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Is board close-minded about open meetings?
Q: I am a member of a large multi-unit condominium association. To what extent is our association governed by the open meetings act? Can resident owners be permitted to ask questions or make reasonable comments to board members or the property manager...
Tags: Housing and Urban Planning, Real Estate Buyers, Federal Housing Administration, Politics, Interior Policy
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Condo policies can help or hurt property values
It takes more than a neat, attractive condominium or town house to make a sale at a fair price. Buyers have heard the horror stories of steep special assessments and deteriorating buildings. They expect the association to make a good impression as well as...
Tags: Religion and Belief, Values, Property, Finance, Lobbying
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Small community associations have pluses, minuses
The residential real estate market is slowly improving, and condominiums and town homes are again being built. But instead of massive towers and sprawling subdivisions, developments are far smaller in size. One example is Wicker West 1555, a nine-unit,...
Tags: Real Estate Buyers, Litigation, Real Estate, Trials, Services and Shopping
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Can board expedite foreclosure sale?
Q: We have a unit that has been in foreclosure for about 24 months. The owner moved out a year and a half ago. No one has paid assessments on this unit since the owner left. The bank has yet to proceed with a foreclosure sale. I know that the...Tags: Foreclosures, Housing and Urban Planning, Real Estate, Politics, Services and Shopping
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Pet weight limit puts dog owner on the spot
Q: Last summer I was shopping for a condominium and the MLS listing stated a weight limit for dogs in a particular building. Before making an offer, I contacted the management company and was told that the association does not enforce a pet weight limit....
Tags: Physical Fitness and Exercise, Housing and Urban Planning, Property, Rentals, Politics
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Complex's ownership rate too low for refinancing
Q: I am an owner of a small one-bedroom condominium that I purchased three years ago in a condo conversion. The original developer is still selling or renting units. Unfortunately, my unit is worth roughly 60 percent of what I still owe on mortgages for...
Tags: Golf, Sports, Building Material, Credit Ratings, Rentals
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Lowering assessments will hurt association in long run
Q. I serve on my condominium board of directors. Three new board members were elected on a platform of lowering our monthly assessments or at least guarantee that they will not be raised for the foreseeable future. The current board over my objection has...Tags: Voting, Housing and Urban Planning, Rentals, Politics, Elections
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Owners have a right to see financial records
Q: I am the treasurer of a town house condominium association. I have repeatedly asked to see the state and federal income tax returns filed by the association, only to be told that it is confidential information. I cannot even find out who signed the tax...Tags: Voting, Housing and Urban Planning, Finance, Insurance, Crime, Law and Justice
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Buyer of foreclosed unit must pay legal fees
Editor's note: This is the final column written by Chicago attorney Mark Pearlstein, who died Tuesday after a long illness. Since 1988, Mark had written a weekly column on condominium and homeowner association law for the Tribune, and we are deeply...Tags: Housing and Urban Planning, Finance, Crime, Law and Justice, Annual and Special Corporate Meetings, Mark Pearlstein
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Bankruptcy does not prevent actions to collect assessments
Q. I am on the board of a medium-size homeowners association of 150 units. Collection problems make budgeting a definite challenge. One owner has been in bankruptcy for several years and has not paid monthly assessments in more than three years. The...Tags: Financially Distressed Companies, Housing and Urban Planning, Finance, Bankruptcy, Economy, Business and Finance
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Condos and HOAs can create rules for service pets
Florida and federal housing laws pretty much bend over backward to accommodate owners and renters who need pets to help deal with disabilities, physical and emotional. But what about protecting condominium and homeowners who purposely purchased into...Tags: Boynton Beach, Crime, Law and Justice, Judges, Lobbying, Justice System
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Owner seeks lowdown on building materials
Q: Our board is proposing a $12 million special assessment, of which $9million is considered an emergency. Owners will vote on the nonemergency expenses. The special assessment will fund the replacement of the windows (long overdue), repair the roof and...Tags: Companies and Corporations, Economy, Business and Finance
Sep 20, 2012
|Column| Chicago Tribune
Sep 20, 2012
|Column| Chicago Tribune
Jan 17, 2013
|Column| Chicago Tribune
Aug 30, 2012
|Column| Chicago Tribune
Aug 23, 2012
|Column| Chicago Tribune
Jul 19, 2012
|Column| Chicago Tribune
Jul 27, 2012
|Column| Chicago Tribune
Aug 2, 2012
|Column| Chicago Tribune
Dec 14, 2012
|Column| Chicago Tribune
May 11, 2012
|Column| Chicago Tribune
May 8, 2012
|Column| South Florida Sun-Sentinel
Jun 1, 2012
|Column| Chicago Tribune
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