I was born over a decade after the "day that will live in infamy" but it’s still hard to believe that seventy years have passed since the attack on Pearl Harbor.  

I’ve been to Hawaii twice and on both occasions (once with my then young children) have visited the Memorial.   The power and emotional impact of the Memorial and its surroundings cannot be described.   Sites such as Pearl Harbor and the beaches at Normandy instruct all of us in ways that mere words cannot about the sacrifices made by countless young men and women to protect the freedoms we all too often take for granted.

I’ve opened my most recent seminars with a summary of a very unsettling story that recently appeared on "Sixty Minutes" about families that were forced to live in cars and trucks because they could not afford any other type of shelter.   That the families featured in this report lived in the Orlando area was even more distressing.

I’ll have yet another upsetting article to discuss at this month’s remaining seminars:  a report that over 4,500 homes owned by members of our military may have been illegally foreclosed.   I hope that this story does not get buried and becomes a primary concern of our legislators and the agencies that we entrust to protect the rights of those that serve to defend our liberty.  

Jody Gabel and I have filed numerous eviction or foreclosure actions for the community association we represent and have always taken great care to follow the provisions of the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act.    That includes verifying whether or not the homeowners against whom eviction or foreclosure is being sought are currently serving in our military.

Our country’s Supreme Court has stated that this Act must be read with "an eye friendly to those who dropped their affairs to answer their country’s call."

Given the tremendous price that our servicemen and women pay every day on our behalf and the growing number of homeless families in our country, ensuring that the homes of our fellow citizens serving in the military are protected from wrongful foreclosures and evictions seems to be the least that we can do.  

I hope to see many of you at our seminar tomorrow at Venice Isle Estates, next Wednesday at Westwinds in Bradenton, or at my presentation at the SWFROC meeting at Tamiami Village in North Fort Myers on December 21.

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":

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!

 

Every ROC has at least one "gadfly"–that owner who has decided, for whatever reason, to devote every waking minute to creating as much misery as possible for the manager, the board, and the other members of the community.   We consider a community lucky if it’s home to only one of these cantankerous creatures.

What happens when that "gadfly" decides to run for the community association’s board of directors?

Let’s assume that this"gadfly" is a unit owner in a condominium or cooperative association.   He (or she) meets all of the statutory qualifications (and there are more conditions for candidates for the board in condominiums than there are in cooperatives) and gives the association written notice of the intention to be a candidate at least 40 days before the election.

Our "gadfly" then begins campaigning by going door to door, handing out flyers, making phone calls and sending all kinds of political advertisements to other unit owners by mail and email. 

In addition, the "candidate information sheet" that the "gadfly" submits to the association not less than 35 days before the election doesn’t contain any information about the "gadfly’s" background, education, and qualifications.  Instead, the "gadfly" has filled the entire 8 1/2 inch by 11 inch sheet with factually incorrect statements about the current board members, false accusations against the community’s manager, and campaign promises that the "gadfly" clearly will not be able to keep even if he or she is elected. 

Can the association prevent the "gadfly" from campaigning?

  • There are no provisions in the Florida Statutes or Florida Administrative Code sections governing the election process in condominium or cooperative  associations that prevent a candidate from campaigning.   Assuming that the gadfly has not improperly obtained the email addresses and phone numbers of the other unit owners, the association is well advised to simply allow the gadfly to campaign.

Can the association edit the "gadfly’s" candidate information sheet or tell the "gadfly" that the information sheet won’t be included in the election materials unless the "gadfly" submits a revised sheet that contains only the "gadfly’s" background, education, and qualifications?

  • The Florida Administrative Code Sections governing these information sheets in both condominium and cooperative association elections are clear that these sheets may describe the candidate’s background, education, and qualifications as well as other factors deemed relevant by the candidate.
  • In addition, Florida’s statutes provide that condominium associations and cooperative associations are not liable for the contents of the information sheets provided by the candidates.
  • Finally, the Election Brochures developed by Florida’s Division of Condominiums, Timeshares, and Mobile Homes for both condominium and cooperative associations caution that "an association may not edit, alter, or otherwise modify the content of the information sheet".

In other words, ROC managers and board members have to assume that the "gadfly’s" fellow unit owners will approach the election of the association’s board members in an intelligent and responsible fashion–regardless of the outcome of that election. 

We’ve got several seminars and presentations scheduled for late November and the month of December and I’ll post that information in my next entry.

As many of my readers know, while my wife and children graduated from the University of Florida, I graduated from the University of Michigan and received my law degree from Ohio State.   I was born and raised on Big Ten football and bleed maize and blue (to the dismay of my Buckeye friends and family).

Penn State joined the Big Ten about twenty years ago and there have been many memorable games between the Nittany Lions and my beloved Wolverines–while the players changed, and other coaches left the profession, Joe Paterno remained as the symbol of Penn State.  In many ways, he was regarded as the shining example of all that was and is good about big-time college athletics.

I spent part of last night reading (with shock and outrage) all 23 pages of the grand jury report that resulted in the charges against Jerry Sandusky, a former defensive coordinator under Paterno at Penn State, as well as  the university’s athletic director and the school’s vice president for finance and business.   I will not post the link to that report as it is both graphic and horrifying in detailing how Sandusky allegedly abused at least 8 young boys and how Penn State’s administrators allegedly allowed this abuse to occur.

Earlier this afternoon, Joe Paterno issued a statement that he would be retiring at the end of this football season.

My partner, Jody Gabel, and I, find ourselves more and more frequently helping communities struggle with the very real concerns raised by sexual offenders or predators. It’s certainly understandable that many residents feel threatened when they discover that there is a sexual offender or predator in their midst.

Here are a few thoughts and suggestions that may be helpful:

  • Screening of prospective residents is absolutely essential.  The best way to deal with a sexual predator is before he or she becomes a resident in the community.  I advise ROCs we represent  to screen any person that intends on occupying a home in the community for any period of time greater than one month.   Once the predator or sexual offender moves into the community, the amount of time, effort, and expense involved in trying to remove him or her will be substantial, and there’s no guarantee that the offender or predator will be required to move.   We also suggest that our clients use a professional screening company for all residency applications–there are a number of very good companies that focus on this very important task.
  • While a community may have to allow a resident to have a caregiver as a "reasonable accommodation" under the Fair Housing Act, the community should insist that the proposed caregiver undergo screening.   The last thing a ROC manager or board wants to deal with is a "caregiver" who is a convicted sexual predator.

When it’s discovered that a person who already lives in the community has a record of being either a sexual predator or sexual offender, a number of factors must be considered:

Did the offender/predator lie or withhold information on the application for residency?

Did the offender/predator become a resident before the community’s rules (if any) requiring screening and/or approval of the association to the residency went into effect?

Was the resident convicted of the offense after he or she moved into the community?

How long ago did the offense occur and what’s the nature of the offense?   There’s certainly a difference between a resident who was convicted 40 years ago (when he was 19)  of having improper relations (and thus may be a registered offender) with his 17 year old girl friend (who happens to be his wife of 39 years) and the 56 year old resident who has been convicted of being a sexual predator on several occasions in the last decade.

I have always advised against posting information about a resident’s real or alleged record as a sexual offender or predator.   Errors can be made and neither the residents in the community nor the association itself is well served by spreading information that turns out to be misleading or false.   The better course of action is to simply post a notice in the community clubhouse or other public area advising that anyone that wishes to determine whether any registered sexual predators or offenders live in or near the community can do so by visiting Florida’s Sexual Offenders and Predators  Website.

And, as always, when in doubt, contact legal counsel.  These are extremely difficult issues and the association’s attorney can help the community navigate these very troubled waters.

I’m updating this entry while watching the press conference conducted by a member of Penn State’s Board of Trustees where Joe Paterno’s firing has just been announced.   What a nightmarish end to his tenure and a unfathomable taint on his legacy.

 

My last blog entry discussed the rights of an association to assess fines and suspend rights to use facilities in a resident owned cooperative as provided in Florida Statute Section 719.303(3).   Both condominium associations (under F.S. Section 718.303(3)) and mandatory homeowners’ associations (under F.S. Section 720.305(2)) have similar enforcement tools where a unit owner or parcel owner (or that owner’s licensee, invitee or other occupant of the home) fails to follow the association’s documents or the reasonable rules governing the community.

What about members of condominium, cooperative, or mandatory homeowners’ associations that fail to fulfill their financial obligations to the community?

Board members in condominium associations can look to F.S. Section 718.303(4)-(6), co-op board members can rely on F.S. Section 719.303(4)-(6), and board members in mandatory homeowners’  associations have available to them F.S. Section 720.305(3)-(5).   Each of these statutes provides that, if a unit owner or parcel owner is more than 90 days delinquent in paying a monetary obligation due to the association, the board may suspend the right of that owner to use common elements, common facilities, or any other association property until the monetary obligation is paid in full.   There are several additional points that are very important in regards to the suspension of these use rights:

  • The suspension applies to both the owner and the unit or parcel’s tenant, licensee, invitee, or other occupant of the home
  • In general, the right to use limited common elements used only by that unit or parcel, common elements needed to access that unit or parcel, utility services provided to that unit or parcel,  parking spaces, or elevators cannot be suspended under these provisions of the statutes

In addition, if an owner is more than 90 days delinquent in the payment of any monetary obligation  due to the association, the voting rights attributable to that owner or the unit may be suspended, until such time as there is full payment of all obligations currently due or overdue the association.

The suspension of these use and voting rights for failure to timely pay amounts owed to the association may be imposed without the hearing provided for where fines or suspension of use rights are being imposed for failure to abide by the association’s governing documents or the community’s reasonable rules.  All that’s required is a properly noticed board meeting (and of course an agenda that clearly notes that the board is going to consider the suspension of the use and/or voting rights) and, once the suspension is approved, notification to the owner (and, if applicable, the occupant, licensee, invitee, or tenant) of the suspension by mail or hand delivery.

These suspensions can occur if an owner fails to pay "any monetary obligation"–not just maintenance fees or other regular assessments, and the notice of the suspension does not appear to have to sent by certified or registered mail.

Clearly, Florida’s legislators have given managers and board members in ROCs some ammunition in the ongoing struggle for our communities to maintain financial health.

 

 

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.

 

 

 

 

Since we’ve just recently observed Labor Day and President Obama’s "Jobs Plan" continues to make headlines, I thought I’d discuss three situations involving ROC employees that are all too common and can create some major problems for resident owned communities:

  • Quite often,one or more of the association’s employees is performing work "on the side" for residents in the community.   Even if the employee is truly doing this private work "after hours," what happens if the employee injures himself or others, or is accused of stealing from one of those residents, or does a lousy job and causes damage to the resident’s home. What if the employee has used the association’s tools or equipment (or one of the association’s vehicles) while doing this "off the clock" work?  Allowing an employee to perform work "on the side" for residents in the community creates an absolute "no win" situation for the association–the association receives no benefit whatsoever from allowing its employees to perform "after hours" work for residents in the community and at the same time subjects itself to all types of potential liability that may or may not be covered by the association’s insurer.  A resident who suffers property damage or injury because of the actions of the association’s employee will be looking for a "deep pocket"–and I can almost guarantee my blog readers that the employee’s pocket is not nearly as "deep" as the association’s.
  • It’s never easy to discipline or terminate an employee.   When that employee is a resident in the community, what is already difficult becomes much more so–and runs the risk of dividing the community.   In many of these situations, the terminated employee (as well as his family, friends and neighbors) will spend a good deal of time and energy attempting to discredit the board of directors and the manager in an attempt to regain his job.   The fact that the employee was unable or unwilling to fulfill his job responsibilities is almost always overlooked in the emotional frenzy that infects the community.
  • Do I even need to explain why allowing a member of the association’s board of directors to be employed by the community is a prescription for potential turmoil and additional levels of association liability?   I doubt that any ROC board member would feel comfortable voting to terminate the person in charge of (for example) maintenance for the community– and who also happened to be the association’s President or another board member.

Just a few things to keep in mind as we’ll be in our busy season before we know it!

Enjoy these first few weeks of college football.  As a Michigan alum, I sure am!

Lindsay S. Smith, an attorney in the Denver office of Winzenburg, Leff, Purvis and Payne, recently posted a great entry on her firm’s Colorado Home Owners Association Law blog.  As you’ll see from her article, Florida ROCs aren’t the only ones with residents that take it upon themselves to "befriend" and feed wild animals–in this case,stray and feral cats.  Unfortunately for the homeowners in this particular community, its association had allowed the resident to feed these feral cats for a number of years before filing a lawsuit against that resident–and, because of the association’s delay in taking action, the court held that the association could not stop the offending homeowner from continuing to feed these animals.

I read Ms. Smith’s entry several days before my colleague Bill Korp and I had lunch with the managers of two of the ROCs we represent in southwest Florida.  I was thinking about her article when I asked the managers whether there were any problems with wild animals in their communities. 

Each manager had a tale to tell:

  • Muscovy Ducks had made themselves at home in one manager’s community in Lee County and the members of this ROC were struggling with how best to deal with these feathered interlopers.  I did some internet research when I returned to the office and found that Lee County has a web page devoted to Muscovies.   I would not be surprised if at least a few other counties in our state have similar websites.
  • Ducks are one thing–but the black bear that was captured in the other manager’s community in East Naples was quite another.  It’s worth following this link to read the news article (which has a picture of the bear).   The story doesn’t end with the bear’s removal from the community.   The manager told us that, even though the bear was relocated to a state park, it made its way back to his community.  The bear was last seen in this ROC in late July and has obviously caused more than a bit of unwelcome excitement for this manager and the homeowners.

As if managers and board members needed any more reasons to tell homeowners and their guests:  "Please, don’t feed the animals!"

Let’s hope that wild beasts and hurricanes stay far away from our ROCs this year!

 

 

 

My most recent entry summarized the some of the changes made by House Bill 1195 (which became effective on July 1 of this year) to several provisions of the laws governing cooperative associations in Florida.

House Bill 1195 created three new subsections to Florida Statute Section 719.303 that have the effect of extending to cooperative associations the same enforcement tools that have been given to condominium associations and mandatory homeowners associations in our state.

New Florida Statute Section 719.303(4) allows the association to suspend the right of a unit owner or that owner’s occupant, licensee, or invitee to use common elements, common facilities, or any other association property until a monetary obligation is paid in full, subject to the following conditions:

  • The unit owner must be more than 90 days delinquent in paying that monetary obligation
  • The right to use limited common elements intended to be used only by that unit, common elements needed to access that unit, utility services provided to the unit, parking spaces, or elevators cannot be suspended under F.S. Section 719.303(4)

Cooperative associations are given the right to suspend the voting rights of a unit or member under  Florida Statute Section 719.303(5).   This new subsection provides that:

  • The suspension is based on nonpayment of any monetary obligation due to the association which is more than 90 days delinquent
  • A voting interest or consent right which has been suspended may not be counted towards the total number of voting interests for any purpose, including, but not limited to, the number of voting interests needed to establish a quorum, the number of voting interests required to conduct an election, or the number of voting interests needed to approve an action under Chapter 719 or the association’s governing documents
  • The suspension ends upon payment in full of all obligations currently due or overdue to the association

The suspensions imposed under these to new subsections are not subject to the notice and hearing requirements of F.S. Section 719.303(3).  Instead, the following requirements are provided in new Florida Statute Section 719.303(6):

  • The suspensions must be approved by the association’s board of directors at a properly noticed board meeting
  • Upon approval, the association must notify the unit owner, and, if applicable, the unit’s occupant, licensee, or invitee of the suspension by mail or hand delivery.

It will be interesting to see whether these new provisions encourage unit owners to pay amounts owed to cooperative associations.  I’ll look forward to hearing from my blog followers that are members of cooperatives about this in the coming months.

 

 

 

On June 21, Florida’s Governor approved House Bill 1195.  The provisions contained in this legislation became effective on July 1, 2011.

HB 1195 was considered by many to be a "glitch bill" aimed a correcting oversights in laws passed in recent sessions of Florida’s legislature.  However, HB 1195 does not expand the categories of "protected official records" in Florida Statute Section 719.104 to match those that were included in the 2010 amendments to F.S. Section 718.111(12)(c) and F.S. Section 720.303(5).   For whatever the reason, certain documents that are clearly "off limits" to unit owners in condominium associations and mandatory homeowners associations will continue to be accessible to a unit owner in a cooperative association that makes a proper request to inspect and copy them.  I’ve covered this topic in a previous entry in this blog and it’s clear that cooperative associations have another year of uncertainty in dealing with requests to inspect and copy these "sensitive" official records.

However, HB 1195 did amend Florida Statute Section 719.303(3) to provide that::

  • A cooperative association may now levy reasonable fines for the failure of the occupant of a unit (even if that occupant is not the unit owner) to comply with the association’s "reasonable"  rules or any provision of the documents governing the cooperative.   The fine may not become a lien on the unit, may be levied on the basis of each day of a "continuing violation," and cannot exceed $100 per violation or $1000 total.
  • In addition, a cooperative association can now suspend, for a reasonable period of time, the right of a unit owner, or unit owner’s tenant, guest, or invitee, to use the common elements, common facilities, or any other association property for failure to comply with the association’s "reasonable" rules or any provision of the cooperative documents.
  • The cooperative association must give the unit owner (and, if applicable, the unit owner’s licensee or invitee) reasonable notice and an opportunity for a hearing before a committee of unit owners and the committee must agree with the fine or suspension in order for the fine or suspension to be imposed. 

We’ll discuss some  additional enforcement tools extended to cooperative associations through HB 1195 in my next entry.