Often condo declarations state that some building components are to be paid for exclusively by one group of owners. This may include all residential owners, or all owners within a single building. This means that reserve contributions for those components must come only from the units to which the cost is allocated. We frequently see reserve…
Author Archives: Ken Harer
Reserve Contributions
What is a “fully funded reserve contribution”? Most condo boards, managers, and reserve study professionals do not understand that the “fully funded balance” is not directly related to the “contribution rate”, and that the “contribution rate” calculation required by the Washington condominium act has nothing to do with being fully funded. Just as a company’s balance…
Building Envelope Inspections Gone Bad
In the past month I have been handed 5 different “engineering inspection reports” by construction consultants who have found problems or defects with construction on condominium buildings. Every one has failed to evaluate the building in terms of any damage resulting from the as-built construction, and have left the condo association with a report saying…
Your Condo Declaration is Not a Contract Between You and the Developer
Many buyers of condominiums do not understand that the Condo Association and the Developer are not the same (even though they seem to be early on in the life of the Condo Association). The purchase and sale agreement that the buyer and seller have is not a contractual relationship between the Association and the buyer,…
Update on Carbon Monoxide Sensors
Since my posting last October regarding Carbon Monoxide sensors, the code revisor’s offices and the state have been busy making changes. There is a lot of confusion regarding the imposition of the new requirement, and different players putting their hands on the regulations. Originally it seems the legislation adopted a requirement, separate from the building…
Robert’s Rules of Order
The purpose of using Robert’s Rules of Order or some other rules of parliamentary procedure is to allow a group to make decisions, allow all members of the group an opportunity to speak, and to do so in an orderly and controlled fashion. If your group, regardless of size, has a process for meeting, talking, and…
Rent Interception
Can condo associations intercept rent from a tenant living in an owner’s unit? This week we assisted a tenant living in a unit that is going through a bank foreclosure. The condo association has demanded that the rent be paid to the association, not the landlord. The association is threatening to sue if they don’t…
Enforcing Your Governing Documents
On occasion we are in court trying to defend the actions taken by a board of directors to enforce the provisions of their governing documents. The biggest frustration we have, and which can lead to losing in court, is the lack of documentation supporting the decision making process of the board. And when unit owners don’t…
Limited Common Element Confusion
Limited common elements (LCE) in condominiums can be spaces or things. Spaces are like parking spots, decks, and storage closets. Things are like fireplaces, windows, or wires. When the LCE is a space, the boundaries of the space need to be defined so that the maintenance and repair responsibility can be allocated to the association…
Beware of Frozen Pipes!
It’s that time of year again – temperatures are dropping, and if you’re ever going to deal with the risk of a frozen or burst pipe, winter is when it’s likely to happen. In the past, condominium association insurance policies have routinely provided coverage for Condominium property (common areas and apartments/units) when a pipe has…