As legal counsel for community associations, we assist our clients with the various types of conflict that arise in the course of association business activities.  We understand that conflict can sometimes escalate to a level that requires court intervention.  We also know that certain preventative steps can help to alleviate the time, expense, and emotional drain that come with litigation.  In particular, good contract drafting can help to minimize the impact of disputes between associations and their contractors.  We encourage our clients to seek legal advice when entering into contracts for management services, landscape maintenance, capital improvements, and any other project or service that involves a relationship with an independent contractor.  The following reminders come directly from our experience advising community associations:

 

A bid or proposal form, while legally binding, is not a good contract.  While signing a bid or proposal form may bind the association to pay for services performed by the contractor, the association does not receive any protections as part of the bargain.  We recommend contracts that contain specific provisions which, at the very least, address the scope of work, insurance coverage, payment terms, remedies for default or breach, and attorney fees for the prevailing party in any dispute that may arise under the contract terms.  Bid forms do not typically include these recommended contract terms.

 Continue Reading Contracting with Association Contractors: An Ounce of Prevention

As many of you are probably aware, Colorado recently passed Senate Bill 06-089, legislation intended to clean up provisions from last year’s SB 05-100.  Both Bills modify and add provisions to the Colorado Common Interest Ownership Act (“CCIOA”).  SB 089 creates a number of important new requirements for associations and homeowners, including …

National Night Out was created by the National Association of Town Watch to bring individuals and communities into the fold when it comes to taking a stand against local crime. The program began in 1984 and last year had over 34 million people participate. Communities and individuals make a show of community by doing anything…

We frequently get questions from our clients and their managers asking about enforcement of architectural guidelines, and particularly, the ability to either require a homeowner to obtain architectural review committee approval before making improvements, or alternatively, requiring a homeowner to remove improvements already made without committee approval. While there is no universal answer, there are some generalities.
Continue Reading How Enforceable Are Those Architectural Guidelines?

A homeowner files bankruptcy, now what? First and foremost, all collection activity must stop in accordance with the Automatic Stay until the case is dismissed, an Order for Relief from Stay is granted, or the debtor receives a discharge. Second, the association must determine what type of bankruptcy has been filed. Individuals commonly file for bankruptcy protection under Chapter 7 or Chapter 13, and the type of bankruptcy will determine what steps an association must take to protect its interests. In this article, we will look at Chapter 7 bankruptcy.
Continue Reading Chapter 7 Bankruptcy and your Association

On June 1, 2006, Governor Owens signed into law HB 06-1387. This is a substantial, sweeping, overhaul of Colorado’s real estate foreclosure law. Among many other things done by this law, the most significant change made is the elimination of an owner’s right to redeem property after a sale of the property. Lienholders still have the right to redeem. As a tradeoff for elimination of the right of redemption, owners are given a longer period of time to cure the default before the property actually can be sold at foreclosure sale.
Continue Reading Colorado’s New Foreclosure Law – HB 06-1387