2013

As laws have changed over the past few years and more information has become available online, community association governance has been forced to evolve to new, higher standards. Now more than ever, volunteer board members must understand their role as leaders and decision-makers for their communities, and they must have the tools to communicate effectively with their owners. When it comes to effective communication, we see a good mix of exemplar approaches (many of which were learned from experience) and communities that could benefit from proven strategies. If your community is looking for ways to improve communication, or struggling with a contentious issue and wondering what may help, consider the following options for increasing transparency, educating owners, and fostering community within your association:

Hold regularly scheduled board meetings. If owners do not have access to the business of the association, they may get suspicious of what the board is doing. Unfortunately, all too often, perception is reality for owners. You may meet for months without other owners in attendance, but that does not eliminate the need for meetings that owners can attend if they so choose. Set the time and location of meetings at the beginning of the year and stick to that schedule.

Allow owner access to board members. The community manager often serves as the primary contact person for owners with questions and problems to report. Managers then communicate with the board and take action where appropriate. But the manager should not serve as a substitute for the owner-elected board. Board members must make themselves accessible, typically at board meetings, so that owners can feel more assured that their voices are heard and considered in the board decision-making process. Remember that, under the new records law, owners have a right to obtain board member email addresses, so owner contact with board members is a part of board member service to the community. But remember, too, that all board members must have access to information used to make decisions—so individual board members should avoid secret conversations and promises to owners.Continue Reading Good Governance and Communication Go Hand-in-Hand

On a 3 to 2 vote, the Senate Judiciary Committee just postponed idefinitely (which means the bill is dead for this legislative session) Senate Bill 52 which addressed construction defects in transit-oriented developments.  The bill as introduced, would have created significant unintended costs for homeowner associations when pursuing construction defect claims.  While the bill is dead for…

On Tuesday, the House Business, Labor, Economic and Workforce Development Committee approved an overhauled version of HB 1134 and the bill was just taken up on the House floor and passed on second reading.   

As noted in my January 21st blog entry, the bill as originally introduced broadly expanded the powers of the HOA Information Officer and HOA Information and Resource Center which are both housed within the Colorado Division of Real Estate. Instead of proceeding with this broad expansion of power, the bill was overhauled to study the HOA regulatory models in Nevada, Virginia and Florida. In particular, the study will assess options, costs and the need for the Division of Real Estate to:Continue Reading Overhauled Version of HB 1134 Moving Through the House

Earlier this afternoon, on a 6 to 5 party line vote, the House Business, Labor, Economic & Workforce Development Committee passed an amended version of HB 1277 – the manager and management company licensure bill. 

Here are some of the highlights of the bill as originally introduced:

● Beginning on July 1, 2014, community association managers and management company executives who directly supervise managers will be required to be licensed in Colorado.  As originally drafted, this provision was very confusing. 

● The CMCA credential, AMS designation and PCAM designation are recognized in the bill as the foundation for the license. In addition to holding the CMCA credential or one of the designations, managers will be required to complete a course and pass an examination relating to applicable Colorado law. As originally introduced, the examination provisions were extremely confusing and in need of clarification.   

● Managers will be required to submit to and pass a criminal background check prior to being issued a license. 

 

● The Division of Real Estate will have jurisdiction to discipline licensed managers and management company executives required to hold a license. Continue Reading Manager Licensure Bill Clears First Hurdle in the House

Late yesterday afternoon, the House Business, Labor, Economic and Workface Development Committee passed an amended version HB 1276.  Highlights of the bill as originally introduced include the following:  

● HOAs are not permitted to refer delinquent accounts to a collection agency or legal counsel for action unless they have adopted and comply with a Collections Policy with specified minimum provisions.

● As part of the Collections Policy, homeowners must be provided with notice of the delinquency and be informed that if the delinquency is not cured within 30 days their account may be turned over to a collection agency or legal counsel for action.

● Prior to a delinquent account being turned over to a collection agency or a law firm for legal action, a homeowner has a one-time opportunity to enter into a 6 month payment plan (association boards may extend the time of this payment plan if they wish) with their association to cure the entire amount of the delinquency. If the homeowner defaults on the payment plan or fails to pay their current month assessments, the association may immediately proceed with other action to collect on the delinquency.

● HOAs may only proceed with foreclosure if the balance of the assessments and charges secured by its lien equals or exceeds six months of common expense assessments based on a periodic budget adopted by the association.

● The board of an HOA must take a formal vote to authorize proceeding with a judicial foreclosure. This duty to take a formal vote cannot be delegated to an attorney, insurer, manager or any other person.Continue Reading HOA Debt Collection Bill Approved by House Business Committee