Community Association Governance

The North Carolina Court of Appeals has ruled that original plat maps depicting a golf course didn’t give an adjacent HOA or its members a right to block redevelopment of the property (Cape Homeowners Ass’n, Inc. v. Southern Destiny, LLC*). This is the third recent case where the court considered whether property owners held easements…

A Maryland court found that the interested director transaction rule called into question the propriety of the board’s decision regarding an assessment to cover the costs of landscaping in a mixed community. Such issues could become more common going forward. “We’re seeing a trend toward more mixed communities,” says Ursula Burgess, a shareholder in the…

Associations are making headlines across the country — and not in a good way. Stories about the overly aggressive pursuit of fines, fees, and foreclosures are going viral on a regular basis. “You want responsible patrolling to maintain property values,” says Alan Garfinkel, founding partner of Garfinkel Law, a full-service community association law firm in…

A Maryland court found that the interested director transaction rule called into question the propriety of the board’s decision regarding an assessment to cover the costs of landscaping in a mixed community (Cherington Condominiums v. Kenney). Such issues could become more common going forward. “We’re seeing a trend toward more mixed communities,” says Ursula Burgess,…

A new bill has been proposed in the U.S. House of Representatives that would make it easier for condo associations to obtain financing to make critical repairs and replacements. The “Rapid Financing for Critical Condo Repairs Act of 2022” (H.R. 8304) follows the introduction earlier this year of the Securing Access to Finance Exterior Repairs…

A new bill has been proposed in the U.S. House of Representatives that would make it easier for condo associations to obtain financing to make critical repairs and replacements. The “Rapid Financing for Critical Condo Repairs Act of 2022” (H.R. 8304) follows the introduction earlier this year of the Securing Access to Finance Exterior Repairs…

Inflation is taking a bite out of the budgets of community associations and the bottom lines of management firms like yours. The months and months of rising prices, combined with the threat of an impending recession, leave associations — and, in turn, the management companies whose survival depends on them — at risk. According to…

Inflation is taking a bite out of the budgets of community associations and the bottom lines of management firms like yours. Strong cash management can help you and your clients both protect your financial security over the short and long terms. The Vulnerability The months and months of rising prices, combined with the threat of…

Times change, but often community association rules don’t. If your rules get out of date, they could become a ticking time bomb representing unnecessary risk that could blow up at any moment into a costly lawsuit or dispute. “Rules should be reviewed on a regular basis, and, in my experience, they aren’t,” says Alan Garfinkel,…

As interest in renewable energy grows, the proper approach to owners’ desire to install solar panels is still unsettled in many community associations. “It’s not something to put your head in the sand about,” says Harmony Taylor, a community association attorney with the North Carolina firm Black Slaughter Black, PA. In one recent case with…