2012

Serving on the board of directors of a homeowners’ association (“HOA”) is just not easy – especially in these tough economic times. Directors sacrifice countless hours of their personal time to govern their communities and deal with tough issues. Sometimes their hard work is recognized by members of their HOAs and other times they are criticized for their decisions. 

If you have served on the board of an HOA, have advised boards, have observed the work that boards undertake or have interacted with board members, you can probably pinpoint the traits of a highly effective director. Over the next several days, this series of blog entries will focus on the traits that make a director successful in participating in the governance of their association.Continue Reading Highly Effective HOA Directors: Trait #1

As Chair of CAI’s Colorado Legislative Action Committee (“CLAC”), last week I participated on a legislative update panel at the CAI Rocky Mountain Chapter Spring Showcase. While the session addressed the status of manager licensure in Colorado, the main focus of the discussions were on the perception of the HOA industry by legislators, their constituents, regulators and special interest groups and what that means for the industry in the future on the legislative and regulatory front. 

The panel discussion began with a presentation by Aaron Acker, the HOA Information Officer, who noted that the number of complaints being lodged with his office have been increasing this year. Mr. Acker reported that while the calls are generally tracking the categories of complaints outlined in the 2011 Annual Report of the HOA Information and Resource Center, he is seeing a new trend in complaints relating to HOA law firms with an emphasis on how some firms are utilizing the foreclosure remedy.Continue Reading HOA Industry Can’t Afford to Be Tone Deaf

As a board member, do you ever feel that you and the remaining board members are on an island alone? Nobody understands what you do, much less appreciates what you do. But, they are more than willing to criticize everything you do, often because it adversely impacts their use and enjoyment of their property. You and the remainder of the board feel overwhelmed by the amount of work there is to be done to run your association. And while the manager can be a tremendous help, you can’t afford to pay them for everything you would like to have done. So what do you do?Continue Reading Appointment and Use of Committees

In my March 30th blog posting, I outlined the documents and other items that must be produced by a declarant to the homeowners’ association within 60 days following transition of the association from declarant to owner/association control. While the declarant clearly has responsibilities to the association following transition, the association subsequently has the responsibility to make “public disclosures” within 90 days after assuming control from the declarant.

The Colorado Common Interest Ownership Act (“CCIOA”), atC.R.S. 38-33.3-209.4, requires an association to make the following information available to unit owners upon upon reasonable notice to the association:Continue Reading Association Disclosures Following Transition

I previously posted a blog regarding the importance of the Notice of Bankruptcy. Here is a story of just how important this Notice can be and the consequences of not paying close attention to receiving this Notice. 

As you can see after reading this article, the Bankruptcy Court takes very seriously the protections afforded to a…

In the past few weeks, I have received several questions relating to the responsibility of a declarant to transition an association it developed to owner control and the responsibility to produce records and other items following transition. Both of these questions are controlled by the Colorado Common Interest Ownership Act (“CCIOA”).

Termination of Declarant Control

 

While a declaration of covenants, conditions and restrictions or a condominium declaration for a new community will normally have specific provisions regarding declarant rights and the period of declarant control over the community, C.R.S. 38-33.3-303(5)(a)(I) addresses the outside limits on declarant control for most new communities (with the exception of large planned communities). In particular, that provision of CCIOA provides that regardless of the period of declarant control outlined in a declaration, declarant control will terminate within 60 days following the earliest of one of these events:Continue Reading Production of Documents by Declarants Following Transition to Owner Control

Just minutes ago, the Senate Local Government Committee unanimously approved a slightly amended version of House Bill 12-1237 ("HB 1237").  As you know, HB 1237 amends the association records provision of CCIOA to:  (1) make it clear what records must be maintained and produced to homeowners; (2) specifically list the types of records which may be withheld from production; and (3) eliminate…

I love springtime in Colorado! The perennials in our flower beds are popping up, the trees in our yard are flowering and my allergies are truly a gift to behold. However, my love of spring is nothing compared to the how the flower fairies are feeling.

Come on – ADMIT IT – you’ve seen at least one flower fairy in your lifetime! In fact, I have it on good authority from a friendly garden gnome that the wise people have assigned one flower fairy to beautify every yard, patio and balcony located in an HOA in Colorado. Continue Reading Attention Homeowners: Please Control Your Flower Fairies

One of the most common governance questions we receive from HOA boards is whether they are permitted under Colorado law to hold a closed door “working session.” When asked why they want to prohibit HOA members/owners from attending these working sessions, we are inevitably told “homeowners are constantly interrupting us and we just can’t get anything done.”   

The Colorado Common Interest Ownership Act (“CCIOA”), atC.R.S. 38-33.3-308(2)(a), provides in part that “All regular and special meetings of the association’s executive board, or any committee thereof, shall be open to attendance by all members of the association or their representatives. . .” While CCIOA does not specifically define what constitutes a “meeting,” it is safe to say that anytime a board or committee convenes to conduct business, work through HOA issues or make decisions – that constitutes a meeting which the members are entitled to attend. Continue Reading Open Meetings Shouldn’t Be Unproductive Meetings

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) has published a Final Rule in the Federal Register that limits the ability of Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the Federal Home Loan Banks to deal in mortgages on properties that are encumbered by private transfer fee covenants.  

A News Release from FHFA announced the outstanding news that "The final rule excludes…