Florida has new notary laws that went into effect January 1, 2020. Remote notarization is now permitted. A notary will no longer have to physically (in person) witness the person sign the instrument requiring notarization, but instead notarization can be done through a video feed and record.
There are certain criteria that must be met to
At the time of our last Legislative Update article, the Florida Legislature was working on several bills that would significantly impact community associations on a wide range of issues. However, as the 2020 legislative session closed amid the emerging coronavirus pandemic, most of the bills geared specifically toward community associations failed to receive approval, including
While some legislative sessions can be relatively uneventful for condominiums and homeowner associations, this year there are a number of bills that could have a significant impact on the operation and governance of these communities.
In particular, House Bill 623 – Community Associations includes a number of proposed changes that would significantly impact condominiums, cooperatives, and
Many communities impose a capital contribution (sometimes called an initiation fee) on new owners. This is a one-time, nonrefundable fee paid by the buyer at closing. These fees usually go into a special account used to fund capital improvements and repairs in the community. Both Fla. Stat. §720.308(6) and §720.308(4)(b), prohibit a developer from using
In today’s lien foreclosure market, most community associations benefit from competitive bidding at their lien foreclosure sale. Since the great recession a cottage industry sprouted of investors competitively bidding at these sales. Investors then renovate the properties and rent them until the mortgagee completes its own foreclosure action. This is generally a win/win situation as
Let’s face it, we do almost everything online – from shopping to paying bills. Following that trend, many community associations also conduct a lot of activity through a website, including; paying assessments, advertising sales or rentals, or posting documents, notices, minutes, and social calendars for members to easily access. In fact, the Florida legislature passed
Residents in Florida are no stranger to the potential hazards posed by dead, dying, diseased, and overgrown trees. In an effort to make the maintenance and removal of such trees easier for residential property owners, Florida passed into law Florida Statute §163.045 (the “Statute”). The Statute limits the ability of local governments to regulate maintenance,
The First District Court of Appeal decision in Coastal Creek Condominium Association, Inc. v Fla Trust Services, LLC, Case No. 1D18-1457 (Fla. 1st DCA, July 16, 2019) addressed whether a current condominium unit owner is jointly and severally liable for delinquent assessments accruing during the ownership of a remote owner. Having found that the joint
Governor Ron DeSantis recently signed an Assignment of Benefits (“AOB”) reform bill aimed at protecting Florida consumers from predatory insurance practices. The new law, which took effect on July 1, 2019, is memorialized by the addition of two (2) entirely new sections to Chapter 627 of the Florida Statutes. The new law addresses abuse of
As we discussed in our previous Legislative Update post, the Florida Legislature was working on number of bills that would have impacted community associations on a wide range of issues, and would have resulted in major revisions to Florida’s Condominium Act and Homeowners Association Act. However, as the 2019 legislative session came to a close,
