Associations often require that prospective tenants submit pages and pages of paperwork, undergo background and credit checks, and pay application fees. The reason for disapproval must also meet the requirements of statutes. The fee may not be more than $100 per applicant and a husband/wife or parent/dependent child are considered one applicant. While associations can apply the screening process to deny buyers and renters, the decision cannot be discriminatory or violate the Fair Housing Act. In sum, Florida law does not allow condominium associations to discriminate against someone who is renting a unit in the condominium. Nevertheless, nobody that I know has received the package. Other grounds that might be argued to be reasonable in connection with the disapproval of an applicant seeking to reside in a community may include the following: (1) the applicant has been convicted by a court of a felony involving violence to persons or property, or a felony demonstrating dishonesty or moral turpitude, and has not had their The law has been clarified and expressly provides that the provisions in the Condominium Act (Chapter 718) will prevail in any conflict with the provisions governing the Florida Not for Profit Corporation Act (Chapter 617). 1995); U.S. v. Weiss, 847 F. Supp. Section 718.104 (5) Florida Statutes provides that a declaration of condominium, as originally recorded or as amended, may include restrictions concerning use, occupancy and transfer of units. HOME; . Court cases have held that when an association has the unfettered right to disapprove a sale, such unlimited authority can be unenforceable as an unreasonable restriction on the ability of an owner to sell. Addressing any flaws in the Associations tenant application process now may help to prevent or reduce litigation down the road. Client Payment. Developer Use of Sales or Reservation Deposits Prior to Closing Section 718.202, F.S., (SB 630, Page 50). Under the new Condo Board crime law, any Condo Board member that destroys an official document or record of the Condo Association "in furtherance of a crime" commits a crime. The association can also charge a security deposit in connection with approval of a lease, not to exceed the equivalent of one months rent, but only if the authority to do so is in the declaration or bylaws. HOAs sometimes limit what types of equipment can be stored outside your home. the association may not allow access to "Information obtained by an association in connection with the approval of the lease, sale, or other transfer of a parcel."8 The Condominium Act provides an additional statutory ground . Additionally, the federal Fair Housing Act1 (more commonly referred to as the FHA) and Floridas Fair Housing Act2 each provide numerous protections from discrimination by housing providers, including condominium associations. An overview of florida condominium association collections of past due maintenance fees. I would also recommend reviewing the associations bylaws as this document sometimes contains notice requirements which are more restrictive than the statutory requirements. Section 718.110(13), Florida Statutes states that the rental restriction applies to condominium owners who acquire title to their units after the effective date of that amendment and to those who consent to the amendment. The legislature was apparently aghast and shortly after the Supreme Courts decision amended Floridas Condominium Act. 2. What Every Condominium Association Needs to Know About Security Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, A: No. The firm represents community associations throughout Florida and focuses on condominium and homeowner association law, real estate law, litigation, estate planning and business law. Please do not include any confidential or sensitive information in a contact form, text message, or voicemail. By January 1, 2019, a Condominium Association in Florida with 150 or more units (not including timeshare units) must have an independent website or web-portal owned and operated solely by the Association or operated by a third party provider on behalf of the Association. . Courtesy Notice of Late Assessment Section 718.121(5), F.S., (SB 56, Page 12). Your Florida Condominium Association Hurricane Preparedness Plan ; Your Florida Condominium Board Member Electronic Voting and Communication Policy ; Florida Condominium Association Board Election Procedures: Florida Statute 718.112(2)(d) and Florida Administrative Code (F.A.C.) Statutes & Constitution :View Statutes : Online Sunshine 718.116(4) of the Condominium Act states: " If the association is authorized by the declaration or bylaws to approve or disapprove a proposed lease of a unit, the grounds for disapproval may include, but are not limited to, a unit owner being delinquent in the payment of an assessment at the time approval is sought." That did not retroactively protect the investor group in the Jahren case, but protects owners now. 1. / SB 630, Page 9), (c) The association may not require a unit owner to demonstrate any purpose or state any reason for inspecting the official records of the association. Submitting a contact form, sending a text message, making a phone call, or leaving a voicemail does not create an attorney-client relationship. Transfer Restrictions (Community Association Quarterly) Is there enough time to conduct the election? No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism Is this a valid protocol? As such, it is unclear how to treat a candidate running for the Board that is more than 90 days delinquent in a monetary obligation other than an assessment. Tenant Approval Procedures Some HOA's are placing themselves in a position to actually screen the tenants that a non-occupant owner selects to rent. Estoppel | Florida Realtors Generally speaking, if an association's recorded governing documents do not contain the authority to evict a tenant within the condominium, then the association probably does not have the power to do so, unless there is a separate written agreement delegating that authority from the unit owner/landlord. Phone: (561) 471-1366 The statute does not actually provide that minutes concerning a board meeting with counsel are exempt, but I would advise my clients to protect those minutes until the litigation is resolved. Fines Due Date Section 718.303(b), F.S., (SB 630, Page 53). This new law also addresses a growing concern among landlords and condo boards, wherein tenants have been wrongfully passing off their pets as Emotional Support Animals by obtaining illegitimate ESA letters and certificates online. However, those exceptions are limited to: (a) rental restrictions that prohibit or regulate lease terms which are less than 6 months; and (b) rental restrictions that prohibit rentals of a parcel more than three times in a calendar year. The Association should be prepared to provide this explanation even if the Associations governing documents do not require the Association to do so. (1) If a landlord requires a prospective tenant to complete a rental application before residing in a rental unit, the landlord must complete processing of a rental application submitted by a prospective tenant who is a servicemember, as defined in s. 250.01, within 7 days after submission and must, within that 7-day period, notify the As a preliminary matter, the Associations governing documents may not even grant the Association the power to approve or deny prospective tenants. The investment group appealed and was successful, with the appellate court ruling that the change was a deprivation of property rights. Cape Coral, FL 33904 Florida laws guarantee these rights to associations, but The Fair Housing Act still applies in regard to race, religion, age, etc. Changing rental rules were addressed by Floridas Supreme Court in the 2002 case of, Woodside Village Condominium Association v. Jahren. So, it is possible that the rule is valid, but you should first have the Declaration and the rule analyzed by a licensed Florida attorney to determine whether the authority is properly vested in the board. New Florida Condo Law: Bad Condo Boards Face New Criminal Charges On June 14, 2021, the Florida Legislature sent Senate Bill 630 to Governor DeSantis to be signed into law. A:Yes, the statutes only require that the notice of the meeting along with the election materials be sent at least fourteen (14) days before the meeting and election. Competent legal counsel should be consulted if you have questions regarding compliance with the law. 5. The Board of Directors of many condominium associations takes their approval responsibility seriously, and they should. Therefore, to ascertain what approval rights the association may have regarding a prospective tenant or purchaser, the association should begin by reviewing its own governing documents. In that case, the purchaser was African American and established that he was denied approval because of his race. That case started when an investment group bought a condominium and the owners in the condominium later amended the declaration to limit rentals.
2. If the Declaration of Condominium expressly provides that the Association has approval and denial authority, case law indicates that a Board has "good cause" to deny a lease based on a tenant's failure to previously honor the rules in that particular condominium association. Condo Application Fees - What is Legal in Florida. To reign in that abuse, the 2017 legislature again amended Floridas Condominium Act to cap the fee for estoppel letters at $250. A landlord typically has a lease that allows the landlord to give the tenant a certain amount of time to correct a problem, move out, or face eviction. An arbitrary disapproval of a tenant or purchaser is likely to be unenforceable. / SB 630, Page 40), 12. When weighing the information discovered during the application process, the Association must consider: (i) whether the Associations process for approving and/or rejecting prospective tenant applications complies with the Associations governing documents and current laws; (ii) whether the evaluation criteria used by the Association will have a disparate impact on a minority group; and (iii) whether the Association can provide a prospective tenant with a specific and appropriate reason for rejection. Again, the restrictions will not apply to rental restrictions that are in place prior to July 1, 2021. In Florida, there must be some authority for a Board of Directors to create or promulgate rules and regulations regarding use or occupancy of the property. community association leasing restrictions, Miami Herald Real Estate Column by Christyne Santisteban: Growing Condo Association Budgets Require Deft Touch by Directors, Property Managers, Community Associations Institutes Condo Safety Initiatives Recognized with Prestigious Public Affairs Council Award, Herald Column by Gary Mars: National Media Focuses on Impact of Floridas New Condo Safety Law on Association Budgets. Condominiums must apply approval procedures with an even hand. To view past articles, please click Publications on our firm website. The statute does not limit estoppel fees to condos with such authority in their governing documents so every Florida condominium can charge the fee unless its governing documents prohibit it. (d) Construction Lien Section 718.121(2), F.S., (SB 630, Page 35). That case started when an investment group bought a condominium and the owners in the condominium later amended the declaration to limit rentals. For a condominium association, the limit on rental restrictions, found in Section 718.110(13), Florida Statutes, provides as follows: An amendment prohibiting unit owners from renting their units or altering the duration of the rental term or specifying or limiting the number of times unit owners are entitled to rent their units during a specified period applies only to unit owners who consent to the amendment and unit owners who acquire title to their units after the effective date of that amendment.. Unreasonable restraints on the alienation of property are disfavored by Florida courts. Specifically, the Department of Housing and Urban Development has warned housing providers of potential FHA liability for denying tenant applications based on requests by individuals with disabilities to reside with assistance animals.5 Associations must be careful to ensure that their tenant application policy and reasons for denying tenant applications do not have a disparate impact on any particular race, sex, or people of any particular national origin or familial status, or for that matter, on people with disabilities. of Housing and Community Affairs, 135 S.Ct. Additionally, the Associations governing documents may or may not include the power to accept or reject a tenant for any reason or without having to provide an explanation. Require pets to be spayed or neutered. 5 See Mem. If the Declaration provides, for example, only that the owner is required to provide a copy of the lease to the association, the implication is that the Board has no right to approve or deny and that the board only has a right to demand a copy. Insurance Subrogation Section 627.714(4), F.S., (SB 630, Page 5). Q:Our community has a very strict tenant screening process and my neighbor has had multiple tenants denied due to poor background checks. If the Bylaws do not specify a timeframe for written notice of a meeting other than an annual meeting, notice must be provided at least 14 continuous days before the meeting. It is dangerous for Associations to deny tenant applications without having a specific, justifiable basis, as such a rejection may open the Association up to potential liability. The Association should carefully consider its policy regarding tenant applications, specifically the criteria used by the Association in making its decisions, to ensure that valid interests are protected by such policy. FCAP (Florida Community Association Professionals) is a member-based professional organization dedicated to training, equipping and advocating for Florida community association professionals including managers, service providers and community volunteer leaders. Below is a summary of the changes to the condominium law made pursuant to Senate Bill 56, Senate Bill 602, Senate Bill 630, and Senate Bill 1966, that all managers, Board members, and condominium residents must become familiar with before the changes become effective on July 1, 2021. Documents provided to NPR show the board approved seeking a $15 million line of credit on April 13, 2021. All Rights Reserved. Maintenance, Repair and Replacement Responsibility Within Your If the Association does have tenant approval power, whatever the reason for rejecting the tenant, the Association must be prepared to explain. However, some association boards of directors are under the misconception that they can easily develop and implement new leasing restrictions via a board vote, and that they have the authority to approve or reject prospective tenants as they please without facing any scrutiny of their decisions. This new statutory provision will be reflected in a new subsection (h), to be added to Section 720.306 of the Florida Statutes. The unit owner is responsible for complying with all federal, state, or local laws or regulations applicable to the installation, maintenance, or removal of an electric vehicle charging station or a natural gas charging station.