Category Archives: Condo Association
Ensuring Your HOA’s Pool Complies With Regulations
As summer gets nearer, more and more homeowners’ associations (HOAs) are preparing to open their swimming pools for residents. It is a huge positive for many HOA residents to have access to a pool during Florida’s scorching summers – but the pool must be compliant with all relevant regulations before anyone should be allowed… Read More »
Defining “Condominium Termination” In Florida
When condominiums open, they seem full of promise, ready to accept those who want to build lives surrounded by neighbors and friends. However, as condominiums age, the costs of maintaining the complex can outweigh the positives residents find there. For good or ill, most condominiums wind up ‘terminated’ after a certain point in time… Read More »
Who Pays For Hurricane Damages After A Storm?
The one-two punch of Hurricanes Helene and Milton struck Florida in September-October 2024, causing “truly historic” damage across the state and a death toll in the hundreds. While the Hollywood/Ft. Lauderdale area was spared much of the worst devastation, high winds and flooding caused problems for residents and visitors, as well as damage to… Read More »
More New Laws Change Picture For Condo Boards
In June 2024, the governor of Florida signed a major bill into effect that tightens restrictions on condominium boards, intending to close loopholes and enforce compliance. The main bill, known as “Condo 3.0” for how it builds on previous legislation, institutes a host of changes intended to ferret out corruption and dishonesty among boards… Read More »
Do Condo Board Members Have Fiduciary Duties To Owners?
A fiduciary is a person who has a duty to act in good faith when protecting another person’s interests. Many different people in many different positions may have fiduciary duties, but one that most people remain unaware of is that of a community association board member. A Florida condo board and its members all… Read More »
Can My Condo Association Regulate Door-to-Door Deliveries?
Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, door-to-door deliveries were becoming more common in the United States. While the pandemic saw some restrictions on deliveries due to fear of contagion, most associations have lifted these controls since. That said, some Florida community associations are seeking to reintroduce them, arguing that door-to-door delivery is a convenience, not… Read More »
Children & The Fair Housing Act
The federal Fair Housing Act (FHA) prohibits discrimination based on a person’s membership in a protected class – race/color, religion, national origin, sex (gender identity and sexual orientation explicitly included), religion, disability, and ‘familial status.’ The latter is not normally found in federal antidiscrimination lawsuits, but for the FHA, it explicitly refers to families… Read More »
Can Florida Community Associations Ban Masks?
In late 2023, the Florida legislature and governor passed a law, euphemistically called the Protection from Discrimination Based on Health Care Choices Act, which bans businesses and governmental entities from refusing opportunities based on vaccination status – and prohibits the requiring of masks in public places. In the rush to declare normalcy, though, there… Read More »
Community Associations & Hurricane Preparedness
Summer is the start of hurricane season in Florida, and community associations generally try to begin to prepare for storms as early as possible to protect their residents, particularly in more storm-prone areas like Miami and the Keys. (Broward County has its fair share of hurricanes as well). There are certain steps that every… Read More »
Can Homeowners Fly “Historic” Flags In An HOA?
Homeowners’ associations (HOA) in Florida have the right to regulate almost everything that happens in the association, from assessment payments to what color a homeowner may paint their garage. This extends to the display of flags – more and more nowadays, some homeowners are choosing to display not only the U.S. flag, but also… Read More »
