Molly Foley-Healy

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Those of you who follow our blog know that during the 2014 Colorado legislative session, Senate Bill 220 was introduced with the intent to spur condominium construction in Colorado – an honorable goal. However, instead of providing incentives for developers to build quality construction, SB 220 was drafted to destroy the rights of homeowners living in condominium associations to hold builders responsible for their defective construction.

SB 220 was the brainchild of the Homeowner Opportunity Alliance which called itself the HOA Alliance. This “HOA Alliance” tirelessly lobbied legislators to eviscerate the ability of HOAs to assist homeowners who live in them to hold builders responsible for their shoddy construction. The Homeowner Opportunity Alliance was incorporated by Mayor Murphy himself.Continue Reading Mayor Murphy Puts Lipstick on a Pig

On behalf of the Aspen Pitkin County Housing Authority (APCHA), I was privileged on Tuesday to present my annual legislative update on HOA issues.  During the course of my presentation, we talked at length about the requirement that community association managers must by licensed by the Colorado Division of Real Estate by July 1, 2015. 

In order to…

Please join me for a free Legislative Update on HOA legislation which was signed into law during the 2014 legislative session in Colorado.  I will also provide on update on the latest information you need to know about the licensure of community association managers and what we might expect during the 2015 legislative session.  This Legislative Update, hosted by the Aspen Pitkin County…

The Colorado Division of Real Estate has just published FAQs to address questions relating to manager licensure.  The FAQs provide excellent information pertaining to who needs to be licensed, the timeline for the licensure process, steps managers must take to apply for licensure, the credential and testing requirements relating to licensure and other important information. …

The community association manager class presented by Winzenburg, Leff, Purvis & Payne, which was originally scheduled for this Wednesday (July 9th), has been rescheduled for Wednesday, July 16th at noon.  We hope you will join us next Wednesday for "Everything you need to know about Board of Directors Meetings."  If you have not already signed up attend this free teleconference class on Colorado law, please contact Allison Grout at agrout@wlpplaw.com…

If you have ever served on the board of directors of an HOA, you know that some members are never happy to see their annual assessments increased.  In fact, some folks can be downright hostile when faced with an increase.  This can even be true when an assessment increase is absolutely necessary to adequately fund reserves to be financially prepared to handle major repairs and replacements to association common elements.   

When boards are unwilling to propose essential assessment increases or members are unwilling to ratify budgets with these increases, it is not uncommon to see a couple of things happen.  First, these associations tend to defer routine maintenance on common elements which reduces the remaining useful life of components like roofs, siding and asphalt.  Second, these associations may not have enough funds in reserves to cover the costs associated with these major repairs and replacements.  In such cases, without levying a special assessment or obtaining a loan to cover the associated costs, the infrastructure of these communities will begin to erode and eventually fall apart.Continue Reading Failing to Reserve and Deferred Maintenance is a Recipe for Disaster

 

As we contemplate the observance of Memorial Day, we need only briefly look at the news to be reminded of how lucky we are to live in the United States of America.  As we witness the repression in other countries that is unimaginable to most of us, we must remember the men and women serving in the United…

Okay – so the nicest thing I can say about the snow we had on Mother’s Day is that it was really annoying. However, regardless of our quirky Colorado weather, spring really is here! That means HOA boards and residents need to anticipate and avoid common pitfalls and controversies that can arise as we spend time outdoors during the spring and summer. Here are some important tips to keep in mind:

Continue Reading Spring and Summer Tips for HOA Living

Senate Bill 14-220 (“SB 220”) is dead for the session. Sponsored by Senator Jesse Ulibarri (D-Commerce City), who represents himself as an advocate for affordable housing, this bill was a molotov cocktail created to destroy the ability of homeowners living in HOAs to recover from builders for defective construction. The plan was to significantly increase the construction of condominium projects by making it impossible for builders to be held fully responsible for their shoddy construction. 

SB 220 was double assigned to the Senate State, Veterans & Military Affairs Committee (‘State Affairs Committee”) and the Senate Judiciary Committee. The State Affairs Committee, which is chaired by Senator Ulibarri, held a short hearing on the bill yesterday which did not give all of the folks who were passionately against the bill a chance to be fully heard. The bill passed the State Affairs Committee on a slim 3 to 2 margin.

 

In order for the bill to proceed through the legislative process during the final two days of the session, the Senate Judiciary Committee needed to take up the bill last night and pass it out of committee to the full Senate for consideration. In a procedural move to protect the rights of homeowners living in HOAs to recover for defects against builders, the Senate Judiciary Committee declined to meet last night on SB 220 which kills the bill for the session.Continue Reading Construction Defect Bill Dead for Session

With one week remaining in the 2014 legislative session, Senate Bill 14 – 220 (“SB 220”) was introduced yesterday evening in the Colorado Senate. While it may seem to some that this bill was introduced too late in the session to have any chance of passage, with relaxed rules in place for the end of the session, a bill can technically make it through the entire legislative process in three days. This bill has been assigned to the Senate State, Veterans & Military Affairs Committee and the Senate Judiciary Committee. 

Sponsored by Senator Jesse Ulibarri (D-Commerce City) and Senator Mark Scheffel (R-Parker), the bill seeks to spur the construction of condominiums in Colorado. Unfortunately, the bill is so extreme that it would guarantee that owners of homes in HOAs would have no recourse against builders for defective construction. 

 

As introduced, here’s what the bill provides:Continue Reading Bill Introduced to Strip Homeowners of Ability to Recover for Construction Defects