The May Issue Includes: I Want a Refund! Are Residents Entitled to a Refund? May - June Free Live Webinars Should Associations Re-Open? Free COVID-19 Webinar Business Partners Offering COVID-19 Services & More Free Live 1 Hour Webinar - Short Mini Legal Update & Ask CM Anything! Free Live Webinar - HOA Board Certification Class - Last One in 2020! Walter Franek Spills All on David Thierer, PR Representative! Ask C&M - Get Free Legal Information May Birthdays C&M Closed - Memorial Day - May 25th Contact Information Subscription Information

Disclaimer: Formatting and images may appear differently on your device based on the device settings as well as your browser. When replying with a question or request, please include your name and the legal name of your Association or Management Company (no acronyms, please, unless your legal name on the Article of Incorporation lists an acronym.)

Editor’s Note: COVID-19 is bringing almost daily changes as to how Community Associations operate. To help Board Members and Managers keep up with all these changes, the Executive Orders, and other effects that COVID-19 has brought about, C&M has added a third newsletter, “ Special Edition ,” which will be published as needed.  C&M is here for you. We care about your safety and your well-being. We have been designated an “essential business” and as such, we are open. Call us at any of our offices or after hours numbers listed at the bottom of this issue. We are also featuring updated COVID-19 issues (as well as other informative pieces) on our Facebook page and in our Blog Section on our website. We are here to help you through these trying times.  If you are wondering why you received this email, please review the information at the end of this edition.

I Want a Refund! Are Residents Entitled to a Refund? By Alan Schwartzseid, Partner We have recently seen an increase of owners demanding a reduction of periodic (“regular”) assessments, due to Coronavirus/COVID-19-related closures or limited use of common areas/amenities (e.g., pools, gyms, clubhouses, etc.). These requests imply that the association should not seek the amounts needed to cover the year’s anticipated expenses as determined in the Board’s best business judgment (and in some cases, that of the members). Ostensibly, these owners ignore the purpose of assessments stated in the Declaration, and simply presume that assessments are compensation paid for use of these amenities. Use rights in common areas do generally accompany ownership and/or tenancy (rather than resulting from payment to the association); these rights are, however, subject to reasonable restrictions. Such a reasonable restriction could be, for example, limited use of amenities during a deadly pandemic, while social distancing is recommended by Florida and federal governments and the Centers for Disease Control. In short, reasonable restrictions on use rights in common areas do not affect the amount of regular assessments which were levied, or which are thus due to the association, for several reasons.

As mentioned above, regular assessments are a function of the association’s budget. The budget includes line items such as reserves, contractual expenses, and - crucial to the issue at hand - maintenance and repair of common areas/amenities. Florida law simply does not require that an association reduce its finalized, approved budget to account for reduced use of amenities ( i.e. , reduced “wear and tear”). Moreover, the cost of determining how much “wear and tear” was avoided may actually exceed the reduced use cost, meaning that these owners could end up with increased assessments due to their demands. Likewise, while not necessarily the subject of this article, the association’s contractual expenses (e.g., charges paid to management firms) do not automatically change, and may actually increase, as a result of the additional issues arising due to the Covid-19 pandemic; we have seen managers (including those customarily serving on-site) working even harder “behind the scenes” from remote locations due to all of the additional complications associated with the pandemic. Likewise, we have seen associations (wisely) seeking more legal guidance to ensure they are avoiding as much health and legal risk as possible during this pandemic. None of the owners described in this article seem to acknowledge these increased costs, which may offset or exceed the reductions they seek, even without a formal determination of the reduced “wear and tear” to amenities. Moreover, the actual change in costs would ostensibly be incorporated into the next annual budget, rather than impacting current assessments.

Moreover, the purpose for which regular assessments may be levied is generally not as compensation for use of any particular amenity. Rather, it is to ensure that those amenities are properly maintained and operated so that they can be used, repaired, and replaced as needed (again, subject to reasonable restrictions). Normally, an association’s charge for use (rather than maintenance) of common areas is limited to special or exclusive use of an amenity ( e.g. , a fee, separate from regular assessments, charged for exclusive one-time use of a clubhouse for a party). In short, there does not appear to be any basis in law or equity ( i.e. , fairness) for these owners’ requests to reduce assessments which were levied to ensure the proper maintenance and operation of the community, in line with an approved budget. The assessments were ostensibly not levied to enable the use of amenities, and any reduction should follow and be based on a (potentially costly) analysis of the actual reduced cost of disuse, via either an amended budget (if such an amended budget is even authorized) or, more likely, a reduction of the following year’s maintenance line item for the amenities whose use was restricted. Associations should not arbitrarily reduce the assessments levied in accordance with their approved budgets, nor should payment be deferred indefinitely. See also Should We Cease Collecting Given the Coronovirus?

COVID-19 Has You Housebound?  Join Us for Our Free May & June Webinars! Special Note:  For the protection and safety of our clients, guests, and staff due to Coronavirus,  we will only be hosting our live webinars through June 30th . We will not be hosting live in-person seminars.  We will be evaluating the possibility of rescheduling the live in-person seminar as the situation changes. If you have already registered for the live in person seminar, we will notify you of any future changes. If you have not already made a reservation for the live in-person event, we suggest you register for the webinar  AND  the live presentation. While we are not hosting live in-person events at this time, by making a reservation for a live in-person seminar, we will notify you when and if the event is rescheduled and you will be given priority seating.

Free Live Webinar Re-Opening of Community Associations: COVID-19 - Part II Tuesday, May 12 6:10 p.m. Join the dynamic duo of Neal McCulloh, our Founding & Senior Partner, and Brad Pomp, President of Sentry Management, for a very special COVID-19 live webinar. Clayton & McCulloh, in conjunction with Sentry Management will hold a live webinar for Board of Director members and Managers about the issues facing community associations as they prepare to gradually, yet safely, reopen in accordance with the official Coronavirus social distancing and sanitizing guidelines. It will be held on Tuesday, May 12, 2020 at 6:10 pm (Eastern). Please join us for this timely and vitally important topic. You will have the opportunity to submit your questions.    Mark your calendars now to attend. Major topics of the webinar will include: re-opening of association’s common property, insurance concerns, sanitizing common property, frequency and level of sanitization, who performs the sanitization , potential litigation, and more. The bios of our featured speakers were highlighted in our Special Edition published May 6th.

Register

Need COVID-19 Sanitizing or COVID-19 Related Products or Services? Check Out Our Business Partners! As you start the process of re-opening your Association, you may find you need assistance on several areas. Please check out our Business Partners who specialize in servicing Community Associations who feature Coronavirus services. Need your common property sanitized before opening? Check out ServPro's COVID-19 sanitizing services. They have the answers to your problems. In reading your insurance policy, did you find some items you do not have coverage for? Interested in new insurance? Check out Pentarisk Insurance Specialists ! Did you file a claim with your insurance and they decline coverage or you feel your should have had a bigger compensation? Call Five Start Claims Adjusting ! Is time to review your current cable contract for your Association? With your residents staying at home more - should consider getting one carrier to cover the entire community at a great rate with special perks? Then call Paradigm Broadband Group ! There is no fee for their service as it is usually paid by the cable company. After doing a property inspection, are you noticing it could use some sprucing up? Orlando Prestige Painting i s ready, willing, and able to handle your spring painting projects! With all the free time residents had on their hands, did some of them "accidentally" drop their trash or other items in your lakes/retention ponds causing issues? If so, call The Lake Doctors ! The answer to all your aquatic troubles. Click on their logos at the end of this email to direct you to their website for assistance.

FREE LEGAL UPDATE WEBINAR WITH ADDED BONUS of 45+ Minutes of Question & Answer on any Topic! Thursday, May 14 6:30 - 7:30 p.m. We're doing something brand new in continuing with our 1950's theme seminars/webinars with "Tallahassee Lassie: The 2020 Mini Legal Update for Board Members." The Florida Legislature only passed one law affecting community associations. In response to numerous popular requests over the years, after covering that one issue - we will open up the balance of the webinar to questions on any subject affecting community associations. That's right - pure Q&A! Be still your heart! Submit your pre-submitted questions in addition to all your questions taken live! Join our partners, Brian Hess and Alan Schwartzseid, for an all new webinar! Please note that this is not the required Managers' Legislative Update There is no CAM credits for this class, but managers are welcome to join us.

Register

Stand by Me: Working Effectively with Your Attorney Free Live Webinar Thursday, June 11 6:30 - 7:30 p.m. Speaker: Senior & Founding Partner, Ken Clayton T he relationship between your law firm and your Association is a very important one. Many Associations are afraid to call their attorney due to legal fees. They may also be concerned that the actions they took may now have dire consequences for their Association. So what type of issues do you turn over to your attorney? How can you save on legal fees?  All attorneys talk about title searches – but when do you really need one? Can you do a search on your own? The answers to these and many more questions will be covered in this very special presentation.  Submit your pre-submitted questions in addition to all your questions taken live! Join Ken Clayton for this brand new webinar!

Register

Free Live Webinar I Walk the Line: The 2020 HOA Board Certification Class Thursday, June 18 Featuring: Russ Klemm, Partner Time: 6:30 - 8:45 p.m. This class focuses on the tools that HOA Board Members and Managers need to carry out their daily duties. This class is required by law for all new Board Members within ninety days of taking office. Once you have taken the course and have not gone off the board (for even a day), it is not necessary to retake this class. However, Clayton & McCulloh updates this class each year with fresh material.    There is only one more HOA Board Certification Class for this year.

Register

Franek Spills All On Thierer Recently, Walter Franek, President of Bouchelle Island Master Association, purchased our Florida Statute Organization Book and had this to say about this valuable tool for community associations as well as our Public Relations Representative, David Thierer, who handled the matter for him: “Let me also take this opportunity to thank you for the courteous and speedy service regarding the purchase of the Florida Statute Books for Condos and HOAs. The manuals are fabulous and professionally done. Dave Thierer was on top of the project and kept me informed to mailings and follow up regarding our satisfaction.”

Our Florida Statute Organization Book provides each type of association (HOA, condo, co-operative, and mobile home park) the pertinent statutes pertaining that association PLUS a series of "How To" article for the operation of your association. Additionally, you will receive bi-annual digital updates of those statutes. If you would like to purchase this service (you do not have to be a client), use the button below.

Buy It Here!

Have a Legal Question? Get a Free Answer!

Each month in this newsletter, we offer our readers an opportunity to obtain some free legal advice by simply submitting that question in a brief form. If you would like to submit a question, click here.  We review the questions and one question is selected each month and published in our newsletter, “ C&M Update .” The question should be generic in that your Association's Governing Documents do not need to be reviewed to prepare an answer. Everyone wants free legal advice – so what is stopping you from submitting a question?   Link:  ASK C&M

May Birthdays A Very Happy Birthday to the following Managers and Board Members! May your special day be filled with laughter, friends, good times, and cake!

May 1 - Janice Bravo of Ebb Tide @ Melbourne Beach May 6 - Eileen Carey of Country Club Village @ Tuscawilla May 6 - Sherri Daughtery of Compass Pointe May 7 - Judah Burton of Don Asher & Associates May 8 - Jeff Porter of Forest Lake Village HOA May 11 - Robert Nicolette of HMS of Brevard May 12 - Joe Claybrook of Carmel Retirement COA May 22 - Sara LaPointe of Bayside Management May 24 - Robert Williams of Highland Meadows HOA May 28 - Jonathan Abbott of Oak Grove Circle

Your birthday is a joyous day to us and we want to celebrate it. Please send us your birthday (just day and month) and we will publish it in our newsletter. And if you would also like - we can publish it on our Facebook page. Use this link to send us your birthday information.

We will be closed for Memorial Day, Monday, May 25th. This holiday is not just a three day weekend. It is about honoring our men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice for our country so you may have the freedoms you experience today. Please remember to take time out to honor these brave men and women. Clients, please remember that we are available to your after hours and on holidays by using our 24/7 phone number at the bottom of this e-mail.

Get The Latest Trending News! Like us on Facebook and you will receive: Late breaking news on topics affecting Community Associations Seminar Invitations Legal Updates Human Interest Stories And More This isn't your parents' Law Firm Facebook Page.  Like Us on Facebook!

STAY CONNECTED

Like us on Facebook

Connect on LinkedIn

Orlando Office: Maitland The Clayton & McCulloh Building 1065 Maitland Center Commons Blvd. Maitland, FL 32751 Phone: (407) 875-2655 Fax: (407) 875-3363

Melbourne Office: Suntree/Viera Baytree Corporate Park 1301 Bedford Drive, Suite 102 Melbourne, FL 32940 Phone: (321) 751-3449 Fax: (321) 751-3450

Toll Free: (888) 793-1486 After Hours - 24/7: (407) 808-2553 www.clayton-mcculloh.com

You are receiving this e-mail as you fall into one of the following categories: *You are currently a client or client's manager;  * You have requested to be on our mailing list; *as a former member of BCAM and NECAM you are provided a subscription to the C&M mailing list *By attending one of our seminars, you agreed to be part of our Confidential Mailing list. If you elect to be removed from this e-mail service, we will no longer be able to send you seminar invitations, information on changes in the law concerning Community Associations, newsletters, or any other information regarding the Community Association industry. You will not receive solicitation for business unless you have requested that information. We sincerely hope we can continue to assist you with the challenges that face Community Associations today through this service.  When replying with a question or statement please include your name  a nd the legal name of your Association or Management Company (no acronyms, please, unless your legal name on the Article of Incorporation lists an acronym.)