Condo Association Management Blog

Ours is a condo association set up basically like yours, ie: individual patio like homes. The common area, or common grounds, refers to all grassed areas throughout the complex. 
Sidewalks, walkways, driveways, etc are referred to as limited common areas. The association is responsible for all the common areas in our development. This consists of maintaining lawns, shrubbery, pruning and all general landscaping.

When the condominium was chartered you filed a you filed a property description. That document defines the property and should also define or code common and limited common areas. Do not try and redefine the property without adequate legal support.

IN JUNE OF 2011 A WRITTEN STATEMENT WAS ADDED {QUOTE} AT THE END OF 45DAYS ALL CONDOS WILL BE INSPECTED AND OWNERS THAT HAVE NEGLECTED TO REPAIR THE LEAKS AND WATER LINES WILL HAVE THEM FIXED BY YOUNGS'S SUNCOAST AT THE OWNERS EXPENSE. 
 
OWNERS HAVE 45 DAYS FROM THE RECEIPT OF THIS LETTER TO CHECK ALL FIXTURES IN THEIR CONDOS FOR LEAKS REPAIR OR REPLACE IF NEEDED 
 
THIS LETTER WAS NOT SIGNED. ONLY TYPED {BOARD OF DIRECTORS.}ONE OF THIS COMPANY RENTER LEFT THE FAUCET ON IN THE BATHTUB AND CAUSE LOTS OF DAMAGE TO CONDO. 
 
HOW SHOULD WE RESPOND? AND IS THIS LEGAL? 
 

First of all have you looked for a "definitions" section to your CCRs? It could be an appendix. IMO, "grounds" means the common areas. I, too, live in a planned community where each h/o owns the property surrounding his home. It's common knowledge that in a planned community each individual property owner is resp. for the maint of his own property unless specifically stated in the CCRs that the assn will maintain private property of the members, sometimes just the front yards. The assn is only resp for maint of the common areas which are owned by the assn.  
 
Absent a definition in the CCRs, the board may adopt a rule to define "grounds" IF (and only IF)the CCRs give the board the authority to adopt rules and/or to interpret the gov. docs. Most do give this authority to the board, and I would be really surprised if yours didn't!!

Caroline. Yout post would be better served ig it stood alone. Wht raise a totally unrelated problem to that posed and confuse the issue and the reader??

We have a president of our board that does exactly what he want - if it is in our bylaws or not. The board just sits and allows this. When the homeowners address this at a meeting he belittles them. He has told the homeowners that all mail sent among the homeowners has to go thru the office. We have no freedom of speech here and if you address it to Tallahassee they do nothing - what can we do?

Jack, 
 
 
 
You don't have to obey his dictatorial commands. You don't have to send your letter, addressed to another member of the assn, to go through the board. I'm sure that isn't specified in the gov. docs. The members should quit cow-towing to him and rebel against his ridiculous antics. If I were you I would be seriously tempted to mount a recall of not only him but all the board members. By sitting back and letting him dictate makes the other board members no better than him. Get all your friends together and show them that you all will not sit idly by and let them rule like dictators. Look in your gov docs and state law for info addressing recalls.

I had the same problem owners wanted to know where the common areas were. We are townhomes connected together. The past president said to use for a rule of thumb the front brick pier the farthest one out of our five units and take it across the front of the yards. We cover everything behind that brick pier as homeowners - common area is anything in front of the brick pier. For the back we have cedar siding fences that divide the units - take that pier and go across and we cover everything inside and common area covers everything out including the pond that separates the next street of 5 units. I went to the RMC (City hall) and found a plat that shows exactly what we had been told. I got help from the ladies in that dept. so not to waste so much time looking. I made copies for every owner and it actually shows a red line on our common areas to separate it from our own lots that we have to take care of.We are in Charleston, SC.Maybe this will help you to look for your own plat.