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NEWENGLANDCONDO.COM NEW ENGLAND CONDOMINIUM -SEPTEMBER 2019 3 Yale Robbins Publisher Henry Robbins Executive Vice President Joanna DiPaola Associate Publisher Hannah Fons Senior Editor David Chiu Associate Editor Pat Gale Associate Editor Shirly Korchak Art Director Anne Anastasi Production Manager Victor Marcos Traffic Coordinator Michael Odenthal Staff Writer Alan J. Sidransky Staff Writer TABLE OF CONTENTS Climate Legislation and Emissions Issues While the ‘Green New Deal’ and other long-term climate solutions are being debated at the federal level, some states and municipalities are getting in on the action as well, setting legal emissions benchmarks that will have a real impact on the lives of multifamily community residents – including those in co-ops, condos, and HOAs. PAGE 1 Removing a Condominium Owner Removing a disruptive, abusive, non-paying, or otherwise problematic tenant from a rental building is relatively easy. Doing the same thing in a co-op is also possible, though substantially harder. But removing a condo owner from the premises (and effectively wiping out his or her equity position as a member of the condominium associa- tion) is very difficult indeed, and subject to very narrow legal interpretation – yet is doable under certain circum- stances. PAGE 1 Board Transition Community associations are microcosms of democracy, run by an elected board of volunteers trusted to make good decisions on behalf of the community as a whole. Boards make the call on every large and small issue for their constituency. So it’s not only imperative that these members are carefully vetted and selected, but that during transitions of power from one board to the next, members with more experience help ease in the newcomers to shorten the learning curve and smooth the transition. PAGE 1 Fines and Penalties Community living comes with lots of rules and regulations – many of which are codified in largely static, hard-to-amend governing documents like proprietary leases and condominium declarations. Others are laid out in the more flexible context of house rules, which can (and should!) continue to evolve as times change and community values and demographics shift. PAGE 10 Directors and Officers Insurance At the heart of volunteerism is the notion of doing something for the common good. For many, choosing to live in a co-op or condo community is also choosing volunteerism – specifically, volunteering for board service. But within that sense of serving the common good lurks the possibility of liability, and that’s what directors and officers (D&O) insurance is all about. PAGE 12 Condominium Board Authority 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 aspects of life in their communities is much more limited than that of co-op boards, but that doesn’t mean that some condo boards won’t try to impose rules, regulations and requirements on residents that are clearly outside their lane. Doing so – even with the best intentions – can lead to acrimony, conflict, and sometimes even litigation. PAGE 14 Copyright 2019 by New England Condominium Magazine LLC, dba Community Association Publishing.All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means without prior written permission. New England Condominium is published monthly in New York, New York by New England Condominium Magazine LLC, dba Community Association Publishing, 205 Lexington Ave., 12th Floor, New York, NY 10016. 508-753-4630. ISSN 1550-946X. Periodical postage paid at New York, New York and additional mailing offices. Subscriptions are available free by request to condominium and homeowner associations. POSTMASTER: Please send address changes to New England Condominium Magazine, newenglandcondo.com THE CONDO, HOA & CO-OP RESOURCE CONDOMINIUM NEW ENGLAND