Mark K. Payne

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You just received a notice from a homeowner that they have filed for bankruptcy. The matter is quickly turned over to the association’s attorney together with an updated account ledger to ensure that the requisite paperwork is timely filed to protect the association’s interest. How does a manager or board properly account for assessments and fees which come due after the filing of the bankruptcy? Unfortunately, this is an issue faced by managers and boards on a regular basis.  Continue Reading Bankruptcies: Accounting Suggestions and the Importance of Maintaining Liens

Our legislature continues to tinker with the responsible governance policies made mandatory several years ago. This year Governor Ritter signed H.B. 1135 which amends Section 209.5 of the Colorado Common Interest Ownership Act (CCIOA). Section 209.5 first became law in 2005 by what has commonly been referred to as S.B. 100 which required every association to adopt a responsible governance policy concerning enforcement of covenants and rules, including notice and hearing procedures and a schedule of fines. Prior to adoption of S.B. 100, CCIOA permitted an association to levy reasonable fines for violations of the declaration, bylaws and rules and regulations, but only after notice to the offending owner and an opportunity for a hearing.
Continue Reading Hearing Due Process – Now What?

Exclusivity contracts are often used by providers of video programming distributors (think cable providers) to obtain the exclusive right of access or the exclusive right to provide video service in a community. On November 13, 2007, the FCC entered its order banning exclusivity contracts between cable operators (and other multi-channel video programming distributors) and multiple dwelling unit developments. The definition of multiple dwelling units developments includes condominiums, cooperatives, and communities of single family homes. The final order from the FCC has still not been published. However, in the mean time, you can view a summary of the FCC order here, and comments, prepared by the Community Associations Institute. This action by the FCC is consistent with its belief that communication providers (internet, wireless and cable) should be subject to the greatest possible competition in providing their services, and that consumers generally benefit from that competition.Continue Reading FCC Bans on Exclusivity Contracts

We’ve written before about how the Fair Housing Act applies to common interest communities. Unfortunately, there are some (maybe many) homeowners associations and condominium associations that still don’t understand the importance of this federal law and its state counterpart, the Colorado Fair Housing Act, or if they understand, they don’t believe it applies to them. Here is a recent story of a condominium association in Hawaii that found out otherwise. Continue Reading Fair Housing Revisited

Those of us that work in the community association industry have been closely following the path of the New Jersey case of Committee for a Better Twin Rivers v. Twin Rivers Homeowners Association. On July 26, 2007, the New Jersey Supreme Court announced its decision, affirming the trial court and reversing the court of appeals, in determining that, under the New Jersey Constitution, the homeowners association’s rules restricting signage did not violate the right of free speech, that the constitutional right of free speech is not absolute, and citizens may waive or otherwise curtail their rights. A little background is helpful to understanding this case, and what its implications are to those of us in Colorado.Continue Reading A Constitutional Right to Free Speech in Your Association? Not Yet

Sometimes we want to pass on information that has nothing to do with community associations in particular, but which might be of interest to our readership in general. This is one of those times. This article was published in Life at Ken-Caryl, a bi-weekly publication of our friends at the Ken-Caryl Ranch Master Association,…

Winzenburg, Leff, Purvis & Payne is proud to announce that partner Mark K. Payne will be co-chairing and speaking at CLE International’s Community Association Law Seminar at the Grand Hyatt in Denver on June 11, 2007.

Mark will provide an in-depth analysis of the Fair Housing Act and its application to community associations. In an …

One thing about this business – it is full of surprises. One surprise that occasionally comes to light during our course of representing an association has to do with how common expenses are shared. The declaration of restrictive covenants (which imposes the obligation to pay assessments) should describe how expenses of the association are allocated. In fact, CCIOA mandates that the declaration must allocate the various types of allocated interests: the allocation of voting rights; the allocation of burden of common expenses; and in condominiums, the ownership of the undivided interests in the common elements. In a couple of cases recently we’ve discovered that an association is allocating common expenses in a manner that is different from how the declaration specifies.Continue Reading Assessments According to the Declaration – Who Cares?

Do you or your manager ever receive calls from your members about a domestic violence problem between other residents in your community? How about speeding in the public streets? What about the wild party with all the noise and disturbance at 2:00 a.m.? WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO ABOUT IT?! Well, you’re the Association, after all; ENFORCE THE !@##$@@ COVENANTS!! TAKE CARE OF THE PROBLEM!!Continue Reading Why Call The Police When Your Association Can Handle the Problem?