| Below is a list of questions that we answer on a monthly basis. If you would like to read the answers, click here to become a member or to login.
Window Replacement Tax Credit
June 2010
Our community association is planning to replace the windows in our 100-unit community with energy-efficient upgrades. A member of the board recalls reading about a federal tax credit for projects like this one, but he can’t remember the details. Can you provide any information?
On-Line Advertising, For Sale by Owner
May 2010
Is it permissible for community associations to allow owners to advertise units for sale or rent on the community’s Web site? If this advertising is allowed is it also a good practice? Are there any legal or other considerations of which our board should be aware as we consider this question?
Over 55 Communities
April 2010
I live in a senior community in Massachusetts, restricted to owners 55 and over. About three-quarters of the units have been sold, but the developer is having trouble selling the rest, so he wants to lift the age restrictions to expand the pool of potential buyers, essentially opening the community to anyone who wants to live here. Is this legal? And what, if anything, can the existing owners, who bought here specifically because of the age restriction, do to block this change?
Shopping the Association's Insurance Policy
March 2010
We are planning to put our association’s master insurance policy out to bid this year. Is it permissible to have more than one agent solicit bids from carriers on our behalf?
Planting Rights
February 2010
Several years ago, a homeowner in our community planted about 15 shrubs on common property adjacent to his home. No one currently on the board recalls the installation, and it appears that no one questioned it at the time. Because the shrubs had become overgrown and scraggly, we had our landscape contractor prune and shape them last summer. The owner objected, claiming that the shrubs belong to him and insisting that the association has no right to interfere with them. To clarify matters, and prevent similar problems in the future, the board recently approved an amendment to the associationˇ¦s by-laws stating that:
• All plantings on common area are the property of the association and will be cared for by the associationˇ¦s landscaping contractor; and
• Owners who wish to plant on common ground must obtain prior written permission from the board.
Now, the homeowner is insisting that the HOA must either compensate him for the plantings or agree not to prune or otherwise touch them. How should our volunteer board handle this?
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