Local association boards often fluctuate between doing what is legally expected of the community and doing what is right. Case in point – pets. Many communities prohibit pets for obvious reasons: noise, odor, additional burden on lawns and property, and so on. But sticking to a strict policy can put your organization in legal hot water.
This is because some owners require the use of service animals.
Seeing Eye dogs are an obvious exception to your table rules. And it should be dismissed because denying a person with a disability the right to an assistance animal is a direct violation of state and federal disability laws. However, hoa lawyer Florida goes to great lengths to claim disability in order to keep pets that would not fall under the definition of a service animal. How about a service monkey helping the disabled or a horse guiding the blind? This is an area of the law that lacks clear definition, and although the Department of Justice has a pending proposal to remove exotic animals (such as snakes or other wild animals), there is no binding rule set a vague.
So how do you as an organization decide who in your community
Needs a service animal and who doesn’t? What kind of animal is considered a service animal and what kind is not? And more importantly, can you legally make these decisions? While your community organization may not be comfortable explaining what a service animal is, you can set conditions for how that animal interacts with the rest of the community. For example, if a resident says they need their pet raccoon to relieve stress, your board may require that the animal stay within 500 feet of another resident.
Running a community organization is no easy task.
This can be a daunting task if your organization is a self-governing community. Compliance with law changes, insurance policies, insurance collections, restrictions on paperwork can be very difficult to maintain consistently without proper infrastructure and a serious time commitment.
Recently, we have seen an increasing trend of independent organizations contacting us for support within their local organization. We believe a number of recent developments contributed to this recent trend:
He is overworked and underpaid
The members of the local board are generally elected or voluntarily elected to positions by their community members. It is understood, of course, that there is a time commitment involved, but many people underestimate just how big that commitment can be. Most people are already nearing their peak with their families, careers and other real life responsibilities. Adding a community manager to their already full plate is a lot to ask for. When we talk to organizations, we always tell them that their organization’s board members are hoa lawyer Florida, if it becomes another JOB then it’s time to change something. In many cases, that means partnering with our company to help them eliminate a lot of work.
HOA and Condo compliance
Here in Texas, we just went through the largest review of our HOA and Condo Association law in state history. The main focus of these changes in the Local Partnership Act is financial and record transparency. Without appropriate legislative measures and amendments to existing local association policies, many associations will not comply. A large number of organizations that do not fully comply with current legal reforms are now subject to self-regulation. Expecting a group of voluntary union members to be able to interpret major changes in the law and then implement the appropriate changes so that their organizations are 100% compliant is simply absurd. Having a Florida condo association by your side to guide you through all the legal changes in your neighborhood can be a real lifesaver. Any good company manager should focus on eliminating potentially legal liabilities,
Economic profitability
Many community members who were initially involved in the private sector were very hostile towards their community management company. Most assumed that because their current administrative services were provided free of charge, they resisted paying someone else to provide these services. What most board members don’t get is the immediate income that comes from having a financier working for you. We have generally reduced the cost of supplies, statistics collection, service contracts, insurance and even maintenance in our communities. These small changes and changes can add up quickly. We even saw a few cases where the regions overall operating costs fell below budgets or our monthly operations.
