If you’ve ever flipped through a pop magazine, I’m sure you’ve seen the articles that show pictures of celebrities and how they are “just like us”. While those stories usually depict celebrities going to the grocery store or taking public transportation, I recently read an article in which a former Playboy model allegedly violated her association’s rules by constructing a pink doghouse for her three dogs. For some reason, the pink doghouse did not comply with her Association’s rules and regulations. Continue Reading Even Celebrities Have to Follow the Rules

It’s that time of year again when Boards are planning for the New Year. One of the tasks on their list should be to make sure the Association has enacted the mandatory governance policies and that each policy is being consistently implemented.Continue Reading Making a List and Checking it Twice

Last week Gina Botti blogged about the importance of properly recording an association assessment lien. Although CCIOA states that a lien is ‘perfected’ or in place upon the recording of the association’s Declaration, it is still important to prepare and record a Notice of Lien to ensure that the lien is not overlooked upon the sale of a unit. 

It is also particularly useful to have a recorded assessment lien against a property that is in public trustee foreclosure. Although most people are aware of the statutory six month super priority lien that arises once a property is foreclosed, few are aware that a foreclosure may present an opportunity to fully recover the assessments and fees that it is owed. Once a property is sold at foreclosure sale, an association typically has eight business days following the sale to also exercise its redemption rights. What are these redemption rights? Simply put, they allow the association because of its lien to take title to the foreclosed property (away from the successful bidder at the sale) for the amount of the sales price at the foreclosure auction plus interest and other expenses.

Continue Reading ‘Redemption’ from Uncollected Debt

A lien is a security interest, or encumbrance, over some type of property to secure the payment of a debt or some other obligation. Liens also have different priorities over one another and only when a lien is “perfected” will it be legally entitled to priority over subsequent liens. A creditor must normally “perfect” its lien by taking steps required by law to give other parties notice of the lien. As Lindsay Smith points out in her blog, Colorado requires that any party claiming an interest in real property record evidence of that interest in the real property records of the county in which the property is located. Continue Reading Liens – Protect your association’s interests!

I recently read an article where a homeowner was upset about her condominium association initiating foreclosure proceedings against her for her failure to pay her assessments. While people may read this article and feel sorry for the homeowner, one should keep in mind that the homeowner failed to appear at court to protect her interests and, more likely than not, failed to respond to the Association and its attorneys attempts to contact the homeowner prior to the foreclosure proceedings even being initiated. It does not appear that the homeowner is the helpless victim of the actions of a condominium association, but instead, that the homeowner apparently avoided her obligation to pay assessments and did not take any action to prevent the events that followed.   Continue Reading Before You Start Pointing Fingers….

Mediation is a type of alternative dispute resolution with the goal of finding a solution and reaching an agreement that is acceptable to all parties involved. In some counties, mediation is mandatory and if a case becomes contested, the parties are ordered to attend mediation prior to scheduling a trial. In some instances, however, even if not court ordered, it may be beneficial for the parties to attend mediation depending on the facts of the case.Continue Reading What is Mediation?

 Last month I explained the basics of an association judicial foreclosure through the time of the sheriff’s sale.  In an ideal world, all foreclosures would result in a complete monetary recovery for an association and a new owner would timely pay all future assessment charges.

 However, it is not uncommon for an association to take title to a property through its foreclosure sale. This is especially likely to occur if the property has a first Deed of Trust (mortgage) and/or tax liens which exceed the market value of the foreclosed property.  So what should an association do once it takes title to a foreclosed property?

Continue Reading What to Expect Following an Association Foreclosure Sale

Reasonable is a term that is used a lot in the world of homeowner associations. It is a term that can have different meanings depending on who is interpreting the term and in what context the term is being used. According to Meriam-Webster’s Dictionary, the term reasonable means, “1a : being in accordance with reason; b : not extreme or excessive; c : moderate, fair; d : inexpensive; 2a : having the faculty of reason b : possessing sound judgment. As you can imagine, it can be difficult to interpret what one person thinks is reasonable in comparison to another and can present problems when attempting to resolve issues. Continue Reading What is “Reasonable”?