Tag: HOA Dispute Attorney Los Angeles; Los Angeles HOA Dispute Attorney; HOA Dispute Lawyer

Our Los Angeles Real Estate Attorneys were recently asked to analyze and interpret the rules regarding a Homeowner’s Association’s authority or ability to deny access to a homeowner’s separate interest in an attempt to collect past due assessments or in response to a homeowner’s failure to pay assessments.

Unless the HOA is acting pursuant to a court order, arbitration order or by law, an association may not deny a member or occupant physical access to the member’s or occupant’s separate interest, either by restricting access through the common area to the separate interest, or by restricting access solely to the separate interest. See Cal. Civ. Code § 1361.5; (Cal. Civ. Code § 4510 as of January 1, 2014).

An HOA may restrict access to common areas or restrict access to amenities, however, an HOA may not restrict access if said restriction results in restricting access to a homeowner’s separate interest. Should a homeowner be denied access to separate property, then such conduct by the HOA may support claims for private nuisance wherein damages include loss of rental value and other damages.

Our Los Angeles Real Estate Attorneys were recently asked to review a condominium project’s CC&Rs as conflicts as a FHA approved first time home buyer hit a snag when the condo project was not “FHA Approved.”  FHA (Federal Housing Administration) loans used for the purchase of a condo or townhouse will fund if for an approved condo or townhouse project.  Thus, if you are applying for an FHA loan and you are looking to purchase a condo or townhouse, you must determine if the condo project is on the FHA approved list by checking with hud.gov.  If the condo you seek is not on the approved list, it is likely that FHA will require changes made to the CC&Rs since the approval snag usually has to do with certain restrictions and/or covenants.  That is quite an endeavor as a buyer cannot engage a HOA to make changes and it is up to the seller at that point.

Cal. Civ. Code § 4740(a) states that “An owner of a separate interest in a common interest development shall not be subject to a provision in a governing document or an amendment to a governing document that prohibits the rental or leasing of any of the separate interests in that common interest development to a renter, lessee, or tenant unless that governing document, or amendment thereto, was effective prior to the date the owner acquired title to his or her separate interest.” Thus, an owner subject to Association Rules who was or is renting a unit prior to an association rule governing rentals is enacted, will not be subject to the Association Rules governing rentals in the association.

Owners of separate interest units contemplating renting their unit should first consult their CC&Rs and applicable association rules to determine when the rule was enacted and whether their rental will be held subject to those rules.