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Articles Posted in Architectural Control

artificial-grass.jpg*Asked & Answered

Asked – Our HOA’s Architectural Committee received an application for a homeowner to install artificial grass in their front yard. Does Civil Code Section 1353.8 (Use of Low Water Using Plants) require us to approve it?

AnsweredNo. Civil Code Section 1353.8 renders void and unenforceable any restrictions in a HOA’s governing documents that prohibit the installation of low water-using “plants.” Artificial grass or synthetic turf is not a plant, but a synthetic material designed to look like grass.

The California Legislature has in the recent past proposed bills that would require HOAs to permit the installation of artificial grass in their communities. Those bills, however, were vetoed by California governors and ultimately never made it into law. The most recent veto by Governor Jerry Brown in 2011 was based on the Governor’s recognition that “[t]he decision about choosing synthetic turf instead of natural vegetation should be left to individual homeowners associations, not mandated by state law.”

HOAs may authorize the installation of artificial grass/synthetic turf, but they are not required to.

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Before deciding to authorize artificial grass, the Board will want to check local ordinances for any restrictions, and develop guidelines for such characteristics as color, pile and weight, toxic materials, permeability, water absorption, and drainage. Additionally, even where artificial grass is permitted, a HOA may still set standards for its appearance and quality, and thus require a homeowner to submit a sample of the artificial grass as part of the homeowner’s architectural application.

Content provided by TLG attorney Terri Morris

To submit questions to the HOA attorneys at Tinnelly Law Group, click here.

disabillity-residents-hoa.jpg*New Library Article

Civil Code Section 1360 generally requires homeowners associations (“HOA”) to allow a disabled owner to, at the owner’s expense, make modifications to the owner’s units and potentially to the HOA’s common areas in order to accommodate the owner’s disability. When a HOA receives a request for an accommodation, what steps can and should the HOA take to verify the owner’s disability and to determine whether or not the owner is indeed entitled to the accommodation? This article addresses three questions that may be useful to an Association in this regard.

Our HOA lawyers have also published this information in our new article entitled “Responding to Requests for Accommodation,” available for download from our library.

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hoa lawsOur annual “Legislative & Case Law Update” newsletter for the year 2013 is now available in our library!

The Legislative & Case Law Update provides an overview of the new legislation and case law impacting California Homeowners Associations (“HOAs”) as we head into 2013. The new legislation includes, among other items, bills that impact Bank foreclosures, the re-organization of the Davis-Stirling Act, EV Charging Stations and fees charged by HOAs in producing certain records. The new case law includes rulings that may impact the architectural restrictions placed on the installation of solar panels, arbitration provisions for construction defect disputes, “no-cost” HOA collections contracts, election disputes and defamation claims. The Legislative & Case Law Update also addresses some new Fannie Mae and FHA regulations impacting condominium insurance and certification requirements.

Click here to read our Legislative & Case Law Update (2013)

Have questions on any of the new legislation or case law? Click here to send us a question online.

hoa attorney*New Resource

The 2012 amendments to the “Common Interest Development Open Meeting Act” have made it significantly more difficult for Boards to manage the affairs of their HOAs in a quick and efficient manner. Those amendments, as discussed in our previous resource,”Senate Bill 563: Boards and their Business,” made significant changes to the Civil Code, including, (1) revisions to the definition of meeting to include executive session meetings, (2) the inclusion of a new “No Action Without a Meeting” rule, (3) the implementation of a rule prohibiting Boards from considering items of business not noticed on a meeting agenda, and (4) a prohibition on meetings conducted or actions taken through email. As any Board Member or Manager knows, these changes have not only deprived Associations of many of the tools previously used to conduct business outside of regularly held Board meetings, but have also obstructed the channels and methods of communication that are necessary to effectively assign responsibilities and make ongoing mid-project decisions. Although HOAs are unfortunately bound to abide by these requirements, there are devices available to the Board that can significantly decrease the burdens these requirements impose. This blogpost discusses the use of one such device–the committee–and the various ways in which it may be used by Boards to address HOA business within the constraints imposed by the Civil Code.

Our HOA lawyers have also published this information in our new resource entitled “Committees: Delegating Authority to Achieve Efficiency,” available for download from our library.

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homeowners_association*New Resource

Various laws have been established to protect the rights of disabled individuals, such as the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”) and the Federal Fair Housing Act (“FFHA”). These laws govern both public and private facilities, and set forth the degree to which an entity, such as a homeowners association (“HOA”), is responsible for making modifications or improvements to accommodate individuals with disabilities. This blog post is in response to recent client inquiries relating to this issue; it addresses the applicability of each of these laws to HOAs and sheds some light on the potential issues that HOA Boards and Managers should be aware of.

Our HOA lawyers have also published this information in our new resource entitled “Disabled Residents and the Law,” available for download from our library.

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charging_station1.jpgIn November of last year we discussed the introduction of Senate Bill 209 (SB 209), in our post entitled, “Electric Vehicle Charging Stations in Your Community?” SB 209 as singed into law could be interpreted to broadly require that homeowners associations (Associations) allow electric vehicle (EV) charging stations on common areas–an apparent violation of existing California laws. Our blog post addressed SB 209’s various defects and deficiencies, and touched on a report by CAI’s Legislative Action Committee (“CLAC”) noting the need for an amendment to the law.

On February 29, 2012, Senate Bill 880 (SB 880) was signed into law as an “urgency statute.” SB 880, effective immediately, is a “clean up” measure intended to (1) correct constitutional flaws posed by SB 209, (2) resolve a conflict with Civil Code Section 1363.07, and (3) correct apparent ambiguities within the language of the statute.

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*New Case Lawhoa_solar

More and more homeowners are seeking to utilize the cost-savings and environmental benefits that solar energy systems provide. However, the way in which a homeowner may obtain cheaper and “greener” energy should be balanced against the need for a Homeowners Association (“HOA”) to ensure that such systems will not place additional strain on the Association’s maintenance resources or jeopardize the aesthetic harmony of the community. Civil Code Section 714, a component of the “California Solar Rights Act,” purports to provide for such a balance by imposing additional requirements on an HOA when it evaluates a homeowner application for a solar energy system.

The interpretation of these requirements was central to the ruling in the recent case of Tesoro del Valle Master Homeowners Association v. Griffen. In Tesoro, defendants sought to install a solar energy system at their residence (“the Property”) located within the Tesoro del Valle Master Homeowners Association (“Association”). The dispute arose after the defendants proceeded with installing the solar energy system without the Association’s approval. As is the case with many HOAs, the Association’s CC&Rs prohibited homeowners from performing any “construction, alteration, or removal of any Improvement in the [Association]…without the approval of” the Association’s Architectural Control Committee (“ACC”).

The ruling in Tesoro dealt with many factual and procedural issues regarding the process by which the defendants’ application for a solar energy system was denied by the ACC. However, the most interesting aspects of the holding relate to the court’s interpretation of three issues concerning a HOA’s legal obligations under Section 714 when evaluating an application for the installation of a solar energy system. In general, these issues were:

  1. What factors can establish that, within the meaning of Section 714, a HOA’s CC&Rs and design guidelines allow for an “alternative solar energy system” of “comparable costs and efficiency” that “does not increase the cost or decrease the efficiency” of the proposed system?
  2. May a HOA consider the aesthetic impact of a proposed solar energy system in determining whether to approve the application?, and
  3. If a HOA rejects an application for a solar energy system by requesting that the applicant explore a possible alternative solar energy system, is the HOA responsible for designing or proposing such a system?

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Our “2012 Legislative & Case Law Update” newsletter is now available in our library!

The 2012 Legislative & Case Law Update provides an overview of the new legislation impacting California Homeowners Associations (“HOAs”) and the community association industry professionals who service them. The new legislation includes, among other things, bills that impose new requirements on Board Member meetings and new limitations on HOAs that wish to restrict rentals in their communities.

The 2012 Legislative & Case Law Update also provides an overview of some important new case law, along with some links to additional resources we have published on the items discussed therein.

Click here to read our 2012 Legislative & Case Law Update

Have questions on any of the new legislation or case law? Click here to send us a question online.

ev_station1.jpgIn July of this year, Governor Brown signed Senate Bill 209 (“SB 209”) into law. As a result, beginning January 1, 2012, Section 1353.9 will be added to the California Civil Code to restrict an association’s ability to prohibit the installation of Electric Vehicle (“EV”) charging stations (“Stations”). You may have heard of this new law but, like many of our clients and industry partners, wonder what it means for associations and their members. How will the new law ultimately function? Who pays the cost to run the electricity? Must associations permit the installation of Stations on association property? This post discusses the components and criticisms of SB 209 and in doing so addresses some of the questions which have been raised in the wake of its signing.

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baby-boom.jpgI read an interesting article today that discusses the potential legal problems that could arise for Community Associations that contain members of the aging “baby boom” generation. The article references a program, presented in Virginia at a CAI sponsored event, called “Aging-in-Place: The Boomer Community.”

One of the program’s co-presenters believes that “[t]hanks to a confluence of demographic, economic and social factors, more and more elderly residents are staying put rather than moving into institutional settings such as retirement or assisted-living communities. This trend toward ‘aging in place’ makes it inevitable that a higher proportion of residents in a given community will face challenges such as loss of strength, coordination and mental acuity over time, or will be diagnosed with a catastrophic illness. Unfortunately, this can create significant legal and safety questions for community associations.”

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Some of the scenarios discussed in the article, including the active steps that some Community Associations are taking to better accommodate their aging membership, may be of value to you and your Association. Of particular interest are the scenarios regarding community-based shuttles and amending architectural provisions to accommodate “Med Cottages” (a.k.a “Granny Pods”).

Click here to read the entire article.

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