Reserves

Surfside Aftermath: New Florida Law Puts Managers Under the Gun

Florida condo and co-op associations are facing a new law aimed at ensuring the structural integrity of high-rise buildings in the wake of the Champlain Towers South collapse in Surfside. The law imposes several new requirements that are raising concerns. “It was a hurried, not well-thought-out bill that’s going to have really significant consequences,” says…

Florida Tackles Condo Repairs Reform — Will Other States Follow?

Florida condo and co-op associations are facing a new law aimed at ensuring the structural integrity of high-rise buildings in the wake of the Champlain Towers South collapse in Surfside. The law imposes several new requirements that are raising concerns. “It was a hurried, not well-thought-out bill that’s going to have really significant consequences,” says…

4 Tips for Navigating Higher Costs with Boards and Owners

Rising inflation has been all over the news, but that doesn’t necessarily make it any easier for boards and owners to swallow the climbing costs for both large projects and day-to-day operations. Our experts have four moves you can implement now to reduce the pain of startling budget variances, unexpected special assessments, and similar financial…

Condo Board Can Negotiate Building Sale Without Owner Approval

In a previous article, we dove into the upswing in condo deconversions in some parts of the country, with multi-unit buildings that were converted from apartments years ago reverting back to rental units. The Illinois Court of Appeals recently issued an important ruling addressing owners’ ability to challenge such moves (Glazer v. The Private Residences…

Deconversion: Coming Soon to a Condo Near You?

Various parts of the country are seeing an uptick in condo deconversions, with multi-unit buildings that were converted from apartments years ago reverting back to that status. Owners may have dollar signs in their eyes and dreams of avoiding the costs of long deferred maintenance or modern upgrades, but they need to have the full…

Deconversions on the Rise: What You Need to Know

Various parts of the country are seeing an uptick in condo deconversions, with multi-unit buildings that were converted from apartments years ago reverting back to that status. Owners may have dollar signs in their eyes and dreams of avoiding the costs of long deferred maintenance or modern upgrades, but they need to have the full…

Fannie Mae Tightens Requirements on Condo, Co-op Mortgages

Beginning Jan. 1, 2022, Fannie Mae will implement tougher requirements related to aging infrastructure and deferred maintenance on mortgages for attached condo and co-op communities. The updated requirements are temporary, but no end date has yet been established. “Associations, boards, and managers really need to be cognizant of these new requirements, especially when you think…

Building Sound Foundations: Lessons from Surfside

Building Sound Foundations: Lessons from Surfside

The June 2021 collapse of the Champlain Towers South condominium complex in Surfside, Fla., made headlines around the world — and thrust many issues that plague condo and other community associations into the spotlight. The catastrophe, its causes, and its effects already are the subject of intense study, evaluation, and discussion.

“I think the collapse going to have an impact for a long time,” says Ken Bertolucci, president of NS Management in Skokie, Ill.

If a “bright side” can be found, it’s that many associations and boards across the country have had a wake-up call and now are more open than ever to some of the basic — but sometimes costly — practices they should have been implementing all along.

“This tragedy has now become the trigger for all the things we’ve been harping on for years but that have fallen on deaf ears,” says Paul Grucza, director of education and client development at the Seattle-based management company CWD Group, Inc. “It took this to make associations stop, re-think, and adjust.”

In this special report, we explore five issues that your clients may have a new, or renewed, interest in and identify some of the particular areas where they may need to take immediate action to protect themselves and others. We also provide best practices to help them get on track.

Fearful boards are looking to their managers for their expertise and insights in the wake of Surfside. We hope this report helps you beat their expectations.

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Rising Sea Levels Bring a Wave of Risk — Even in Unexpected Locales

Savvy community association managers have realized for some time that rising sea levels —whether in oceans, lakes, or rivers — pose a threat to their clients. “The problem is that it’s such a slow creep that it’s not visible to the naked eye,” says Brad van Rooyen, president of HomeRiver Group-Florida, the management company for…

On the Radar: Current Issues Confronting Community Association Managers

With COVID-19 vaccinations widely available and government restrictions dramatically loosened, community association managers have more bandwidth to deal with matters that might have been neglected during the pandemic. We asked some of our experts about the issues they were now turning their attention to. Unfortunately, while COVID concerns have receded, they’ve been replaced with a…