While not yet Phase 3, NC Governor Roy Cooper has announced that this Friday, September 4 at 5 pm the State will move to “Phase 2.5” with regards to coronavirus restrictions. Some restrictions will remain in place, but others have been loosened. Executive Order #163 covers a host of businesses and activities, but here are some highlights for North Carolina homeowner and condominium associations: Restrictions on gatherings have been loosened. Executive Order #141 issued on May 20 limited indoor gatherings to ten (10) people and outdoor gatherings to twenty-five (25) people. Executive Order #163 increases these numbers to 25 people … Continue reading →

The yearly Community Association Fact Book from The Foundation for Community Association Research is always a wealth of information. For anyone who works in, writes about, or just is interested in homeowner or condominium associations, the research is indispensable. (The official purpose of the Fact Book is to provide “research-based information to all community association stakeholders–homeowners, board members, management professionals as well as attorneys, accountants, developers, mortgage lenders, federal agencies, public officials and others–all who work with the Foundation and CAI to build better communities.”) The 2019 Fact Book, meaning the research collected last year, is free and online. Both … Continue reading →

Today (August 4, 2020), the NC Court of Appeals issued an opinion that could impact townhome exterior repairs. The case is Shearon Farms Townhome Owners Ass’n II, Inc. v. Shearon Farms Dev., LLC. Shearon is a “published” case, which means the holding is binding on other parties with similar facts. Complex appellate cases are difficult to summarize. Facts matter. Different circumstances can lead to different results. That said, here’s the short version of this 19 page decision: Several townhome owners reported to the association that the exterior siding on their townhomes was severely damaged, as if it had melted. The … Continue reading →

The NC General Assembly in 2020 has made a number of changes to the North Carolina Condominium Act (NCGS 47C). All of the updated statutes have been signed by the Governor and are now law. Here is a PDF of the revised NC Condominium Act. The document also distinguishes between those provisions that are retroactive to all condos and which apply only to condominiums created after October 1, 1986. For more details on the specific 2020 amendments, you may wish to read this article: NC Community Association Legislative Update – June 24, 2020 For any North or South Carolina HOA/condo … Continue reading →

Pool Immunity & Fee Cap on Statement of Unpaid Assessments According to Ferris Bueller: “Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.” At this point in the legislative session, things more pretty fast. And it’s easy to miss things. There have been several significant changes since my NC Community Association Legislative Update – June 24, 2020 two days ago! Summaries follow, and more fuller reviews will be done as a part of our HOA/Condo blogs. House Bill 806: “HOA/Condo Pool Opening Limited Immunity” HB 806 has been amended to … Continue reading →

NC Governor Roy Cooper announced today, June 24, that on Friday, June 26 the State will NOT move to a “Phase 3” with regards to coronavirus restrictions. North Carolina will instead remain in Phase 2 for at least an additional 3 weeks as a result of failing to meet certain key benchmarks. In addition, new face mask requirements have been added. Here are some highlights for North Carolina’s homeowner and condominium associations: Executive Order #147 will take effect on Friday, June 26 at 5 pm. The entire order can be found at Extension of Phase 2 Order and New Measures … Continue reading →

Like most everything else in 2020, this year’s legislative session has not been typical. This is the second legislative year of the 2019-2020 Session. Normally, some of the bills that survived “crossover” in 2019 (see NC Community Association Legislative Update – May 10, 2019) would be tweaked and considered, but new significant legislation is not all that common in the second year of a session. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic and everything related to that, the financial crisis, and numerous social issues that risen to the forefront, the focus of this year’s legislative session has mostly been on new proposals … Continue reading →

The NC Court of Appeals issued a new architectural review committee decision this morning, April 21, 2020, in Martin v. The Landfall Council of Associations, Inc. The case is an “unpublished” opinion from the NC Court of Appeals, which means the decision is not controlling legal authority and should not be cited in other cases. However, even unpublished opinions give a sense of the Court’s thinking as to specific issues and how subsequent courts may rule. (For another recent ARC decision from the Court of Appeals, see Don’t Screw Up Your Architectural Committee and Approval Process.) In Landfall Council of … Continue reading →

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Last week the NC Chapter of the Community Associations Institute hosted a free live webinar on “Coping with COVID-19 for NC Community Associations.” The hope was to get out timely, helpful information about how HOA and condo associations should respond to the coronvirus pandemic and included participant Q&A. The webinar clearly served a need—attendance was capped at 500, and far more than that wished to attend. If you did not see the program (or did and wish to share it with someone), the NC Chapter of the Community Associations Institute has made it available as a recording on the Chapter’s … Continue reading →

Questions to our firm about how homeowner and condominium associations should respond to the coronavirus (COVID-19) epidemic have come in waves.  When news of the virus broke, we were asked by HOAs and condos how to keep homeowners safe. (See: Coronavirus: What Should Homeowner and Condominium Associations Do?) Then, once health concerns cancelled board and membership meetings, questions turned to how to transact association business without having physical meetings. (See: The Coronavirus, Flu, and HOA/Condo Association Meetings and “Let’s Have Our Meeting Online!”) Now, with the extended health and economic crisis, association boards are concerned both about the association’s finances … Continue reading →

This is one of three articles on dealing with the Coronavirus and its impact. This blog looks at how associations can protect the association as well as responsibilities. See also The Coronavirus, Flu, and HOA/Condo Association Meetings and “Let’s Have Our Meeting or Convention Online!” Since our blog last week on The Coronavirus, Flu, and HOA/Condo Association Meetings, there has been an increase in U.S. Coronavirus cases, including one death in Washington state. That has led to a number of questions from association boards to the effect of: “Thanks for the blog, but what should we DO to protect the … Continue reading →

Community Association Law Day is always one of the most popular programs of the North Carolina Chapter of the Community Associations Institute. This year there are TWO: Charlotte on Friday, February 28 and Raleigh on Friday, March 13. Attendees include HOA/condo board members, community leaders, and community managers. Speakers include many of the best community association professionals in the state. Five Law Firm Carolinas attorneys will be presenting at the 2020 Community Association Law Days (a record!). Here are their topics: What HOA/Condo Leaders Need to Know About Meeting Procedure & Robert’s Rules of Order – Jim Slaughter. Running community … Continue reading →