Court case could increase cost for homeowners associations | HeraldTribune.com
"A pending opinion from the Florida Supreme Court could dramatically increase operating costs for thousands of homeowner associations statewide and substantially drive up condo owners' expenses. The looming decision is connected to a recent Florida Bar opinion that, if enacted, will force community association managers to hire attorneys to handle various administrative duties now done primarily in-house."
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The issue is that some of the things property managers do arguably constitute the practice of law.
Friday, February 28, 2014
General Assembly: Bill that would widen homeowners association powers hits a snag - dailypress.com
General Assembly: Bill that would widen homeowners association powers hits a snag - dailypress.com
"The bill had been moving along in the House and Senate, albeit with some resistance and controversy. But on Thursday the House voted down a Senate version of the proposal, signaling tough sledding. "Members felt uncomfortable expanding the power of associations who could not get that power from their homeowners," Del. Scott A. Surovell, D-Mount Vernon, said in an email. Surovell led the charge against the bill in the House. He also was the attorney for a Northern Virginia couple who fought their homeowners association over fines several years ago, leading to the court decision that precipitated this legislative fight."
"The bill had been moving along in the House and Senate, albeit with some resistance and controversy. But on Thursday the House voted down a Senate version of the proposal, signaling tough sledding. "Members felt uncomfortable expanding the power of associations who could not get that power from their homeowners," Del. Scott A. Surovell, D-Mount Vernon, said in an email. Surovell led the charge against the bill in the House. He also was the attorney for a Northern Virginia couple who fought their homeowners association over fines several years ago, leading to the court decision that precipitated this legislative fight."
Thursday, February 27, 2014
General Assembly: Homeowner associations may get more power - dailypress.com
General Assembly: Homeowner associations may get more power - dailypress.com
RICHMOND — Legislation that would give more power to homeowners associations cleared the Virginia Senate Tuesday. It has already passed the House in a slightly different form and seems headed for final passage. House Bill 791 would let homeowner and condominium association boards levy fines against property owners who run afoul of association rules, even if the power to issue those fines isn't written into the association's controlling documents.
RICHMOND — Legislation that would give more power to homeowners associations cleared the Virginia Senate Tuesday. It has already passed the House in a slightly different form and seems headed for final passage. House Bill 791 would let homeowner and condominium association boards levy fines against property owners who run afoul of association rules, even if the power to issue those fines isn't written into the association's controlling documents.
Judge orders homeowner to mow lawn | News - Home
Judge orders homeowner to mow lawn | News - Home: JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -
After residents fought their neighbor for three years to get her to mow her lawn, a judge has finally ruled her grass must be cut down.
Neighbors said the grass grew well over 6 feet tall at Silverthorn Lane in the Walden Chase community. As of Wednesday night after the ruling, the residents are celebrating.
One of those neighbors, Carole Cooper, is ecstatic as the weeds and overgrown grass finally get cut at their neighbor Susan Trebbien’s home.
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As Jeff Foxworthy once put it, "If yew mow your front lawn and find a car, ya might be a redneck."
After residents fought their neighbor for three years to get her to mow her lawn, a judge has finally ruled her grass must be cut down.
Neighbors said the grass grew well over 6 feet tall at Silverthorn Lane in the Walden Chase community. As of Wednesday night after the ruling, the residents are celebrating.
One of those neighbors, Carole Cooper, is ecstatic as the weeds and overgrown grass finally get cut at their neighbor Susan Trebbien’s home.
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As Jeff Foxworthy once put it, "If yew mow your front lawn and find a car, ya might be a redneck."
Wednesday, February 26, 2014
LakeField Hills Home Owners Association - Fall Enforcement Drive Recruitment Video on Vimeo
LakeField Hills Home Owners Association - Fall Enforcement Drive Recruitment Video on Vimeo
Many are called. But few are chosen. Do you have what it takes to uphold the law in Privatopia?
Thanks to Shu Bartholomew for the link. Enjoy.
Many are called. But few are chosen. Do you have what it takes to uphold the law in Privatopia?
Thanks to Shu Bartholomew for the link. Enjoy.
General Assembly: Homeowner associations may get more power - dailypress.com
General Assembly: Homeowner associations may get more power - dailypress.com: RICHMOND — Legislation that would give more power to homeowners associations cleared the Virginia Senate Tuesday.
It has already passed the House in a slightly different form and seems headed for final passage.
House Bill 791 would let homeowner and condominium association boards levy fines against property owners who run afoul of association rules, even if the power to issue those fines isn't written into the association's controlling documents.
Associations have been doing this for years, but a recent court decision said they can't unless their charter spells out the power, according to the Community Associations Institute, an industry trade association.
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There was a Virginia Supreme Court decision some years ago that declared HOA fining an unconstitutional exercise of power reserved to the state. But in an odd twist, the Virginia Legislature and not the courts got the last word on what's constitutional in Privatopia when it comes to fines.
It has already passed the House in a slightly different form and seems headed for final passage.
House Bill 791 would let homeowner and condominium association boards levy fines against property owners who run afoul of association rules, even if the power to issue those fines isn't written into the association's controlling documents.
Associations have been doing this for years, but a recent court decision said they can't unless their charter spells out the power, according to the Community Associations Institute, an industry trade association.
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There was a Virginia Supreme Court decision some years ago that declared HOA fining an unconstitutional exercise of power reserved to the state. But in an odd twist, the Virginia Legislature and not the courts got the last word on what's constitutional in Privatopia when it comes to fines.
Sunday, February 23, 2014
Another possible booze price hike looms over Wash. - seattlepi.com
Another possible booze price hike looms over Wash. - seattlepi.com
Wow. What a surprise!
Wow. What a surprise!
"Since the end of Prohibition in the 1930s the state had tightly controlled the distribution and sale of liquor. But in 2011 Washington voters approved a privatization initiative that was supported by Costco and other retail interests. Costco spent more than $20 million backing Initiative 1183 and distributors also provided millions . Following privatization there have been multiple lawsuits and some consumers have complained about sticker shock in grocery aisles."
Tuesday, February 18, 2014
Darker U.S. homebuilder mood not just due to bad weather - Yahoo Finance
Darker U.S. homebuilder mood not just due to bad weather - Yahoo Finance: Jed Kolko, Trulia's chief economist, said because cities such as Las Vegas, Miami and Phoenix still have many vacant homes, those existing houses - rather than the weather - have been one of the biggest drags on the construction of new single-family homes, which account for roughly two-thirds of the U.S. housing market.
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Many of those vacant homes depressing this sector of the economy are in Privatopia.
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Many of those vacant homes depressing this sector of the economy are in Privatopia.
Monday, February 17, 2014
HOAs give migraines, not help | The Rebel Yell
HOAs give migraines, not help | The Rebel Yell: If you have never lived in a homeowner association, I strongly caution you not to. If you have lived in one, you know about the harassment and the stress it causes.
I recommend that we get rid of them all. Cities like them because the builder will pay for some streets and services and pass the cost on to the homeowner, alleviating this burden from the city.
Unfortunately, the HOAs are taking over.
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A call for HOA Apocalypse Now.
I recommend that we get rid of them all. Cities like them because the builder will pay for some streets and services and pass the cost on to the homeowner, alleviating this burden from the city.
Unfortunately, the HOAs are taking over.
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A call for HOA Apocalypse Now.
Tuesday, February 11, 2014
Detroit in the dark: How the city's streetlights went out and the plan to get them back on - Yahoo News
Detroit in the dark: How the city's streetlights went out and the plan to get them back on - Yahoo News: It’s a problem all over Detroit, where officials estimate at least half of the city’s 88,000 streetlights are broken. Aside from the abandoned buildings that dot the cityscape, the dark lights are the most visible evidence of the financial problems that sent Detroit into bankruptcy last summer seeking relief from an estimated $18 billion in debt. As the lights went out, the city couldn’t afford to turn them back on and keep them on.
The Detroit Public Lighting Department, the underfunded and understaffed entity in charge of fixing the streetlamps, has been in “constant triage” for years, officials say, trying to mend a lighting system that, in some areas, is so old it has to be manually switched on at night.
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This used to be confined to Privatopia when HOAs fell apart and stopped paying the light bills.
The Detroit Public Lighting Department, the underfunded and understaffed entity in charge of fixing the streetlamps, has been in “constant triage” for years, officials say, trying to mend a lighting system that, in some areas, is so old it has to be manually switched on at night.
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This used to be confined to Privatopia when HOAs fell apart and stopped paying the light bills.
Friday, February 07, 2014
Yeager in Sacramento court as part of lawsuit - Our Region - The Sacramento Bee
Yeager in Sacramento court as part of lawsuit - Our Region - The Sacramento Bee: The lawsuit “is essentially about homeowners getting something for nothing,” plaintiffs’ lawyer Eugene P. Haydu said in his trial brief.
Haydu is representing Park River Oak Estates Homeowners Association. The association runs a townhouse complex next to Garcia Bend Park. The suit says Yeager and his wife, who live near Grass Valley, own a couple of units in the development but haven’t paid their association fees.
“While defendant General Charles Yeager may be a famous man, that fame does not make him immune … from principles of simple fairness,” the brief said.
The defendants’ attorney Michael Thomas argued in his brief that the Yeagers’ properties were never annexed to the association and that the couple has not requested nor have they ever received any services from it.
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The community association bar plays no favorites.
Haydu is representing Park River Oak Estates Homeowners Association. The association runs a townhouse complex next to Garcia Bend Park. The suit says Yeager and his wife, who live near Grass Valley, own a couple of units in the development but haven’t paid their association fees.
“While defendant General Charles Yeager may be a famous man, that fame does not make him immune … from principles of simple fairness,” the brief said.
The defendants’ attorney Michael Thomas argued in his brief that the Yeagers’ properties were never annexed to the association and that the couple has not requested nor have they ever received any services from it.
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The community association bar plays no favorites.
Sunday, February 02, 2014
HOA bans medical marijuana in home yards
HOA bans medical marijuana in home yards
"The board at Carrillo Ranch, a homeowners association in Chandler, has ruled that residents cannot smoke marijuana — medical or otherwise — in their backyards, front yards and patios. Some residents say the decision is absurd, while lawyers are questioning whether the rule can be enforced."
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But look on the bright side. This will generate attorney's fees!
"The board at Carrillo Ranch, a homeowners association in Chandler, has ruled that residents cannot smoke marijuana — medical or otherwise — in their backyards, front yards and patios. Some residents say the decision is absurd, while lawyers are questioning whether the rule can be enforced."
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But look on the bright side. This will generate attorney's fees!
Wednesday, January 29, 2014
Florida Man Fined $1,000 For Flying Wounded Warrior Project Flag
Florida Man Fined $1,000 For Flying Wounded Warrior Project Flag: A Florida man was told by his homeowners association that he would have to remove a flag for the Wounded Warrior Project from his residence or face a $1,000 fine.
Thomas Bagnoli, who has lived in the Grand Haven community of Palm Coast for 13 years, refused to take it down. He says the flag has been up for at least a year.
"They can do whatever they want. I’m doing what I want,” Bagnoli told WJXT-TV. “I feel strongly about this.”
He said the association told him the flag is against association rules, but other homes fly prisoner of war flags and missing in action flags without fines.
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HOA flag flap No. 725,891. Film at 10 on WJXT Channel 9 Eyewitness News.
Thomas Bagnoli, who has lived in the Grand Haven community of Palm Coast for 13 years, refused to take it down. He says the flag has been up for at least a year.
"They can do whatever they want. I’m doing what I want,” Bagnoli told WJXT-TV. “I feel strongly about this.”
He said the association told him the flag is against association rules, but other homes fly prisoner of war flags and missing in action flags without fines.
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HOA flag flap No. 725,891. Film at 10 on WJXT Channel 9 Eyewitness News.
Friday, January 24, 2014
The pros and cons of homeowners associations - MSN Real Estate
The pros and cons of homeowners associations - MSN Real Estate
Including a brief quote from yours truly.
Including a brief quote from yours truly.
Tuesday, January 21, 2014
Council considers which residents required to pay streetlight fees The Commercial Appeal
Council considers which residents required to pay streetlight fees � The Commercial Appeal: The committee reviewed one measure Tuesday to remove the streetlight fee from bills for newly-annexed homes in Cordova that don’t yet have streetlights, with no opposition to doing so. The discussion then turned to whether residents who already pay for private streetlights through homeowners associations should be required to pay the public streetlight fee.
Last year, City Council agreed to change the billing for streetlight fees in an effort to spread the cost to all Memphis residents, not just those who pay property taxes, said Councilman Myron Lowery. Instead of the fee being assessed to property taxes, it is now part of utility bills.
However, some residents in Cordova complained they were paying a fee for a service the city had not rendered as part of its annexation responsibilities.
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The coexistence of public and private local government can be dicey, particularly when it comes to determining who pays for a given service and who benefits.
Last year, City Council agreed to change the billing for streetlight fees in an effort to spread the cost to all Memphis residents, not just those who pay property taxes, said Councilman Myron Lowery. Instead of the fee being assessed to property taxes, it is now part of utility bills.
However, some residents in Cordova complained they were paying a fee for a service the city had not rendered as part of its annexation responsibilities.
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The coexistence of public and private local government can be dicey, particularly when it comes to determining who pays for a given service and who benefits.
Sunday, January 19, 2014
Holding water companies accountable sounds good to this HOA
Holding water companies accountable sounds good to this HOA: The Summertree community in New Port Richey has been fighting its water company for more than a decade.
Homeowners Association President Rich Neilsen says poor water quality has forced homeowners to buy their own filtration systems.
"We are paying enormous funds for unsatisfactory water," Neilsen said. "The residents of this community need to buy bottled water to drink. We can't drink our water."
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Private water companies don't go over well in Privatopia, Florida sector.
Homeowners Association President Rich Neilsen says poor water quality has forced homeowners to buy their own filtration systems.
"We are paying enormous funds for unsatisfactory water," Neilsen said. "The residents of this community need to buy bottled water to drink. We can't drink our water."
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Private water companies don't go over well in Privatopia, Florida sector.
The Fate of a City | KUNSTLER
The Fate of a City | KUNSTLER
Interesting paragraph about doomed-to-fail condos and HOAs in this post by the author of The Geography of Nowhere, talking about how the financialization of the economy flooded New York City with money, but (Kunstler says) it is all about to dry up:
"Mayor Bloomberg was celebrated for, among other things, stimulating a new generation of skyscraper building. There is theory which states that an empire puts up its greatest monumental buildings just before it collapses. I think it is truthful. This is what you are now going to see in New York, especially as regards the empire of Wall Street finance, which is all set to blow up. The many new skyscrapers recently constructed for the fabled “one percent”— the Frank Gehry condos and the Robert A.M. Stern hedge fund aeries — are already obsolete. The buyers don’t know it. In the new era of capital scarcity that we are entering, these giant buildings cannot be maintained (and, believe me, such structures require incessant, meticulous, and expensive upkeep). Splitting up the ownership of mega-structures into condominiums under a homeowners’ association (HOA) is an experiment that has never been tried before and now we are going to watch it fail spectacularly. All those towering monuments to the beneficent genius of Michael Bloomberg will very quickly transform from assets to liabilities."
Interesting paragraph about doomed-to-fail condos and HOAs in this post by the author of The Geography of Nowhere, talking about how the financialization of the economy flooded New York City with money, but (Kunstler says) it is all about to dry up:
"Mayor Bloomberg was celebrated for, among other things, stimulating a new generation of skyscraper building. There is theory which states that an empire puts up its greatest monumental buildings just before it collapses. I think it is truthful. This is what you are now going to see in New York, especially as regards the empire of Wall Street finance, which is all set to blow up. The many new skyscrapers recently constructed for the fabled “one percent”— the Frank Gehry condos and the Robert A.M. Stern hedge fund aeries — are already obsolete. The buyers don’t know it. In the new era of capital scarcity that we are entering, these giant buildings cannot be maintained (and, believe me, such structures require incessant, meticulous, and expensive upkeep). Splitting up the ownership of mega-structures into condominiums under a homeowners’ association (HOA) is an experiment that has never been tried before and now we are going to watch it fail spectacularly. All those towering monuments to the beneficent genius of Michael Bloomberg will very quickly transform from assets to liabilities."
Saturday, January 18, 2014
Infrastructure 101: The Evolution of Building Big Things (Part 1)
Infrastructure 101: The Evolution of Building Big Things (Part 1)
This is a brilliant and easily understood series on the privatization of infrastructure by Dickinson Law School professor Ellen Dannin. The second part is here.
And here is a great PBS program on this subject that includes Professor Dannin.
This is a brilliant and easily understood series on the privatization of infrastructure by Dickinson Law School professor Ellen Dannin. The second part is here.
And here is a great PBS program on this subject that includes Professor Dannin.
Tuesday, January 14, 2014
HOAs and pot: A complicated, volatile mix | The Cannabist
HOAs and pot: A complicated, volatile mix | The Cannabist: Homeowner associations are approaching lawyers to find out whether they can ban marijuana use, even in homes, much as they do garish paint colors and funky yard art — a question that may have to be settled in court.
Already, at Breckenridge’s River Mountain Lodge, a condominium in which second-homeowners rent out their properties mainly to vacationers, growing pot and distributing it was banned last year for medical marijuana. And that now extends to recreational pot, as does a previous smoking ban in all of the units.
In Aurora, several HOAs have inquired about their rights regarding restricting the use, possession and cultivation of pot.
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Do bogart that joint, my friends.
Already, at Breckenridge’s River Mountain Lodge, a condominium in which second-homeowners rent out their properties mainly to vacationers, growing pot and distributing it was banned last year for medical marijuana. And that now extends to recreational pot, as does a previous smoking ban in all of the units.
In Aurora, several HOAs have inquired about their rights regarding restricting the use, possession and cultivation of pot.
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Do bogart that joint, my friends.
Thursday, January 02, 2014
In Search of the First Human Home - Issue 8: Home - Nautilus
In Search of the First Human Home - Issue 8: Home - Nautilus
"If an archaeologist had to pick an example of the earliest structures that most resembled our modern idea of home, it would probably be the round houses built by the semi-sedentary Natufians, an ancient people who lived around the eastern end of the Mediterranean Sea (Israel, Syria, and environs) at the end of the last Ice Age, some 12,000 years ago."
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"If an archaeologist had to pick an example of the earliest structures that most resembled our modern idea of home, it would probably be the round houses built by the semi-sedentary Natufians, an ancient people who lived around the eastern end of the Mediterranean Sea (Israel, Syria, and environs) at the end of the last Ice Age, some 12,000 years ago."
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