March 2007

Issue: A large homeowners association is looking to make repairs to the common area fences within the community. What options are available to them to finance this project?

Background: Recently, the Board of Directors of a large homeowners association called our office to discuss a problem. It seems that they had common area fences that were fairly old and in desperate need of some TLC. Unfortunately they did not have any funds available to make the necessary repairs.    Pursuant to the Association’s covenants, the Board was severely restricted in the amount it could set for the annual assessments each year (without approval of at least 2/3 of the members, the covenants limited the annual assessment to a 10% increase from the previous year). As a consequence, the Association’s reserve fund was nearly empty. The Board had tried on several occasions to get the members to approve a special assessment, but it was turned down each time. The Board was now wondering what options it had available to pursue.Continue Reading Financing Repairs to the Common Elements

The first day of Spring and the recent sunshine and warm temperatures may have prompted you to start thinking about your Association’s Summer event calendar. If your Association’s list of events includes outdoor movie nights, concerts, or other performances, the Association may need to pay licensing fees. United States copyright laws protect composers, lyricists, music publishers, and movie producers and distributors, among others. Community associations that play music in recreational facilities, at festivals or at other events likely need to obtain the appropriate licenses to use the music. With few exceptions, showing movies also requires licensing. Continue Reading Community Association Summer Events: Licensing Your Music and Movie Use

County Court, where most collection cases are heard, tends to judge a case more by equity rather than the letter of the law. Each County Court Judge or Magistrate has their own interpretation of what is fair and reasonable. Thus, we must proceed with caution when going to trial, even if we know the law is on our side. Our first trial story took place last summer and illustrates this point.Continue Reading Trial Story 1

The Community Associations Institute (CAI) held its annual Law Seminar this year from February 22-24 in New Orleans.  All the attorneys from our office were able to attend and discuss current trends in HOA law with colleagues from around the country.  Topics this year included "Cyber Issues and Electronic Voting", "7 Deadly Fair Housing Sins of Community Associations", and "The Latest Trends in Rental Restrictions".  Much was learned and a good time was had by all.Continue Reading Attorneys Attend CAI Law Conference