The Board of Directors is responsible for enforcing the terms outlined in the Association’s community instruments. While some violations are straightforward to identify and address, such as unauthorized improvements or improper parking, others, particularly those concerning nuisance clauses like noise or smoking, pose complexities.

A recent legal decision, Carey v. The 400 Condominium Association, sheds light on these challenges. In this case, a resident alleged that the Association failed to address smoke infiltration from a neighboring unit, leading to legal action. The court emphasized the importance of objective assessment in determining if a violation exists.

The ruling highlights key considerations for Board members and community managers, including the need for thorough investigation before issuing violation notices, distinguishing between ordinary and unreasonable nuisances, incorporating clear language and procedures in community rules, and upholding a fiduciary duty to all owners with fairness and objectivity.

Learn more here.

Excessive rentals in a small condominium can create a lot of problems for owner occupants and the board. Absentee owners may not participate or be engaged in the operation and maintenance of the property. Renters may contact the board inappropriately for issues that should be handled by the owner. And when it comes to reselling your unit, a high proportion of rentals could restrict a buyer’s mortgage options.

Restricting the number of rentals in your association, which must be done by adopting an Amendment, is a good move. However, the board needs to think beyond the Amendment to navigate a restriction effectively. This is where Rules & Regulations can help.

Assume you’ve capped rentals at 3. How do you determine who gets those slots? Is there a limit on how long a unit can be rented? What happens when that limit expires? Who has the right to rent when a spot opens? What are the expectations for owners and tenants in rented units?

These are all questions that can be addressed via Rules & Regulations. Join Condoly for a free webinar on Thursday, April 11th to learn more.

Rules & Regulations are vital to every condominium association. Many small associations do not have Rules & Regulations in place, however, simply because they lack knowledge about what they are and how they are created. Here’s what you need to know:

• Rules & Regs (as they are commonly known) exist as a separate document that falls below your Declaration and Bylaws in the legal hierarchy of your governing documents.
• This document dictates how residents are expected to conduct themselves in the community and sets forth the consequences for violations, including fines.
• Rules & Regs are drafted and adopted by the board, which must follow a specific process to make them legally enforceable.
• Rules & Regs can address many topics, including pets, leasing and smoking. They are specific to the issues that exist for your community.

On Thursday, April 11th at 6 pm, Condoly is hosting an educational webinar with its vendor partners to discuss how to create and adopt Rules & Regulations for your condominium association. Condoly will also introduce a DIY tool to help you effortlessly create your own Rules & Regulations document!

Sign up for a Condoly account to access the webinar and Condoly’s vendor matching platform.

Have you reviewed your City of Chicago water bill lately? Here at HausFS we are seeing many clients with bills that, billing cycle after billing cycle, show an estimated reading rather than an actual one. Some clients who take the time to contact the DOW and schedule an actual reading are being rewarded with huge credits once the billing is adjusted to reflect actual usage. In some cases, the problem is a faulty meter that requires replacing for accurate future readings.

We encourage all small condominium associaitons to review their current bills, schedule an actual reading and ensure that you are paying for your actual water usage, not an estimated amount.

Learn more here.