Featured Articles

Ideally, association boards would act in the best interest of the community, fairly treating homeowners and ethically conducting business to further the interests of the community. Unfortunately, board members sometimes stray from the mission statement and purpose of the association, using the “power” of being on the board to stack the board with friends or members who will side with them when it comes time to vote on issues.

Inevitably, a community’s on-site manager—an employee of the association—or management company will part ways with the association at some point. If the manager has acted responsibly and fulfilled her duties during her tenure, a transition to new management might be easier than if your association manager is leaving on bad terms because of unprofessional or even illegal behavior.

While board members have what’s known as a “fiduciary duty” to the association, some members—especially those who are at odds with choices the association has made—mistakenly think that the board should serve their particular interests. That goes squarely against the concept of fiduciary duty—that is, a legal obligation imposed on all board members to be loyal to the association.

By Andrea Brescia

Eventually, a community association will face the question of whether to update its governing documents. Laws change, and with that, governing documents are superseded. Should your declaration be changed with every new law? When is the right time to address previously unforeseen quality-of-life issues? How do you update your governing documents so that they provide the framework for your association’s current and future needs, without creating unexpected problems?

By Andrea Brescia

Cell transmittal towers are popping up all over the country to serve the 91 percent of American adults who now own mobile phones. If your community is in a location where customers have reported a lot of dropped calls, a cell carrier could be interested in leasing the rooftop of your condominium or other community building. Service providers that are eager to place towers in strategically needed, high-traffic areas can be a good source of income for associations with available rooftops.

By Carol Johnson Perkins, Esq.

Across the country, momentum has been building to legalize marijuana—at least for medical use. Though marijuana is still illegal under federal law, more than 20 states have adopted comprehensive medical marijuana laws—and more may soon follow. This fall, Florida voters will decide whether to amend the state’s constitution to allow for comprehensive medical marijuana legislation.

When it comes to daily life in an association—whether it’s a condominium building or a community of standalone homes or townhomes—there will always be some members who love association life and some members who realize too late that they don’t enjoy being bound by community rules. Community management expert Paul D. Grucza has over 33 years of experience turning the love-hate relationship between associations and their members into a more harmonious union by building a bond among owners, boards, and management staff.

Boards should strive to set fair rules and enforce them consistently and effectively. But that’s not always easy to do. Sometimes boards let rules slide because it takes less effort, especially if only minor rules are being disregarded by members. But this creates a huge problem for an incoming board that realizes once it enters office that its predecessors haven’t enforced community rules.

While social media can be used to positively promote your management company and the associations it manages, there are also two inherent dangers in this type of communication. First, social media may be used improperly by your employees, leading to liability for the company. Second, the association’s members may use it as an outlet for complaints, leaving the board and manager to undo the damage—undesirable impressions of the community that negative comments have created.