Q. I’m trying to get information on or determine what specifically a board cannot assess owners for. Our bylaws are extremely clear on what we can assess for—largely major improvements for the building. However, what can’t or shouldn’t the…
Q. I am the president of an association in Massachusetts. We have been under the impression that if an owner is delinquent in paying a monthly fee that an automatic lien is created on the property, thus preventing such owner from voting…
Let’s imagine that your boss invites you to a group dinner to celebrate her recent promotion. At dinner, you have a tasty salad and one glass of the house red, but your colleagues all have multiple cocktails; somebody orders the surf-and-tu…
Not every condominium or homeowners’ association is going to run afoul of the law—the happy truth is that litigation and legal trouble are relatively rare occurrences. But even the most upstanding board of trustees in New England must navig…
No one likes a lawsuit. Whether filing one or finding yourself on the receiving end of one, they can cause stress, anxiety and an upending of daily life. They can be expensive, take months—even years—to resolve, and often result in hurt fee…
Whether you serve on the board of a co-op, condo or HOA, chances are you and your fellow community administrators are volunteers. Perhaps you’re fortunate enough that you or one of your colleagues has professional legal expertise to bring t…
The legislative season is upon us, and in many states, bills specifically dealing with condos, co-ops and HOAs are wending their way through the legislative process. Even when bills aren’t aimed directly at those forms of home ownership, ma…
Q. Our downstairs neighbor’s children always have the TV turned to an extremely loud volume. Our condominium building is older without a lot of soundproofing, and literally, everything can be heard from below. We have tried a number of ti…
The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court recently issued its ruling and order in one of the most important condominium cases ever decided. In Drummer Boy Homes Association, Inc. v. Britton, the SJC held that an association can maintain mul…
Instances of home-sharing have skyrocketed recently due to the rise of websites such as Airbnb.com. For a small fee, these websites connect homeowners with people who want to find a place to stay for one night at a time. Homeowners rent th…