HB 2717 — Homeowners’ Associations; Penalties; Attorney Fees

Last year, AAR was successful in passing legislation that would provide private parcel access to "for sale" signs within HOA communities. Alas, many unscrupulous HOA communities found sneaky ways to skirt the legislation by charging a homeowner for the use or placement of "for sale" signs. Once again, AAR educated members of the legislature on these overreaching practices and the sponsor of HB 2717 (Representative Carter) agreed to amend her bill to include language that would curb this practice. The bill as signed by the governor prohibits a condominium community from charging a fee for the use or placement of a "for sale" or "for lease" sign by a unit/property owner.

SB 1149 — Planned Communities; Condominiums; Document Fees

Once again, AAR had to address the overbearing and costly regulations that HOAs are continuing to force on homeowners. This bill addressed current statute that permitted an association to charge a fee for required documents as long as the fee is "reasonable". The problem with the law was that in many instances, the fee charged was not only astronomical but extraordinarily unreasonable. This bill curtails this outlandish practice by limiting the fee that a planned community and condominium association can charge a unit owner for the preparation of the required documents associated with the resale of a unit to an aggregate of $400. This bill contained a delayed effective date; it will go into effect on January 1, 2012.