With the passage of federal and State laws protecting disabled individuals, we see a societal push away from institutionalized living arrangements and towards community based, group home settings. This firm is frequently asked how, or if, an association can prohibit these group living arrangements within their community. Sometimes residents are worried that the group home occupants will pose a safety risk; there are also concerns about parking and transient residents; and fundamentally, associations may question whether this type of group living arrangement is consistent with single family residential use. The purpose of this blog is to provide a broad overview … Continue reading →

A decision last week (November 4) by the NC Supreme Court provides helpful authority to older condominiums not only in the context of foreclosures, but in the larger context of relying on the retroactive portions of the NC Condominium Act (Chapter 47C). In the Matter of the Foreclosure of a Lien by Executive Office Park of Durham Association, Inc Against Martin E. Rock A/K/A Martin A Rock considered the issue of whether a pre-October 1, 1986 condominium, formed pursuant to the NC Unit Ownership Act (Chapter 47A), has the power of sale for foreclosure as set forth in the Condominium … Continue reading →

Harmony Taylor & David Wilson In a case of wide-reaching impact, the North Carolina Supreme Court on Friday, June 17, 2022, issued its decision in Belmont Association, Inc. v. Farwig. An earlier blog discussed the factual background and decision from the Court of Appeals in detail.   By way of brief summary, the homeowners in this case installed solar panels on the front facing façade of their roof without approval and the homeowners association commenced fines. Nothing in the declaration explicitly regulated solar collectors, but the association, pursuant to its general authority over architectural matters and aesthetics, refused to allow … Continue reading →

Ah, spring. Flowers are blooming, birds are chirping, and the sound of power saws, stone cutters and earth moving equipment fills the air. This country is in the midst of a construction boom, and more homeowners than ever before are undertaking home improvement projects. In community associations, these improvements usually require some type of architectural approval to make certain that, once constructed, the new pool, patio or pergola will be aesthetically pleasing and harmonious with surrounding structures.  The process is supposed to start with the owner submitting an architectural request, but sometimes owners don’t know or care to do so. … Continue reading →

Individuals who agree to serve on boards for their community associations will inevitably find themselves receiving confidential information about their friends and neighbors. This may be information about an alleged architectural violation, or an unpaid balance due to the association. Sometimes the association will receive complaints about police called to a home, only to learn later of alleged drug activity or a domestic violence situation. This may seem like juicy gossip, and it can be tempting to share this information with others. However, directors owe certain duties of confidentiality to their members, and understanding these duties is essential for the … Continue reading →

North Carolina may not see the same weather challenges as most other states, but we aren’t immune from winter (and spring) storms that bring snow and ice that can make travel treacherous.  No board of directors wants to find itself scrambling after the fact to decide how or when to put down salt or scrape a road or parking lot. Here are some general issues to consider, and recommended best practices. DEFINE THE AREA OF RESPONSIBILITY HOA and condo associations are generally obligated to reasonably maintain the common areas within the association. This often includes any private roads within the … Continue reading →

House Bill 902 was signed into law by Governor Cooper on July 2, 2020 and grants some limitations on liability for privately owned swimming pool operators who open their pools during the COVID-19 pandemic.  The Bill applies to community pools owned by private entities, such as apartment complexes, homeowners associations and condominium associations, and protects those pool operators from liability for injury or death allegedly related to COVID-19 if those pool operators have opened the pools in compliance with the various Executive Orders for pool safety issued by the Governor.  Probably the most important Executive Order here is Executive Order … Continue reading →

For some property owners, the Coronavirus pandemic has been an opportunity to spend some meaningful time at home working on long neglected projects. This could mean finishing up a landscaping plan, cleaning out a natural area, or finally getting around to building a fence. As owners go about these tasks, it is inevitable that some will ignore or not be aware of the architectural approval process. This may be a good time for boards to- in a friendly way- check in with their neighbors and  provide a refresher course on the necessary steps to get an architectural change submitted and … Continue reading →

Individuals, businesses, and organizations across the United States are struggling to come to grips with the new financial realities created by the COVID-19 pandemic. Nonprofit community associations are no exception.  They will likely face reductions in revenues in the coming months, at least, as a result of members who simply are not able to pay their ongoing obligations for assessments.  Loans newly made available by the federal government may be an option for community associations to consider. In this blog we will look at federal disaster loans offered through the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA). (For a more general explanation … Continue reading →

Yet another issue that is coming up frequently in the face of COVID-19:  what should an association do about violation hearings that need to proceed, and are already scheduled or need to be scheduled?  Obviously, we are recommending against any face-to-face meetings for the foreseeable future.  Mecklenburg County’s stay at home order requires residents today to stay home and avoid all unnecessary trips may soon spread to the rest of North Carolina. This means we have to get creative about how to hold hearings.  The goal, as always, will be to allow owners to clearly understand the alleged violation and … Continue reading →

I often note that community associations are effectively microcosms of our larger culture, facing the same challenges and trends. One example of this is the increase in (real or perceived) lack of civility and ethics in communications with and between boards and their members. This past week, the Community Association Institute (CAI), an international membership organization that provides information, education and resources related to community associations, published a newly adopted Civility Pledge as a resource for communities to foster civil discourse. The Civility Pledge, linked here, is an excellent resource for boards wishing to support a more respectful dialogue. The … Continue reading →

Authored by Hamony Taylor and David Wilson As our community association clients settle into a new year and new issues, many boards with new members find themselves with questions or confusion about the attorney-client privilege. Because this privilege is complicated but incredibly important, we thought it would be helpful to go over the basics and how boards can and should preserve the privilege. Very generally, in both North and South Carolina, the attorney-client privilege protects communications between an attorney and a client in the following circumstances: The parties were in an attorney/client relationship. It is not necessary that the client … Continue reading →

Authored by Harmony Taylor & David Wilson We are often asked by board members for HOA and condominium associations to review their community’s documents and “update” them or “make them more modern.”  While there is no one-size fits all solution for any community association, we have noticed that some declaration amendments are a good idea for most communities.  Over the next few articles, David Wilson and Harmony Taylor will be exploring some of the amendments that we frequently recommend to the associations that we represent.  Whether you are a single family, townhome, or condominium community, you may want to think … Continue reading →

Sometimes, a community association tries to accommodate religious preferences and ends up discriminating on another basis. That is what happened in Curto v A Country Place Condominium Association, Inc., according to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit in a New Jersey condominium case handed down yesterday. In this case, the condominium had a large Orthodox Jewish population whose religious practices prohibited men and women from swimming together in the condominium pool. The association, wishing to find a way for both men and women to use the pool, came up with a schedule that provided certain hours for … Continue reading →