Michigan Court of Appeals (unpublished), Docket No. 342831, Decided October 25, 2018 With the advent of Airbnb and similar services, the issue of short-term rentals has increasingly become a problem for condominium and homeowners associations over the last few years....
Bylaws
Recreational Marijuana: What Every Association Should Know
The legalization of marijuana in Michigan concurrently provides a framework for its regulation and control. Association boards will be able to look to the Michigan Regulation and Taxation of Marihuana Act (“MRTMA”) (MCL 333.27951 et seq.), and the regulatory scheme...
Avoiding the Improper Denial of Association Insurance Claims
One of the primary functions of a condominium’s governing documents is to establish the respective responsibilities of the association and the co-owners for maintaining, repairing and replacing all property located within the condominium project. Often times, these...
The Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Final Rule: Is Your Association Liable?
In October 2016, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (“HUD”) adopted a final federal rule which guides how community associations should respond to certain types of discrimination claims in order to comply with the Federal Fair Housing Act. According to...
Two Condominium Bylaw Provisions That Every Board Should Review to Ensure that Assessments are not Unnecessarily Depleted
Assessments are the means by which all associations operate, and assessments provide the necessary income to maintain and enhance a community's assets to protect and maximize unit values. When assessment levels get too high, the very assessments that are essential to...
Insuring Condominium Property Under a “Single Entity” Insurance Policy
One of the primary functions of a condominium's governing documents is to establish the respective responsibilities of the association and the co-owners for maintaining, repairing and insuring everything located within the project. During the early days of condominium...
Hoarding – Understanding and Successfully Addressing the Problem
It's a condition that affects between three and five percent of all Americans, both men and women. With an aging baby boomer generation, experts predict that the problem is only going to get worse. It’s called hoarding and for condominium associations, particularly...
Bankruptcy – What Every Condominium Association Must Know
Delinquent assessments are unfortunately a frequent and practically universal problem for condominium associations. The collection of delinquent assessments is essential to the viability of any condominium association; however, these collection efforts can become...
Responding to a Member’s Request To Review and Inspect Your Association’s Books and Records
Member requests to review and inspect an association’s records and books are a fairly typical occurrence and should not be a reason to panic, but such requests should be dealt with in a prompt and orderly fashion for reasons explained in this article. Some members are...
Make Sure Your Enforcement Charges are Collectible
In the course of running a Condominium Association, various charges may be provided by the Condominium Documents to be assessed against or posted to the accounts of co-owners who are either delinquent or in violation of other provisions of the Condominium Documents....
Drones: Regulation Under State and Federal Law, and Controlling Via a Community’s Governing Documents
Unmanned aircrafts, commonly known as drones, are becoming increasingly popular both for recreational and business uses. Technological advancements have increased those potential uses and brought the costs down. Given the popularity, constant technological...
Is It Time for Michigan to Adopt “Limited” Super-priority Assessment Liens?
All condominiums are created by statute and, depending upon the jurisdiction, by the recording of a master deed or declaration of covenants. The primary (if not the exclusive) source of revenue for maintenance or administration of condominiums is the assessments paid...