Q. I pay HOA fees for landscaping. Not all areas of the development are the same—some streets just have ornamental trees and a minimal amount of leaves falling. My block is swamped with leaves on the ground that begin falling in September…
A few years ago, I was on the phone with a homeowner. He was irate with how his community’s money was being spent. He was unhappy with the budget increase. It was a call I took regularly from any one of my homeowners (and more often than no…
Attorneys representing co-op, condo, and HOA communities comprise an interesting subset of the legal profession. While ultimately serving as the legal backstop for these communities, that’s not the full measure of what they do; they often a…
Whether you’re living in a co-op apartment building in Manhattan, a condo on Chicago’s Gold Coast, or a townhouse community or HOA in Boston, issues of legality and liability are always a concern for owners, board members, and management. A…
The boards that direct co-ops, condominiums, and HOAs across the country are made up of volunteers who donate time to help govern their communities. Among their duties is selecting vendors to provide goods or services for those communities—…
Q. I am a new condo owner. The way the trustees do business does not seem correct to me. First, they will not allow owners to communicate directly with them or the condo’s accountants. Every communication must be sent to the one employee …
When making the choice to purchase a condo or a co-op apartment, many buyers choose a condominium to reduce the board’s involvement in the decisions they will make regarding their home. Condo boards’ authority over certain decisions and asp…
Q. Our association recently hired a new management company, and an announcement was sent to the homeowners announcing the change. A new board initiated this action with no input from homeowners and no discussion. I have specifically reque…
Q. The way our trustees operate seems a little unusual to me. They won’t allow us condo owners to speak or communicate with them or the accountants directly unless it’s through an employee of the trust. Additionally, there is an escrow ac…
Living in a community association can sometimes be – or at least feel – complicated. For most people, their home is their biggest single investment, and the value of that individual investment depends a lot on the cooperation of neighbors, …