This week’s opinions from the North Carolina Court of Appeals contained three cases involving community associations. That’s about a record, and further evidence of the growing trend in terms of the number of reported HOA/condo appellate cases. One case, Kimler vs. The Crossings at Sugar Hill Property Owner’s Association, Inc. (August 2, 2016), involves the process for amending a declaration in a homeowners association created prior to 1999. While the case doesn’t provide groundbreaking new law, it does support a position HOA attorneys have argued for several years. In short, the Crossings at Sugar Hill (the “Association”) was created as a … Continue reading →

For those in the community association industry watching this year’s legislative session, it was fairly quiet. Of the 10 or so legislative proposals specifically dealing with homeowner or condominium associations still alive for the two-year session (see this recent Legislative Update), only a few bills even received discussion. None were adopted. In that regard, 2016 was uneventful. That said, one significant legislative act NOT specifically related to HOA’s and condos will almost certainly cost community associations money. And may require some community association budgets to be increased. And it has to do with sales taxes. For many years North Carolina … Continue reading →

At this time of year we often get questions from homeowners, managers, condominium and homeowners association boards about what flags may be displayed and under what circumstances. In South Carolina, both federal law and state law come into play. South Carolina law provides that homeowners associations and condominiums in South Carolina must permit the display of one portable, removable United States flag in a respectful manner, consistent with federal law, on the premises of the property of which he is entitled to use. Federal Law provides that homeowners associations and condominiums “may not adopt or enforce any policy, or enter … Continue reading →

Since my last update, the North Carolina CAI Chapter has realized some great achievements! Annual Conference & Expo The 2016 Annual Conference in Greensboro was a huge success! There were more than 225 attendees representing 32 management companies and 5 communities. That’s one of our largest attendance figures ever, and certainly a record for the Triad! Sixty exhibit booths were sold. And a little more than a quarter of this year’s attendees were first-time attendees, which speaks well for the future. Evaluations by conference participants also provided other valuable information. 89% of attendees rated the overall Annual Conference experience as … Continue reading →

For attorneys who practice community association law, there has been ongoing discussion at national HOA/condo legal events about whether a community manager is covered by the attorney-client privilege. In general the attorney-client privilege shields communications between an association and its attorney for materials prepared in anticipation of litigation or trial. Such communications usually lose their privilege if made in the presence of a third party. The concern has been that if legal communications that would otherwise be privileged are between the attorney and manager or if a manger is copied on a legal communication to the association, does that waive … Continue reading →

As 2016 President of the NC Chapter of the Community Associations Institute, I provide an update in each issue of “Serving NC,” the state CAI Chapter newsletter. Look for the new issue, which should arrive this week. However, I wanted to provide my most recent update, which provides information on some of the Chapter’s many activities.  For more details, visit the Chapter website at www.cai-nc.org. Also, mark your calendar and register ASAP for the 2016 NC-CAI Annual Conference and Expo on April 7-8 in Greensboro at the Sheraton Four Seasons. This will be a great event! Julie Adamen of HOA Manager Newsline is the keynote speaker. Learning sessions include excellent … Continue reading →

The City of Charlotte’s next fiscal year draft budget proposes to stop trash service for multifamily units. Such a move would be exceptionally unfair to owners of townhomes and condominium, who pay property taxes like other homeowners. While a Charlotte based dispute might not seem to directly impact you if you don’t live in the city, it does. Cash-strapped municipalities around the country are looking for more ways to push costs for previously provided services from the city to homeowners, often in planned communities or condominium associations. If such reductions in services become the norm in Charlotte, you can be assured they will soon appear elsewhere. Below … Continue reading →

Homeowner and condominium associations have become a major force in our state. North Carolina’s population recently passed 10 million, making it the 9th largest state. However, we are the 5th largest state in number of community associations. That equates to almost 14,000 associations with more than 2 million residents! With this growth has come an explosion of media coverage and legislative proposals concerning homeowner and condominium associations. Such changes mean the education, professional credentialing, online and printed resources, networking opportunities, and advocacy that CAI provides are more important than ever. There are four CAI membership categories Information on membership category dues and benefits can … Continue reading →

As highlighted in his recent blog post, Jim Slaughter of Law Firm Carolinas., noted the explosion of drone purchasing and use. This post is designed to supplement Jim’s summary of specific drone-related laws passed in North Carolina by providing an update on specific South Carolina drone-related laws. The recent Christmas season shows that drone purchases are on the rise in South Carolina and nationwide. South Carolina law does not define what type of aircraft would constitute a drone. While most proposed rules and regulations use the terms Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (“UAV”) or Unmanned Aircraft System (“UAS”), South Carolina’s proposed legislation … Continue reading →

A rather unusual community association decision was issued yesterday by the North Carolina Court of Appeals. Without question, the facts are rather convoluted and not of that much interest to other associations, but there’s one takeaway worth noting. In Bilodeau v. Hickory Bluffs Community Services Association, Inc. et al., owners in a homeowners association were called to a hearing before the board pursuant to NCGS § 47F-3-107.1 for alleged violations of the declaration. The owners were fined, but during the pendency of a lawsuit about the hearing and fine a new board was elected, which immediately voted to cease imposition of … Continue reading →

The Fair Housing Act (“FHA”) prohibits discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, or familial status. For years, homeowners association boards of directors have been mindful of the FHA’s requirements and taken care that board decisions do not discriminate against any of these protected classes. The Supreme Court of the United States recently heard and decided a case from the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, Texas Department of Housing & Community Affairs v. The Inclusive Communities Project, Inc. At issue in this particular case was whether a legal theory that has been applied in other discrimination contexts, … Continue reading →

Senate Bill 119 “General Statutes Commission Technical Corrections 2015″ was ratified by the NC General Assembly on September 30, 2015 and signed by Governor McCrory last week. SB 119 becomes the sixth (and final for 2015) piece of legislation to impact community associations enacted into law this year (see First Community Association Bill Signed into Law, Second Community Association Bill Signed into Law, Third Community Association Bill Signed into Law: Landlord/Tenant Foreclosure and Eviction Changes, Fourth Community Association Bill Signed into Law: Streets & Traffic Safety Devices, and Fifth Community Association Bill Signed into Law: Increased Register of Deeds Indexing Fees). For a full list of filed HOA/condo bills, … Continue reading →