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Real Estate & Property Law

California Condo & HOA Law

Information about legal issues for California condominiums and homeowner associations

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Last Entry: March 28, 2011 at 03:22:54

Are the New FNMA Guidelines Realistic?

Posted on May 21, 2008
Adrian Adams of Adams and Aucoin in SoCal just put out a newsletter listing the new requirements FNMA has published. You can read what he has to say by visiting DavisStirling.com (not a government-backed website; its a law firm website - but very informative), and what FNMA has to say by visiting https://www...

California Overregulation is Overburdening Small Associations

Posted on May 20, 2008
There are many small associations in California that cannot afford management. The Davis Stirling Act is intended to regulate HOAs, and the average person cannot comprehend a lot of what is in it. Yet, the legislators keep passing more complicated laws...

Who Has To Fix The Fence?

Posted on May 20, 2008
Here is a question I recently received on maintenance of fences in a Caliornia HOA. "I own a SFR and I live next to an easement/common area owned by our HOA. During the winter, a portion of the fence blew down due to heavy winds. I believe the cost of repairing the fence should be shared by us and the HOA...

Retaliation is Never The Answer

Posted on May 19, 2008
Your neighbor is driving you crazy. It's the clack clack clack of the high heeled shoes and the long nails on the family dog on the tile floors above, or the thump thump thump and bang bang bang of the children running and jumping, opening and closing the doors...

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CAN HOMEOWNERS GET BALLOTS BACK?

Posted on May 15, 2008
FINALLY, I get a brief question that is easy to answer. From a reader: "A brief question if I may ? In an HOA vote [ 2 envelope system ] on an assessment; can a member request the return of a ballot previously mailed to the management company if the request is made before the ballots are opened? ?...

Is There A Stranglehold on HOAs in California?

Posted on May 13, 2008
Imagine that you own a business. Imagine that the legislators keep passing laws that make it tougher and tougher to collect for the goods or services that are offered. Imagine that your earning capacity is limited to collecting just enough money to budget for the coming year...

MORE ON FLOORS - WHAT IF YOU LIVE UPSTAIRS?

Posted on May 13, 2008
More about condo flooring/noise issues: what if you are the neighbor who lives upstairs with the down stairs neighbor complaining of noise. These problems are not easy to solve. A couple of readers' notes have been combined in this series of questions: "We had our laminate flooring installed over a year ago...

So Many Questions -So Little Time - About Making An Impact in Your HOA

Posted on May 03, 2008
I am so backed up right now with many, many good questions. I would like to quit everything else I am doing for a week and answer them all, but like taking a cup of water out of a bucket, it would hardly make a dent. However, I notice that a lot of the questions have a common theme - How does one make an impact in the HOA when they do not like the way things are going...

LEASE LIMITATION PROVISIONS ? WHAT IS THE LEGISLATURE DOING IN CALIFORNIA?

Posted on April 29, 2008
AB 2259, introduced by Assembly Member Mullin, most recently amended the ASSEMBLY on MARCH 28, 2008, places limitations on enforcing lease limitation restrictions. The bill, if approved by the Assembly and Senate and signed into law, would amend Section 1368 of the Civil Code (which relates to disclosures upon sale) and would add Section 1360...

WHAT?S NOT TO LOVE ABOUT YOUR NEW CONDO!

Posted on April 29, 2008
How about something upbeat? Because of my new book, I have been asked to write articles for several blog groups. Each has their own preference for content. Being asked to address what is positive about living in a condo reminded me, and might remind you, of the reason many people in California purchase condos...

How To Communicate Concerns in Your HOA

Posted on April 16, 2008
Ranting, Raving, Cussing, Threatening, Yelling ... are these ways to get attention? Yes they are. But are they the way to get the right kind of attention? The answer is "no". If you want to get the right kind of attention to your concerns in your HOA, try a balanced written communication...

What Can You Do If Your HOA Board is Out of Control?

Posted on April 16, 2008
My Board is Out of Control - Is it time for action? What Can I do? If the board is not responsive to your ?ideas?, you may want to try and enlist the support of other owners. There is sometimes ?power in numbers?. In California, there are laws regulating condominiums that allow homeowner members to have access to the membership list, and if not that, provide a means for owners to address other members through mailings sent out by the association board, staff, or management...

Damned If You Do - Damned If You Don't - Foreclose That Is.

Posted on April 13, 2008
Did you have those kind of parents that taught you about balance, using frustrating phrases like: "Well its six of one and half dozen of the other." Or "Do You want the glass half full, or half empty?" Or "Looks like you let yourself get caught between a rock and a hard place...

How Can Those Guys Do Anything They Want? - The Flip Side

Posted on April 11, 2008
I received lots of messages and even a couple of calls about the blog on free legal advice. Thanks readers! Some were complimentary, thanking me for what I do, and others seemed a little defensive. Truth is, I had no one in particular in mind when I wrote the blog, but I did need to provide some kind of general information about what my own limitations are, because the boundaries seemed to be slipping, and the last thing I want to do is be rude...

Are California HOA Managers Immune From Liability?

Posted on April 10, 2008
In California, there are at least two well-known industry groups that serve and train homeowner association managers. In this training, managers are presented with "model" management contracts to offer clients. This makes sense. Managers want as much protection as they can get from Boards who do not follow their advice and from the membership or other outsiders that decide that the manager is the cause of whatever grief they suffer...

Can "Those Guys" Really Do Whatever They Want?

Posted on April 08, 2008
I get this call or email at least once, usually more times, each day: "How can those guys [meaning the board] do whatever they want? Is there really no end to their power?" Well, what does one say to that? It's a vague and broad statement, question, and premise...

CONTRACTS - CAN WE SEE THEM?

Posted on April 03, 2008
In California, homeowners in HOAs have a right to review most if not all of the Association contracts ("executed contracts not otherwise privileged under law" - Civil Code Section 1365.2). Unless the vendor has forced a clause that says its contract is confidential" for some reason (which might not be legal but as yet is to the best of my knowledge "untested" in court), then an owner has a good case for reviewing the contract...

Do You Need An Attorney For Noise Issues?

Posted on March 25, 2008
Here I am on the noise kick again. This question is asked of me about every other week. "Can you please recommend an attorney that is willing to represent a homeowner? I am getting close to exhausting my avenues of getting noise problems resolved." People get to the end of their rope and think an attorney can solve their problems...

EARTHQUAKE COUNTRY - Do You Know Where You Live?

Posted on March 23, 2008
How many of you think you don?t live in earthquake country? The CEA considers the entire state of California to be "Earthquake Country". Well, it is scary to think about ?the big one?. But if it happens, you will wish that you had been more prepared...

How Should Architectural Review "Appeal" Processes Work?

Posted on March 14, 2008
One of my readers sent in this question about architectural review. He is an architect, working with various HOAs to do architectural review. This is what he has to say: "My firm provides architectural review services to a number of associations. Some association Boards have a policy of reviewing ARC appeals only to determine one of two things, the applicant is seeking a variance or the applicant is claiming inappropriate procedural actions by the ARC committee...

What Controls in HOAs - the Documents or the Law?

Posted on March 10, 2008
Below is a question I received from a reader in the State of Washington. While I cannot answer anything that might be perceived as giving legal advice in another state, I can give a practical answer to the question: "Which controls, the governing documents or state law?" My answer is a common "lawyerly" answer...

Setting the Record Straight on Homeowner Forum

Posted on March 08, 2008
I wrote a blog awhile back about homeowner forum time. An owner had written in and said that the Board was requiring homeowners to fill out information cards before the forum time and they had to state their name and the subject of their comments. The owner found this very offensive, and I would too, if the motive was improper...

PARKING IN THE GARAGE, WHAT IS SO MISUNDERSTOOD ABOUT THAT?

Posted on March 06, 2008
I guess its time for a blog on parking again. It's been awhile. The questions are all over the map, so this blog will concentrate on garage parking ... or not parking in the garage. Lest you do not want to read on, let me preface it by saying that today, it is my belief and understanding, which is often stated in building plans and governing documents, that garages are constructed with homes with the intention that they would be used for parking the family or resident vehicles...

Pets In The Pool - Yay or Nay?

Posted on March 03, 2008
I get lots of questions about pets and have not written a blog for awhile on the subject. There is just so much in the world of HOAs to write about. Anyway, here goes! This is one of the questions I received: ?What is the rule of law for California with regards to dogs on leash in the "pool area" ...

More on Noise - Can a Developer Be Held Responsible?

Posted on February 20, 2008
Just today, during my HOACHAT at noon on issues including noise and hard surface floors (which is a free offering you can join on Wednesdays through my website at http://www.californiacondoguru.com) one of the "attendees" asked: "Can a developer have responsibility when there are noise issues through the walls and floors of a condo? Noise is a problem in many stacked and wall-to-wall condos...

STOP THAT INFERNAL WALKING!

Posted on February 14, 2008
This is my 301st blog! Thought it worthy of some unusual step. Since I have on my plate neighbor to neighbor issues today, and since I am doing two programs on the subject in the central valley of California on the same day in March, I decided to give neighbors their own category on this blog...

HOA Owners Are Continually Confused By Assessment Limitations

Posted on February 10, 2008
About assessments ... sometimes when I write about assessments, I get questions back that I do not really understand, meaning I do not comprehend what is going through the minds of readers. So then I think it is time to try and explain. Here are some such recent questions that were asked me by a reader: "My questions to you are as follows: Doesn't the quorum requirement stated in 1366 (b) below have to do with the HOA's ability to conduct the Special Meeting to discuss the Special Assessment, rather than the percentage of Membership approval?" My answer to this is: The quorum requirement in 1366 clearly defines what percentage of owner approval is needed to approve an assessment that exceeds the legal limits as stated...

My New Book is Out!

Posted on February 10, 2008
"Talk about misconceptions and misunderstandings?the homeowners? association industry involving condominiums, shared amenity living, and shared responsibility is full of misconceptions and misunderstandings. The general public has processed its share from the negative ?connotations? and bad press rampantly played out in the newspapers, magazines and tabloids, and even on TV and in the movies...

SPECIAL ASSESSMENTS IN TRYING TIMES

Posted on February 09, 2008
WOW, I cannot remember more difficult times for talking to boards and members about big but necessary special assessments. The meetings these days are becoming more and more challenging when a board has to face the membership to talk about how to raise multi-thousand dollar per unit assessments for repair work, it is not fun...

The "Taste" Test For Your Upcoming HOA Election - Do You Want Sour Lemons or Butterscotch?

Posted on February 01, 2008
Okay, maybe I have been a little hard on Boards and even attorneys in the last two posts on my blog. And since I know for a fact that owners can be just as problematic, I thought I would set the record straight. I am not in favor of people serving on the boards of their association if they are not in "good standing"...

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