, the August 2010 issue of the Florida Community Association Journal focuses on budgeting and financial issues and provides a wealth of helpful material for ROC managers and board members.  The articles may not be posted online yet but they are all well worth reading.

We'll be scheduling our first set of seminars for resident-owned communities for the 2010-2011 season in the next few weeks and will post that information on the blog.  In the meantime, I hope you enjoy your summer reading assignments!

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The last of our second series of seminars for the season is set for February 24th at Caribbean Isles in Apollo Beach.  We'll be starting our last set of presentations less than two weeks from now.

Here are the dates and locations of these upcoming seminars:

• Wednesday, March 3, at Japanese Gardens in Venice
• Tuesday, March 9, at Harbor Oaks in Fruitland Park in Lake County
• Tuesday, March 23, at Golf Lakes in Bradenton
• Thursday, April 1, at Enchanting Shores in Naples 

We'll be covering a number of very interesting topics, including a mini-orientation for ROC board members and a discussion of financial opportunities for ROCs in this challenging economy.  Current cases and pending legislation will be covered, including any additional information we've gathered on House Bill 419 and companion Senate Bill 864  that appear to be on the agenda of Florida's legislature during its upcoming session.  As always, we'll try to provide ample time for a general "question and answer" session.   The seminars will be begin at 10 a.m. and we should be finished by 12:30 pm at the latest.

Refreshments will be served, and there's no charge to attend.  If members of your community would like to attend any of these seminars, please rsvp by emailing either Kathy Sawdo at ksawdo@lutzbobo.com or Karen Midlam at kmidlam@lutzbobo.com.  Just let them know which seminar you'd like to attend, the name of your community and the number of residents from your community that will be attending, and whether you'll need directions to the host community.   We like to give each of our host communities a "head count" of attendees a few days prior to the seminar that community is hosting so, if at all possible, please rsvp at least a few days before the event you're planning to attend.

We hope to see you at one of these events.

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I just returned from a brief trip to Memphis, Tennessee and visited the National Civil Rights Museum, which is located at the site of the murder of the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.  The museum has incorporated much of the Lorraine Hotel (including the room in which Dr. King stayed and the balcony outside that room where he was killed) as well as the apartment across the street from the hotel where James Earl Ray aimed and fired from a bathroom window and took Dr. King's life.   I recall the exact moment when I learned of Dr. King's death and to be able to view the site of his assassination in an "up close and personal" manner was an extremely powerful experience for me.   I highly recommend a visit to the museum if you are in the Memphis area and suggest that you view the short movie at the museum called "The Witness" before beginning to tour the exhibits.

As I made my way through the museum, I was reminded that many of the freedoms we take for granted today are the result of great sacrifices and courageous efforts by Americans of all colors and beliefs.   I couldn't help but marvel that less than fifty years ago, Dr. King was gunned down simply because many of his fellow countrymen could not accept the fact that all Americans were entitled to certain basic rights.   The fact that many of the injustices that Dr. King sought to overcome have been remedied speaks volumes to his legacy and to the laws that our federal and local legislators have enacted during the past five decades.

My visit to the museum reminded me about the direct connection between the Civil Rights laws and the Fair Housing and Disability laws that often create divisive problems for board members and other residents in the communities we work with.   Those Fair Housing and Disability laws built upon the earlier Civil Rights laws and extend rights of equality to which all Americans are entitled.  The underlying philosophy of all of these laws is simply that no American should be deprived of certain opportunities, whether in employment, or voting, or obtaining housing, simply because of his or her color or religion or disability.   Unless our legislators carve out an exception (such as the Housing for Older Persons Act), it's that underlying philosophy that should guide ROC board members.

Some forty-two years after Dr. King's death, it's an important lesson for all of us to remember.

Thanks to our friends at Francis I in Sebring for hosting last week's well-attended seminar.  We'll be at Windward Isles in Sarasota and Marco Shores in Naples this week and at Caribbean Isles in Apollo Beach during the last week in February.  If you'd like to attend one of these free seminars and haven't yet rsvp'd, please contact either Karen Midlam at kmidlam@lutzbobo.com or Kathy Sawdo at ksawdo@lutzbobo.com.  I hope to see you at one of these events.

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The dates and locations for the resident-owned community seminars we'll be conducting in February are now set.   We'll discuss helpful hints for conducting annual membership meetings and other unit owner meetings and will also provide some insights into the importance of screening potential owners, occupants, and guests in your communities.   We'll also leave time for our traditional "open forum" to answer general questions from the attendees.

Our first series of ROC seminars for this season were very well attended with lots of participation from our attendees.   We expect an even greater turnout for these upcoming events.   As always, there's no charge to attend and the refreshments are also provided free of charge.  The dates and locations of our February presentations are:

• Monday, February 1 at Francis I Mobile Estates in Sebring
• Wednesday, February 10 at Windward Isle in Sarasota
• Thursday, February 11at Marco Shores in Naples
• Wednesday, February 24 at Caribbean Isles in Apollo Beach

All of these seminars will be held in the clubhouses of our host communities and will start at 10 a.m.   We expect to wrap up the seminars by 12:30 p.m. at the latest.

Please call my assistants, Karen Midlam or Kathy Sawdo at 941-951-1800 or email them at kmidlam@lutzbobo.com or ksawdo@lutzbobo.com if you are interested in attending and provide them with the following information:

• The event your community wishes to attend
• The number of attendees from your community
• Whether you will need directions to the seminar

Our seminars are always a great opportunity to network with residents at other resident owned communities.   We hope to see you at one of these events.

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Last Sunday's edition of the Sarasota Herald Tribune featured two separate front page articles that highlight the decisions that helped lead us into our current economic mess and threaten to keep our economy from recovering in the near future.

• The first article focuses on a condominium project in Charlotte that finds most of its units "occupied" by "phantom purchasers" from Brazil who have not paid their maintenance fees and have left the few purchasers that actually live in the development facing substantial monthly expenses for the upkeep of the common areas.  While this is a lengthy report, I highly recommend it to members of resident owned communities.
• The other article detailed the failure and refusal of many of our major financial institutions to make loans to small businesses and homeowners in spite of the clear message sent to these institutions by our President and Congress.   In its own way, this article is as depressing and maddening as the first.

I'd also like to recommend L. Jon Wertheim's story in the most recent issue of Sports Illustrated.  It's entitled "The Games of Their Lives" and it describes the efforts of two athletes to fulfill a final dream--to compete in the Beijing Paralympics.   This bittersweet but uplifting depiction of the triumph of the human spirit and the tremendous support given to these two champions (in many cases, by total strangers) gave me a very helpful dose of perspective during this time of the year.

As many of you know, we've just completed our first set of seminars for the 2009-2010 season.   Thanks to the over 200 residents from almost 55 different communities throughout the state for attending and to our hosts at Molokai in Leesburg, Old Bridge Village in N. Fort Myers, Sandalwood Park in Venice, and Westwinds Village in Bradenton for their great hospitality.   We'll be posting the dates and locations for our next set of seminars within the next few weeks.   We hope to see you at one of those events!

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Given my most recent entry about the difficult decisions that ROC boards are facing due to the struggling state of our economy, I hope you'll find this article about the Red Hat Society that I read in  today's Sarasota Herald-Tribune interesting.   It seems all of my visits to the communities we represent coincide with some Red Hat Society event and I have a feeling that many readers of my blog may already know about the debate over whether dues should be charged to every "Red Hatter".  

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Our first set of ROC seminars for the 2009-2010 "season" have been scheduled.   We'll discuss how the new "Red Flag" identity protection rules will affect resident owned communities, cover election procedures and the differences between ballots and proxies, provide some updates on developments in the Fair Housing area and recent court cases and highlight proposed legislation that may impact community associations.   In addition to that rather full agenda, as always, we'll devote some time to an "open forum" for questions from our attendees. 

The seminars are scheduled as follows:

• Tuesday, November 17, 2009 at the Molokai community in Leesburg.
• Wednesday, November 18, 2009 at Sandalwood Park in Venice.
• Thursday, December 3, 2009 at Old Bridge Village in North Fort Myers.
• Thursday, December 10, 2009 at Westwinds Village in Bradenton.

The seminars start at 10 a.m. and end at 12:30 p.m. and all of the seminars will be held in the clubhouse at each of these communities.  We plan on covering the same topics at each of these locations so you can choose the date and location that's most convenient.

While the seminars are free of charge to all attendees, because we do serve refreshments and want to make sure that there is enough seating and space for everyone,  please notify us in advance if you wish to attend.   Also, please note that the seminar at Molokai is being held in conjunction with the monthly meeting of the Mid-Florida ROC group and if your community is located in or near Lake or Sumter County and is not yet a member of that group, please let us know when you make your reservation and we'll provide you with the contact information for one of the Mid-Florida ROC officers.

If you are interested in attending one of these seminars and your community hasn't already reserved seats, please email either Karen Midlam (kmidlam@lutzbobo.com) or Kathy Sawdo (ksawdo@lutzbobo.com).  They'll be able to provide you with directions and answer any other questions you might have.

We're looking forward to seeing you at one of these seminars and if you have any topics you'd like to have us discuss at future seminars, please email me at sgordon@lutzbobo.com.

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I'm writing this entry from Ft. Lauderdale, where I am attending the Institute on Condominium and Cluster Developments presented by the University of Miami School of Law.   This two day seminar has provided me with a wealth of material for future entries to this blog and has allowed me to spend some time learning and meeting with many of my fellow community association attorneys throughout Florida.   A colleague from our Tallahassee office, Karl Scheuerman, spoke at one of yesterday's sessions on the many issues facing "subsequent developers" of condominiums and other community developments.  Hopefully, these are issues that your community or association will never have to face.  

Karl and I attended the dinner meeting of the Florida Bar's Condominium and Planned Development Committee (which is part of the Bar's Real Property Probate and Trust Law Section) that was held at the end of yesterday's presentations.    Again, this event gave me the opportunity to discuss with a number of my colleagues problems facing ROCs and potential solutions to those problems.

As my blog followers know, I also attended the convention of the Florida Manufactured Housing Association at the Saddlebrook Resort north of Tampa earlier this month.   This annual event gives the members of our firm that work with the owners of manufactured housing communities the opportunity to network with those owners and many of the companies that provide important services to those communities.    A number of my colleagues from our firm, including Allen Bobo, Jody Gabel, Richard Lee, David Eastman, Karl Scheuerman, Carol Grondzik and I made presentations to convention attendees on a variety of topics, including:

• Evictions
• Fair Housing Issues
• Dealing with Abandoned Mobile Homes
• How to amend rental prospectuses

It was clear from our experiences at the FMHA convention that the current state of our economy has created an environment that is extremely challenging for community owners, whether they be private investors or ROCs. 

The FMHA is well aware of the importance of resident owned manufactured housing communities in Florida and will be making a concerted effort to encourage these communities to join FMHA and to participate in its activities.  I've always felt that the FMHA and the community associations that own and operate manufactured housing communities have many common interests and will be posting details on the FMHA's increased efforts to bring more ROCs into its organization in the future.

 I'll be posting the dates, locations, and topics of our upcoming November and December seminars next week.

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Several weeks ago I mentioned the educational opportunities offered at the upcoming annual convention of the Florida Manufactured Housing Association at the Saddlebrook Resort just north of Tampa on October 7 and 8.  

I received a memo earlier this week from the FMHA about a "Round Table Discussion" that will be held at the convention at approximately 3:15 p.m. on October 8.   This discussion is entitled "What Works to Fill Homesite Vacancies?" and will cover a variety of methods and ideas that can be used to help communities find prospective residents.

Given today's economic climate, this is a very timely and important subject for ROC managers and board members.   Please note that this "Round Table Discussion" is open to all FMHA members and if you have questions and want to attend the convention please contact the FMHA at info@fmha.org.

Speaking of "Roundtables," I am in the process of  scheduling our first set of seminars for the "season" to be held in November and December.    We try to have several "roundtable" seminars each year in communities that are located in the geographical areas that we serve and if your community would be interested in hosting one of these events, please contact me.  

As always, we welcome your input in helping us plan the topics for these educational seminars--so if you have any subjects, questions, or issues that you'd like us to cover, please let me know. 

I'll post the dates, times, and locations of our November and December seminars in the near future.

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The Florida Manufactured Housing Association's annual convention is scheduled for October 7th and 8th at the Saddlebrook Resort in Wesley Chapel, Florida, which is just north of Tampa.

Our firm sponsors the welcome reception on the evening of October 7th. This reception is a great way to network with managers and board members from other resident owned manufactured housing ROCs as well as investor owned communities.

The schedule of events for October 8th promises a full day of information that should be very useful to every manufactured housing community.   Topics that will be covered include evictions, Fair Housing,  how to comply with the provisions of Florida's landlord-tenant laws for manufactured housing communities, and how to deal with vacant homes.  An "Ask the Lawyers" session is also scheduled and I know from experience that the attendees always find this session entertainng and well worthwhile.

The FMHA wants ROCs to take advantage of this great educational opportunity and I've offered to help spread the word about this exciting event.   You'll find the links to the information about the annual convention at the FMHA's website.  

I hope you'll consider attending the convention and look forward to seeing you there.

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I've found a few more websites that ROCs, especially resident owned mobile home and RV communities, might want to visit.

• A county by county directory of Florida ROC websites can be found at Michael Freeman's website.  Please take a look at his site and if your community's website is not on the list, email him with your ROC's website address.
• About 50 ROCs in the Pinellas County area have established a "ROC forum" and their website describes the forum and lists member communities.  This website also has  contact email addresses for some of the other regional ROC groups in Florida.   Some of those groups, such as Mid-Florida ROC (in the Lake and Sumter County area) and LEEROC (which has expanded from Lee County into other counties in Southwest Florida and has been renamed SWFLROC), are very active and you might want to contact one of those groups if your ROC is located in or near an area served by one of these groups.  

I'll continue to post websites that may be of interest to ROCs and if you have any sites that might fall into this category, please send them to me.

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