Condo Association Management Blog

you will find your answer in the Florida state law applicable to condominiums. Enter following into your browser-download and/or read 
 
"Rlorida Condominium Act.com"

Florida Comdo Associations are subject to FLST 718 and if as not- for-profit Corporations to FLST 617 
 
 
 
Clause 617.0701 states that the procedures governing an Association's meetings are as set out in the Articles of Incorporation or the By-laws. 
 
You need to refer to these to gain the answers to your questions.

I am very aware of 718 and 617 Unfortunately I did not find anything there to answer my specific question. That's why I asked on this blog. I also know my doc's and it does not give this type of example. 
 
Thank you

Our board in Minnesota held a secret meeting to approve the 2011 budget and the subsequent rate increase. I learned that our bylaws allows this event. Sometimes, I believe our condo is in a Hitler or Stalin dictatorship.

I guess the best way is to ignore every member and do as you dam well please.  
 
It has been 3.5 months since our take over with management service. 
 
We have not heard nothing from them as to voting a new board in, no financial report as promised (monthly), no year end report and no new budget for the year. 
 
I guess you can say I am abandoning the ship for they are going to do as they want. The former board members that quit are eating this up and I am sure enjoying it. Mean while repairs go un-touched, ceilings falling in the exit door-wells,fire extinguishers still out dated from 2005, and management does not return phone calls from 3 of us members. 
 
NOW YOU TELL ME WHAT TO DO AND WHAT IS RIGHT. 
 
As a condo owner I guess you have no rights, so good luck to yours! 
 
HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE! I don't care anymore what the hello they do, as of Jan 31, 2011 I will stop paying my dues to them until I get some kind of respect from the management service, They get no more of my money, can slap a lien on my place and do what they want. When the time comes I will have documented every thing I sent to them and they can go to Hel!

Fl Statutes REQUIRE the Board to hold an annual meeting of the Association membership to VOTE on the Budget. The Board must have a vote either by attendance or proxy. The Board is required by LAW to give PROPER NOTICE of 14 days prior to this vote (718.112(2)(e), F.S). If this was not done, you can call for a Special Meeting of the Association by obtaining 10% of Owners signatures to discuss the Budget, be sure to limit this meeting STRICTLY to the budget. The Board will then have 60 days to arrange this Special Owners Meeting, however they CANNOT run it; it must be run by the Owners delegated Chair. The Board can attend. You will still require a majority to past any budget revisions, including reallocation of funds. You MUST have written minutes of this Special meeting in order for any Management Company to carry-out the OWNERS wishes. The BOARD is REQUIRED by law to maintain a FULLY FUNDED Budget, including reserves. You must continue making your payments in accordance with your last APPROVED budget until the NEW BUDGET is resolved, the Board must have your funds to operate their business properly. IF you have a Management Company, request that the Board invite their Manager to this meeting to provide guidance and advise on what can and cannot be in the budget. CAUTION, don't short-cut anything! MAKE SURE YOU'RE FULLY FUNDED or you will be forking out money for Special Assessments.

I assume your fiscal year is Jan. thro' December.  
 
in that case,a good Associationwould have passed the new budget around the end of November, when the membership had the opportunity to decide to include either full or partial reserves in their budget. 
 
The reserves amount is the only thing the owners get to vote on; the board decides whether or not to pass the budget and they HAVE to propose full reserves (whatever that actually means!)  
 
A quorum is when a majority of the board is present....not any number of the membership (owners).

John C, I respectfully disagree on some of your comment. In FLA Condo Assoc. we need a majority of the membership to either be present at the budget meeting or by proxy, in order to vote to waive or not on 3 issues, Rolling Over Funds, Financial Reporting, and Partially or Fully Funding reserves. The Board votes on passing their Adopted Budget. 
 
We have 67 units, 35 would be our membership quorum, only 29 were recieved. The meeting was not adjourned for lack of membership quorum,the President made a statement saying we will have to collect what we need and it will be ratified at the next meeting, and today the President was out pounding the pavement to collect the 6 proxies they needed. 
 
In addition, The offical notice was not posted and when this was brought up to the President, 30 minutes before the original meeting was to take place it was cancelled with a simple note saying Budget meeting resecheduled for Dec. 28th. Then less than 48 hours before the Dec. 28th meeting was to take place A note was posted, saying "Budget meeting will be same time and place" as your previous notice that was mailed to you. Board Meeting will follow Budget meeting and then a few agenda items included. 
 
I have never in all my years seen this type of protocol for a budget meeting. Since the first meeting was cancelled. It just shows me that this current board is uneducated and could careless about what the proper and right thing to do is. My concern is, "Is this legal" according to FLA STAT 718, I can't find anything that relates to this type of occurrence. 
 
I was told that they could ajourn and reconvene within 90 days, if a membership quorum was not met. But I would suspect that some type of mailed notice would be appropriate since many homeowners don't live on property.

Are you aware that the Florioda condominium act has a unique clause. Under this change to the law newly elected members tyo a board have 90 days to submit an affidavit attesteing to their knowledge of the documents,the bylaws and thre state law. Should they as board mnembers fail to foolw this battery of rules they can suffer legal penalties. In case of violation of a state law they are not protected by any hold harmless clause in your bylaws because such an act is illegal and they veawre the responibility on their own.

Scott, who are you asking that question to? 
 
I am very well aware of it. It came into effect July 1st. Any board member can sign a certificate printed off the state's site and sign it, without even taking the Board educational classes, which I think is a crying shame! I think it should be mandatory! Once they find out they have to have a signed certificate they print it out sign it and that's it they are back to their ways. As far as being held personally liable, there is still the "Business Judgement" hurdle to get past. I would like to see some cases where what your saying has held up.

THE FIRST THING I DO EVERY MORNING WHILE WAITING FOR THE COFFEE TO BREW, IS TO READ THIS BLOG. IF I'VE SAID THIS ONCE, I'VE SAID IT HUNDREDS OF TIMES. IF I KNEW BEFORE I BOUGHT A CONDO, WHAT I KNOW NOW, I WOULDN'T TOUCH ONE. I LOVE MY CONDO, BUT THE BOARD MAKES LIVING IN IT DEPRESSING.  
 
 
 
AFTER READING MANY MANY COMMENTS, IT SEEMS IT'S THE BOARDS THAT CAUSE THE PROBLEMS. WHAT REALLY UPSETS ME, THE BOARD MEMBERS WERE ONCE OWNERS WHO COMPLAINED ABOUT THE BOARD AND NOW THEY'RE DOING THE SAME THING.  
 
DON'T YOU ALL AGREE, BOARDS ARE THE BIGGEST PROBLEM, A CONDO OWNER HAS?

Sorry but I don't agree. The main problem is the failure of unit owners to actively participate by attending meetimngs and forcefully making their views known especially when the Board is iviolating docyments,bylaws or state condo act. Living in a conso is a two way street you vs the board and you with the board.

NANA - I do not agree with you. Boards are not the problem, lack of OWNER involvement is. A dictatorial board can be voted out of office or they can be recalled if they do not operate on behalf of the OWNERS, its annual in FL to vote in a new Board. Become pro-active with YOUR responsibilities as an Owner. Far to many owners allow themselves to be bullied rather than stand up for their beliefs. Educate yourselves, all Condo documents are available to the Owners, Laws are available via the Internet, blogs abound, legal representation is available and so on. Take courses on Condo protocol and procedures. Many respectable firms provide these FREE. This all is especially true in FL. Our State practically bends over backwards to provide a ton of information to Condo owners. They'll even send you a CD on Rules, Law and Procedures. Very respectable LAW FIRMS present seminars on Condo Law, Budgets and so on. However, far to many Owners don't bother, they just want to go around with blinders on - this isn't for me. I'll fight!

CEB)--well said. Boards only become a problem because of apathy on part of unit oqwners. It;s your money-stand up and demand a voice in how it's spent

May I ask how many of you that do not agree with me, are on or have been on a condo board?  
 
I have been very active as an owner. So have many of my neighbors. The board thinks their interpretation of the by-laws is the law, and what you think is not even considered, even if you try to explain your interpretation of the law.. We have been told we have to patch cracks in the foundation and do tuck pointing on the brick of our condo. We have to replace our gutters, cut down trees and replace them at our expense.  
 
We have never had a vote where proxies have been given out to those who cannot make a meeting, we have never had a notice of any meetings until the day before. The only meeting that is posted is the date of the next year's meeting, and it is put into the minutes of this years meeting, and it is up to you to remember it next year.. 
 
I can go on and on but all I want to say now is, we have demanded,we've threatened to get a lawyer, only to be told we are wasting our money and now I think the only way to get out of this mess is to move. No working with this board.

Nana - read my last comment. BECOME PRO-ACTIVE, run for the Board, ban together with other like-minded owners and boot out your bad Board. To simply moan and complain isn't pro-active, it's simply moaning & complaining. If your Board isn't complying with the Law then DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT, you have many options to you if you live in Florida. To answer your last question, yes I'm a pro-active owner, I read FL Law, study FL Administrative Code, subscribe to a Condo magazine, attend seminars and trade shows, attend Board meetings, argue my point based on Statues and our by-laws and Articles of Incorporation and I've been on the Board as well and intend to run again in several months. I don't profess to know all the answers, but you can bet I will not stand to be bullied by any Board that doesn't act in our owners best interests or comply with the Law.

@cebo. My husband was on the board and after months of being bullied because his interpretation of the law was not the same as theirs, he resigned.  
 
We live in Illinois but we also have a condo in Fl. We have read both Illinois and Florida's state laws, as well as the Association laws. We bring them with us when we go to meetings. The state of Florida protects condo owners and you can call Tallahassee and talk to someone about your problems. Illinois does not have a dept. that takes care of Condo problems.  
 
I can see you are as passionate as my husband was when he was on the board. There was only one other on the board that agreed with him. 
 
We are in the winter of our lives, and we don't need this aggravation ,nor do we want waste our days fighting a board

Dear Nana - I understand your situation regarding the aggravation. I too dislike the fight but I won't stand for idiots or bullies. Sometimes it just takes fire to fight fire. It can be very frustrating when you feel like your the only one trying to hold back the tide. I must endeavor to persevere for 8-10 more years in my condo. Then I'll fully retire to my house in AR, in a very small town that has not even one Condo. I guess they say, live and learn.