As part of the changes to Colorado’s foreclosure law that become effective January 1, 2008, C.R.S. §38-38-103(1)(c) will read:

If a recorded instrument does not specify the address of the party purporting to have an interest in the property under such recorded instrument, the party shall not be entitled to notice and any interest in the property under such instrument shall be extinguished upon the execution and delivery of a deed pursuant to section 38-38-501.

Meaning, if your association’s current contact information is not listed in your Declaration, a lender foreclosure could extinguish your association’s super priority lien.Continue Reading Colorado Foreclosure Law and Your Association’s Superlien

A CHECKLIST FOR BOARDS TO FOLLOW

1. Check your governing documents: what is required for the Association under your Declaration, Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws?

A. Also, what optional coverage are you authorized (by the documents) to consider?

B. What insurance coverage must the Owner have?

Continue Reading Seven Steps For Insurance Protection

When the documents say how tall it is. And when it does not say how tall one story is, there is a very good chance that language in the governing document limiting a structure to one story will be unenforceable as a restrictive covenant.

In a recent Colorado Court of Appeals decision, Allen v Reed, 155 P.3rd 443 (Colo. App. 2006) the appellate court reversed the trial court’s granting a permanent injunction ordering the defendants to remove their A-frame addition to their home, which contained a bedroom loft suite. The lawsuit did not involve the Association, but was an action between two homeowners regarding an interpretation of the Association’s restrictions limiting structures to one story.   It was unclear whether the Association Board had the authority to enforce and there was no existing architectural control committee to enforce the restriction.Continue Reading When is One Story One Story?

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

On August 1, 2007, the Denver Police Department notified Denver City Council members of a scam that has raised some concern among residents in the Denver metropolitan area.  If you recently received a flyer on your door about a sex offender relocating to your neighborhood, please continue reading the following announcement from the Denver…

QUESTION:   Our Association received a check marked “Paid in Full”.  But the check was for less than the full amount owed by that owner. What should we do with the check?

ANSWER:   The act of cashing the check generally constitutes acceptance of the owner’s terms.  It is not enough to simply cross …

Board members and managers often ask us to explain the fiduciary duties of board members to the community associations that they serve. We have compiled some information to guide directors in their roles. As you read this information, you will discover that, at the most basic level of decision-making, directors must make reasonable decisions after considering the information available. In advising boards, we recommend that directors try to recognize the emotions involved in a given situation and avoid letting the emotions, rather than the facts and interests of the association, guide the decision-making process.

What is a fiduciary?  Webster’s Dictionary defines "fiduciary" as follows:

adj. of, relating to, or involving a confidence or trust: as a : held or founded in trust or confidence b : holding in trust c : depending on public confidence for value or currency

Fiduciary duties arise from special relationships that the law recognizes.  Examples of fiduciary relationships include doctor-patient, attorney-client, trustee-beneficiary, and board of directors-corporation.  Continue Reading Fiduciary Duties of Board Members: An Overview

For better or worse, community associations are in the news once again.   As you may have heard, a homeowner in Wheat Ridge, Colorado has been flying her U.S. flag upside down to protest the country’s role in the war in Iraq. Recently the Association in which the owner lives has demanded that she fly the…

When townhome or condominium owners do work inside or outside of their unit, it could impact the Association. Some issues that need to be discussed and addressed if they will affect the Association are:

1.         Will it adversely affect building systems? Example: might water overflow to another unit?

2.         Cosmetic issues: will it affect the …

Many states have enacted Megan’s Laws which allow for public notification of convicted sex offender presence within the community.  In Colorado, individuals may obtain information about sex offenders through the Colorado Bureau of Investigation’s website and through local law enforcement.  The CBI website permits any private citizen to search his or her zip code and find the whereabouts of sex offenders that fall into the following categories: sexually violent predator, multiple offender, and failed to register.  Other sex offenders are not listed on the website but citizens may request their information from local authorities.

In some cases, where the court determines that the sex offender poses a predatory risk to the community, the court may require community notification of the offender’s presence.  Community notification consists of a community meeting to which community members, schools, senior citizens, and recreation facilities in the area where the sex offender intends to locate receive a direct invitation.  At the community notification meeting, local law enforcement personnel present educational information about sex offenders, risks to the community, and cautionary steps that parents and children may take to protect themselves, and then reveal the identifying information about the sexually violent predator.  Community notification only occurs in the most extreme cases.  In most, if not all, cases, offenders are only released into the community after they have served a criminal sentence, undergone evaluations, and participated in some form of rehabilitation.  Continue Reading Sex Offenders in My Neighborhood?