New 2025 HOA Laws and What They Mean For Your HOA

May 7, 2025

The Utah general legislative session for 2025 was January – March 2025.  All of the following laws go into effect May 7, 2025.

HOA Registry – Annual Renewal Required

House Bill 217 (2025) requires a homeowner association to renew its registration with the Utah HOA Registry annually, instead of just when there is a change in its information.  So, previously, an association had to register with the HOA Registry and then had to update its information within 90 days every time there was a change, such as when a board member changed.  Now, an association must renew its registration each year and pay an annual fee set by the Department of Commerce (likely around $90), and it must update its information within 90 days every time there is a change.  See Utah Code § 57-8a-105 or 57-8-13.1, as applicable

Rules

A rule is a restriction that governs conduct or property and that is adopted by a board, rather than by a vote of the owners, and does not include restrictions in the CC&Rs (declaration) or bylaws.

House Bill 217 (2025) says a rule:

  • can’t prohibit an owner from displaying a flag in a window of a condominium unit, or on a lot, a dwelling exterior or the front yard of a dwelling, regardless if the association owns the yard.  But, a rule may regulate the size of flags and the time, place and manner a flag is displayed.  The bill does not define “flag.”  A rule can’t regulate the content or design criteria of a flag, but may restrict a flag that contains obscene, profane, or commercial content.  
  • can’t prohibit an owner from parking in the owner’s driveway, if otherwise legal, unless it’s a commercial vehicle as defined in Section 72-9-102, or a motor home as defined in Section 13-20-2, or a travel trailer, camping trailer, or fifth wheel trailer.  Inoperable vehicles can be prohibited from a driveway and parking in a garage may be required before parking elsewhere.
  • can’t regulate parking on a public street or the use of a public street.
  • can’t restrict a resident from installing, displaying or storing an item that is not visible to someone standing outside the unit or lot.
  • can’t restrict an owner from hiring a contractor solely because the contractor is not on a preferred vendor list or doesn’t have a license, unless a license is required by law.
  • can’t impose a late fee of more than the greater of 10% of the assessment amount or $50, or interest of more than 1.5% per month (18% per annum) for late assessment payments.  Current law states that if the governing documents don’t impose interest on an unpaid assessment, interest accrues at 10% per annum.  (See § 57-8a-301 or 57-8-44).  HB 217 says a board can establish a late fee and interest for late payments by rule.  So, if the CC&Rs don’t impose a late fee or interest, and the association would like to charge a higher interest rate than the default 10%, the board can adopt a rule to do so.  If a late fee or interest are imposed by rule (rather than by the CC&Rs or other governing document that is not adopted by the board), the late fee and interest are capped at those amounts, and before imposing the late fee, the board must formally adopt the fee by rule (and follow any required procedures to adopt a rule) and provide a copy to each owner.  Additionally, in condos, if the board relies on the statute (rather than the CC&Rs) for authority to impose a payment, fee or charge for the use, rental, or operation of the common areas or a service provided to an owner, the fee must be formally adopted by rule and provided to each owner.  Utah Code § 57-8a-201 & 57-8-8.1(5).

See Utah Code § 57-8a-218 or 57-8-8.1.

Additionally, in community associations, a rule

  • can’t prohibit a back yard vegetable garden if the association doesn’t own or maintain the back yard, but it can regulate the vegetable garden to some degree that doesn’t significantly increase the cost or significantly decrease the efficiency of the garden.
  • can’t prohibit a basketball standard on individually-owned property that abuts a public street.

See Utah Code § 57-8a-218

Rentals

Senate Bill 201 (2025) modfies Utah Code § 57-8a-209 and 57-8-10.1 to say:

  • A rule may establish a minimum lease term of six months or less.
  • If a rule requires owners to pay a fee to rent their unit:
    • Before charging the fee, (1) a board meeting must be held to discuss and allow owners to comment on the administrative expenses that the association intends to cover with the fee, and the circumstances that require imposing or increasing the fee; (2) at the board meeting, the board must approve the fee by a majority vote; (2) the association must give notice of the board meeting to every owner 15 days before the meeting. 
    • Within 30 days of adopting the fee, the association must give notice to each owner impacted by the fee describing the “new administrative expenses” that the association intends to cover with the fee, and the circumstances that require imposing or increasing the fee.  An owner may contest the fee if the association doesn’t give the notice.
    • The same required exemptions from the rental restrictions apply to the fee.
    • The fee can only be charged once every 12 months.
    • By way of reminder, the existing law says an association can only charge an owner a fee up to $200 to rent a unit if the association incurs additional administrative expenses directly related to the rental and if at least 35% of the units are allowed to be rented.
  • An owner of a rental may designate in writing a primary contact whom the association may communicate with as if they are the owner.  If an owner designates a primary contact, the association must give the owner written notice that confirms the records have been changed to identify the primary contact.

Transfer Fees (inluding reinvestment fees)

House Bill 217 (2025) amends the transfer fee statute that applies to HOAs, but it should not change anything for an HOA that has already properly adopted a transfer fee (a.k.a. a reinvestment fee).  In short, if the fee is used to pay expenses related to the transfer of the property, the fee does not need to be approved by a vote of the owners or contained in the CC&Rs.  If the fee simply goes into the general coffers of the association, the fee must be authorized in the CC&Rs (or similar document approved by a vote of the owners).

The statue separates and defines those two types of fees:

  • An “association transfer fee” is a fee charged by an association upon transfer of a unit or lot relating to the sale of the unit or lot that is used to pay expenses related to the transfer.
  • A “reinvestment fee” is a fee imposed, directly or indirectly, by an association upon a buyer or seller upon transfer of a unit or lot, and that is dedicated to benefiting the common areas (including payment for association expenses).

In order to charge an “association transfer fee,” approval of the owners is not required.  In order to charge a “reinvestment fee” after May 6, 2025, the fee must be authorized in the declaration (CC&Rs) or a separately recorded covenant and must be approved by a majority of the voting interests or a higher percentage if required in the governing documents.  The separately-recorded notice of the fee is still required.  The amount of the fee must be set in accordance with the CC&Rs or covenant.  The owners may disapprove a reinvestment fee by following a procedure specified in the statute. 

See Utah Code § 57-1-46.

HOA Ombudsman

House Bill 217 (2025) establishes the Office of the Homeowners’ Association Ombudsman, which will issue advisory opinions regarding compliance by an association or owner with statutes applicable to associations and owners.  If an owner or an association are involved in a dispute relating to a violation of a state statute, the owner or association may request an advisory opinion on the issue if: (1) a lawsuit has not yet been filed (or binding arbitration begun), (2) no more than one year has passed since the requester knew or should have known about the act or issue that is the subject of the dispute, (3) the requester has exhausted all existing procedures in the governing documents, other than binding arbitration or a lawsuit, and (4) a $150 filing fee is paid.

The Ombudsman’s office will only issue an advisory opinion when there is an active dispute over an issue between two or more parties and only for issues relating to a violation of a state statute.  The office will not review contract disputes or interpret the governing documents of an association.

An advisory opinion issued by the Ombudsman is not binding on any party and is not admissible as evidence in a dispute, except that if the issue that is the subject of the advisory opinion is then litigated in court and the court rules in favor of the same party as the advisory opinion, the court may award the winning party: (1) attorney fees and court costs from the date of the advisory opinion, and (2) if the court finds that the other party knowingly and intentionally violated the law at issue, a penalty of $250 for each day beginning the later of: (i) 30 days after the advisory opinion is given, or (ii) the day the action is filed in court.

See Utah Code Title 13, Ch. 79, Part 1.

Records

House Bill 86 (2025):

  • increased the penalty that an owner may request a court to require an association to pay if the association fails to make documents available to the owner as required by law or its governing documents from $500 to $1000 (or actual damage, whichever is greater);
  • increased the hourly rate an association can charge an owner for an employee’s or agent’s time making copies in response to a records request by the owner from $15 to $20; and
  • changed whether the winning party in a records request lawsuit will be granted the attorney fees and costs they incur (meaning that the losing party in the lawsuit is required to pay the winner’s attorney fees and costs).  Previously, a court was required to award the prevailing party those fees and costs, but now the law says the court may do so. So now it’s up to the court whether to award those fees and costs. So, for instance, if the association wins the suit, the court may require the owner to pay the association’s attorney fees and costs. See Utah Code Sections 57-8a-227(6) or 57-8-17(6). Note, a different subsection of the statute, subsection (5), says an association is required to pay attorney fees and costs incurred by an owner in obtaining the documents if the association fails to comply with the statute when responding to the request. So, if a court finds an association did comply with the statute, the association does not have to pay those attorney fees and costs. But, if a court finds the association didn’t comply with the statute, the association is required to pay those fees and costs under subsections 57-8a-227(5) or 57-8-17(5). So, the bill changed whether a court is required to award attorney fees and costs to the winning party (which could be the association or the owner), but not whether an association that fails to follow the statute when responding to a records request must pay the attorney fees and costs an owner incurs trying to obtain the records.

House Bill 217 (2025):

  • added two financial statements to the list of records an association must keep and make available to owners who request them, a profit and loss statement and balance sheet for the previous three fiscal years;
  • specifies that an associaition must comply with a request for records by an owner under 57-8a-227(3) within two weeks after the day the association receives the request.  Previously, there was no specific time period for some records.  The records that are required to be always available haven’t changed; 
  • says an association can’t charge for the cost of electronic transmission of documents requested by an owner;
  • allows an association to comply with a request by posting the documents to the association’s website or online owner portal.

See Utah Code § 57-8a-227 or 57-8-17.

Architectural Review

House Bill 217 (2025) requires that if an association denies architectural plans, the association must give written notice to the owner specifying: 

  • each governing document provision that the association relied on when denying the plan, and
  • the specific aspect of the proposed plan that does not conform to that governing document provision.

Additionally, in community associations, an association may not restrict or deny a plan due to the plan’s inclusion of a fire-resistant material in an area with heightened risk of wildfire.  “Fire-resistant material” means a material designed and tested to resist ignition, slow the spread of fire, or withstand high temperatures, including: (i) Class A roofing; (ii) non-combustible siding; (iii) a fiber cement product; (iv) metal roofing; or (v) fire-rated gypsum board.

See Utah Code § 57-8a-109 or 57-8-6.7

Water

Senate Bill 201 finishes a sentence in the existing Community Association Act that just sort of trailed off and created a rather large ambiguity about whether an association could require grass on a lot.  For some reason, last year the statute was changed from saying, “An association may not require a property owner to install or keep in place lawn or turf in an area with a width less than eight feet,” to deleting the last seven words and simply saying, “An association may not require a lot owner to install or keep in place lawn or turf in an area.”  SB 201 adds those words “less than eight feet wide” back in.  So, now it reads, “Except where reasonably necessary for erosion control, an association may not require a lot owner to install or keep in place lawn or turf in an area less than eight feet wide.”

See Utah Code § 57-8a-231 or 57-8-8.1.

Amendment of Declaration

House Bill 217 (2025) imposes a minimum number of owners that must approve an amendment to the CC&Rs (declaration), as well as a minimum quorum requirement, but it doesn’t apply if your documents require a higher number of owners.  The law only applies after the period of administrative control by the developer.

The bill establishes that the minimum number of owners that must participate in a vote to amend the declaration (the quorum requirement) is 51%, or a higher percentage if required in the CC&Rs.  So, in the rare instance that an association’s CC&Rs say the CC&Rs can be amended where a quorum of less than 51% of the owners participate, this statute overrides that requirement and makes it inapplicable.  If the CC&Rs say the CC&Rs can be amended with a quorum that is more than 51% of the owners, this statute has no effect.  For instance, if the CC&Rs require a quorum of 55% of the owners, then the 55% quorum is still required. 

Then, as to the vote itself, the bill establishes that the minimum number of votes that can approve an amendment to the declaration is a majority vote of the voters where at least 51% of the owners participate. “Voters” means owners that actually cast a vote. 

For instance, if the CC&Rs require approval of a majority of voters that vote in a proceeding where at least 30% of the owners participate, the association has 150 owners, 45 owners are present and cast a vote, and 23 vote in favor of amending, that would be sufficient under the CC&Rs to amend before this law.  Now, at least 77 owners must be present (51% of 150) and if 70 of those cast a vote, 35 must vote in favor (a majority of 70).

If the CC&Rs require a higher threshold than this statute, the statute has no effect.  For instance, if the CC&Rs require approval of 60% of the owners and the association has 150 owners, at least 90 affirmative votes (60% of 150) are needed for the amendment to pass (and it doesn’t otherwise matter how many owners vote).

Finally, the bill makes clear that a board alone cannot amend CC&Rs.

Key Point:  If your CC&Rs require approval of an amendment to the CC&Rs by a majority vote of the voters or more, and that a quorum of at least 51% of the voting interests must participate, this statute has no effect for your community.

See Utah Code § 57-8a-104 or 57-8-39.

Solar

House Bill 119 (2025) lowers the percentage of owners required to approve a change to CC&Rs that prohibit solar installations on a lot with a detached dwelling from “greater than 67%” to “at least 51%.”  Also, an association may not prohibit solar installations unless at least 67% of the owners approve the prohibition in an amendment to the CC&Rs (this was changed from “greater than 67%” to “at least 67%”).

Developer

Developer Duties

In 2009, the Utah Supreme Court ruled that a developer owes certain fiduciary duties to an association until the developer relinquishes control of the association.  Those fiduciary duties have now been codified into Utah Code § 57-8a-502 by House Bill 217 (2025) for community associations.

During the period of administrative control of an association, the developer must:

  • use reasonable care and prudence in managing and maintaining the common areas;
  • establish a sound fiscal basis for the association by imposing and collecting assessments and establishing reserves for the maintenance and replacement of common areas;
  • for a service that the association is or will be obligated to provide, disclose to the owners the amount of money the declarant provides for or subsidizes for that service;
  • maintain records and account for the financial affairs of the association from the association’s inception;
  • comply with and enforce the terms of the declaration, including design controls, land-use restrictions, and the payment of assessments; and
  • disclose to the owners all material facts and circumstances affecting:
    (1) the condition of the property that the association is responsible for maintaining, and
    (2) the financial condition of the association, including the interest of the developer and the developer’s affiliates in any contract, lease, or other agreement entered into by the association.

Developer Control Period

Additionally, in community associations, the default for when the period of administrative control terminates is changed to 60 days after the day on which 80% of the lots that may be created in the association are conveyed to owners (unless otherwise stated in the CC&Rs).  Regardless of what the CC&Rs say, the period of administrative control ends on the earlier of: (a) when the developer no longer owns any lot and no longer possesses any development right, or (b) seven years after the day on which the developer has stopped offering lots, including lots that may be created, for sale in the ordinary course of business.

While the developer is still in control of the association, the developer can’t use money paid by homeowners to fight a lawsuit that homeowners have filed against them.

Finally, a developer may not sell any of the common areas during the period of administrative control, except in the same way an association may as provided in Section 10-9a-606 or 17-27a-606, or as allowed by the Condo Act.

See Utah Code §§ 57-8a-502, 57-8a-229, 57-8-58, 57-8a-232 and 57-8-32.

Finally, Senate Bill 201 requires that, in order to sue a developer for defective construction, a condo unit owner must first provide notice to the developer describing the defective construction and requesting repairs and then allow nine months for the repairs to be made.  See Utah Code § 78B-4-513.

How the new laws affect your community and what you need to do to comply with the new laws

  • Make sure the association always has a profit and loss statement and balance sheet for the previous three fiscal years.
  • Review your rules and revise as necessary if the rules:
    • prohibit flags,
    • prohibit an owner from parking in the owner’s driveway,
    • regulate parking on a public street or the use of a public street,
    • restrict items that are not visible to someone standing outside a unit or lot,
    • require using a contractor from a preferred vendor list or that has a license, unless a license is required by law,
    • restrict vegetable gardens in the backyard of property the association doesn’t own or maintain,
    • prohibit a basketball standard on individuallly-owned property that abuts a public street.
  • If a late fee and interest aren’t authorized in the CC&Rs and the board imposes a late fee and interest, ensure they don’t exceed the cap and ensure the late fee is formally adopted in a rule with a copy provided to each owner.  Additionally, for condos, any fee charged for the use, rental, or operation of the common areas and any fee charged for a service provided to a unit owner must be included in a rule provided to each owner.
  • Ensure your association renews its registration with the HOA Registry annually now, instead of just after changes.
  • If the association charges a fee to owners of rental units, make sure to follow the process outlined above.
  • If the association charges a transfer fee (a.k.a. reinvestment fee) that benefits the association generally (e.g., goes into the general fund or reserve fund), rather than paying expenses associated with transferring title to a lot or unit, ensure the fee is authorized in a recorded covenant (such as the CC&Rs) approved by at least a majority of the voting interests of the owners.
  • Don’t reject an architectural review plan submitted by an owner without notifying the owner of the specific governing document provisions relied on when denying the plan and the specific aspect of the proposed plan that does not conform to those governing document provisions.
  • If you are a community association, don’t refuse to allow fire-resistant materials that are proposed in an architectural plan.

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Posted by Curtis G. Kimble

New 2023 HOA Laws and What They Mean For Your HOA

May 25, 2023

The Utah general legislative session for 2023 was January – March 2023, and the general effective date for legislation from the session was May 3, 2023.

Records

Senate Bill 191 (2023) clarifies the Nonprofit Act regarding which records an owner is entitled to see if the owner follows the process specified in Subsection 16-6a-1602(2) (the process that requires the owner to have a “proper purpose” for seeing the records).  The statute now specifies that the records that may be viewed after following that particular process are the “other records” listed in Utah Code Subsections 16-6a-1601(2) through (5), namely: “appropriate” accounting records and a membership list with the names and addresses of all members in alphabetical order and showing the number of votes of each member.  Previously, the subsection referred to “any of the other records of the nonprofit corporation.”  (Since Subsection 16-6a-1602(1) specifies the process to view the records listed in Subsection 16-6a-1601(5), the process specified in Subsection 16-6a-1602(2) only applies to the records listed in 16-6a-1601(2) through (4), which, again are “appropriate” accounting records and the membership list).  

The bill also defines the term “corporate records” in the definitions section of the Utah Revised Nonprofit Corporation Act, to mean the records described in Section 16-6a-1601, and to exclude “correspondence, communications, notes, or other similar information, regardless of format or method of storage, that are not an official decision, published document, or record of the corporation.”  However, the Nonprofit Act never uses the term “corporate records” in any substantive way, so the definition has limited usefulness, if any at all.  See Utah Code Section 16-6a-102(13).

Rental Restrictions

The law prohibits a condo and community association from requiring an owner who rents out their home to pay an additional assessment or fee because the home is a rental.  Senate Bill 191 (2023) amends the statute to provide that an association that permits at least 35% of the units in the association to be rental units may charge an owner who rents their unit an annual fee of up to $200 to defray the association’s additional administrative expenses directly related to that rental unit, as detailed in an accounting provided to the owner.  See Utah Code Sections 57-8a-209(9)(c) and 57-8-10.1(9)(c).

Board Member Qualifications, Sex Offenders

Senate Bill 191 (2023) amends the law to provide that an association may, through governing documents or the board’s internal procedures, disqualify an individual from serving as a director because the individual has either been convicted of a felony or is required to register with the sex offender registry due to a conviction for an offense committed against a person under 18 (a.k.a. a “sex offender”).  See Utah Code Sections 57-8a-501 and 57-8-59.

The bill further provides that an association rule may restrict an adult or juvenile who is required to register with the sex offender registry due to a conviction for an offense committed against a person under 18 (a.k.a. a “sex offender”) from accessing a swimming pool, park or playground that is maintained, operated, or owned by the association (a “protected area”), except an association cannot restrict such access when that person must be in a protected area to perform their parental responsibilities.  See Utah Code Sections 57-8a-218(18) and 57-8-8.1(10).

Definition of “Political Sign”

The law contains restrictions against association rules restricting political signs, except reasonable regulations on the time, place, and manner of posting a political sign.  But, the law never defined what constituted a political sign.  Senate Bill 191 (2023) defines a “political sign” to mean “any sign or document that advocates: (1) the election or defeat of a candidate for public office, or (2) the approval or defeat of a ballot proposition.”  See the new definitions in Utah Code Sections 57-8a-102(21) and 57-8-3(34).  See the restrictions against rules governing political signs in Utah Code Sections 57-8a-218(4) and 57-8-8.1(8).

Community Associations Only

Water-efficient Landscaping

Under Senate Bill 191 (2023), community associations must adopt required rules regarding water efficient landscaping before June 30, 2023.  The requirement for associations to adopt rules supporting water-efficient landscaping, including allowance for low water use on lawns during drought conditions, was made law in 2022.  This new law requires those rules to be adopted by June 30, 2023.  Additionally, the bill explicitly provides that a rule may not prohibit low water use on lawns during drought conditions.  See New 2022 HOA Laws and What They Mean For Your HOA.  See also Utah Code Sections 57-8a-218(16) and 57-8-8.1(9).

House Bill 450 (2023) modifies Utah Code Section 57-8a-231 in the Community Association Act, which was enacted last year and states that an association may not enforce a governing document that prohibits a lot owner of a detached home (aka single family home) from incorporating water wise landscaping on the owner’s lot, except in certain instances.  The bill clarifies that an association may restrict or prohibit the use of specific plant materials other than water wise plant materials (as defined in the statute).  Additionally, the provision in the statute that said an association could adopt a requirement that imposes minimum or maximum vegetative coverage was deleted.  Now the statute says an association may not require an owner to have more than 50% vegetative coverage that is not water wise landscaping on the owner’s lot.

Rules

The law that’s been in place for several years in Utah Code Section 57-8a-217 requires that before a board in a community association adopts or amends a rule, the board must: (1) deliver notice to the owners that the board is considering a change to a rule, (2) provide an open forum at the board meeting giving owners an opportunity to be heard at the board meeting before the board adopts or amends a rule, and (3) deliver a copy of the change in the rules within 15 days after the date of the board meeting.

Senate Bill 152 (2023) amends the law to say that if a board fails to do any of those things, a lawsuit must be brought within 18 months in order to challenge the board action.  See Subsection 57-8a-217(7).

Definition of “Rule”

Both the Condo and Community Association Acts have long had provisions governing “rules” in an association but neither act ever defined what constitutes a rule (other than that a rule is adopted by a board and the provisions of CC&Rs and bylaws are not rules).

Senate Bill 191 (2023) defines “rule” for community associations (but, strangely, not for condos):

“Rule” means a policy, guideline, restriction, procedure, or regulation of an association that:
(1) is not set forth in a contract, easement, article of incorporation, bylaw, or declaration; and
(2) governs the conduct of persons, or the use, quality, type, design, or appearance of real property or personal property.
“Rule” does not include the internal business operating procedures of a board.

See Utah Code Section 57-8a-102(25).

Applicability of the Community Association Act

To avoid any confusion and curtail any argument that the Community Association Act doesn’t apply to a given association just because the association was formed before a certain provision of the act was enacted, Senate Bill 152 (2023) amends the law to provide that the act applies to an association that registers or updates the association’s registration with the Utah HOA Registry.  Of course, registering and updating an association’s registration with the HOA Registry is required by the law.  See Utah Code Section 57-8a-105(7).

How the new laws affect your community and what you need to do to comply with the new laws

Your community association (noncondos) must adopt rules supporting water-efficient landscaping, including allowance for low water use on lawns during drought conditions by June 30, 2023. See CounselOurHOA.com for sample rules (for Prudent-Legal subscribers).

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Posted by Curtis G. Kimble

Pop Quiz on New Utah HOA Laws

August 16, 2012

By Curtis G. Kimble.

Many changes were enacted to the laws that govern HOAs in Utah in 2011. We tested your knowledge a year ago soon after the changes went into effect.  How is your knowledge of these changes over a year later?  Take this short quiz and find out (answers at very bottom).

1. (First, a warm up question unrelated to the new laws) All homeowners associations in Utah are bound by the Utah Condominium Ownership Act.
 True

 False

2. In a condominium association, the management committee is required by law to keep detailed, accurate records in chronological order, of the receipts and expenditures affecting the common areas and facilities, specifying and itemizing the maintenance and repair expenses and any other expenses incurred, and is required to make those records available for examination by any unit owner at convenient hours of weekdays no later than _____ days after the unit owner makes a written request to examine the records:
 0, they must be available upon request

 5

 14

 30

3. In a community association (non-condo HOA), a rule ______ regulate the content of political signs and a rule ________ regulate the time, place, and manner of posting a political sign.
 may not . . . may not

 may not . . . may

 may . . . may not

 may . . . may

4. A rule may not be inconsistent with:
 the declaration (CC&Rs)

 the bylaws

 the articles of incorporation

 all of the above

 none of the above, a rule supersedes each of the above

5. In a community association (non-condo HOA), before adopting, modifying, or creating exceptions to the rules and design criteria of the association, the board must:
 A. at least 15 days before the board will meet to consider a change to a rule or design criterion, deliver notice to lot owners that the board is considering a change to a rule or design criterion

 B. provide an open forum at the board meeting giving lot owners an opportunity to be heard at a board meeting

 C. deliver a copy of the change in the rules or design criteria approved by the board to the lot owners within 15 days of adoption.

 D. all of the above

 E. A and C but not B

6. If provided in the declaration, articles, bylaws, or rules, an association may provide notice to its members by electronic means, including text message, email, or the association’s website.
 True

 False

 True, except as to a member who has made written demand to the association to provide notice to the member by mail.

 False, except as to members who have consented in writing beforehand.

 

Don’t look below until you’ve finished!  Warning – answers below!

Now grade yourself.  Here are the answers:

1.  False, only condominiums are governed by the Utah Condominium Ownership Act.

2.  14 days

3.  may not . . . may.

4.  D.  all of the above

5.  all of the above

6.  True, except as to a member who has made written demand to the association to provide notice to the member by mail

Thanks for playing!

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Posted by Curtis G. Kimble

Home Ownership and Second Hand Smoke: the American Dream or a Health Nightmare?

January 20, 2012

By Curtis G. Kimble.

How far can a government or an HOA go to dictate what can and can’t be done inside of a homeowners own home? Is an owner of an attached dwelling or a condominium unit able to do whatever they want within the confines of their home as long as it’s not illegal? Is a homeowner entitled to create and distribute from their home a “Class A” carcinogenic substance, which causes cancer and respiratory diseases and disorders, among other problems and which is able to infiltrate neighboring homes?

This is a question being increasingly asked in other states where some state courts have held that smoke transferring between units is a nuisance. But others have determined that the cigarette smoke is like an odor intrusion, a condition of living in a community environment that residents simply have to put up with – a startlingly misguided mentality considering the fact that the EPA has determined that there is no acceptable level of exposure to Class A carcinogens, and considering that second hand smoke causes serious problems for children, including ear problems, middle ear disease, acute respiratory infections, wheeze illness, slowed lung growth, and more severe asthma, and that 430 American newborns die each year from Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) caused by second hand smoke.

Incentives offered by the Federal Government have led cities from Austin to Boston to prohibit smoking in public housing. In 2006, a judge ruled that secondhand smoke could be a breach of “warranty of habitability” under New York law.  At least six California cities and counties have banned smoking in all condo units.

Fortunately for Utah residents who don’t appreciate dangerous and toxic chemicals being forced down their breathing passages, Utah law clearly states that smoke transferring between dwelling units is a nuisance and may be the subject of an action brought by “any person whose property is injuriously affected, or whose personal enjoyment is lessened by the nuisance” and “upon judgment, the nuisance may be enjoined or abated, and damages may be recovered.”

A nuisance under Utah law includes tobacco smoke that drifts into any residential unit a person rents, leases, or owns, from another residential or commercial unit and the smoke drifts in more than once in each of two or more consecutive seven-day periods, and is injurious to health, indecent, offensive to the senses, or an obstruction to the free use of property, so as to interfere with the comfortable enjoyment of life or property.

The Utah Condominium Ownership Act states that restrictions in governing documents “regarding the use of the units may include other prohibitions on, or allowance of, smoking tobacco products.”

The Utah Community Association Act, which applies to non-condo HOAs, states that a rule of an association may prohibit an activity within a dwelling if there are attached dwellings, and the activity creates the potential for smoke to enter another lot owner’s dwelling, the common areas, or limited common areas.

Utah law is at the forefront of the national trend to protect the right of every individual to live in their own homes without being subjected to dangerous and toxic chemicals contained in second hand smoke. Contact us to take advantage of these laws and help your association adopt a policy regarding smoking.

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Posted by Curtis G. Kimble

Don’t be a Hater! Or Your Peeps Will Accuse the Board of Selective Enforcement

July 22, 2011

As illustrated in this comical but true story: “Chris Brown on Condo Complaints: I’m Being Setup by Haters!” it’s vitally important that an association’s governing documents are in order and that they clearly outline the rights of each owner, including rights to parking spaces.  If parking spaces must be used as handicap spaces at some point due to a Fair Housing request, ensure that the whole process is done legally and properly under the governing documents and the law.  Consult professionals as needed, especially an attorney in the case of a Fair Housing request for reasonable accommodation.

The story in that link above also brings to mind the importance of clear and specific enforcement provisions in the governing documents.  If someone scratches their initials in the elevator, can you fine them?  What about excessive noise or other vandalism?

Perhaps most importantly, this story shows the importance of treating members equally and fairly.  In HOAs, the stakes are high.  Financially, the home is a major investment.  Psychologically, it may be even more important as a safe haven and source of security.  On the other hand, living in an HOA requires some sacrifices of individual freedom for the communal good.  The sacrifices must be fairly shared, however.  Unequal treatment of members who are similarly situated will lead to issues more serious than being called a hater.  The number one problem we see is when personality issues are the impetus behind an enforcement issue, rather than the goal of equal, consistent and uniform enforcement.  Contact us for guidance in any enforcement situation where determining what is fair is causing or may cause difficulty.

Curtis G. Kimble

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Posted by Curtis G. Kimble

How the New Laws Affect You: Non-Condos

June 2, 2011

For non-condo HOAs (all HOAs except condominiums), here’s a summary of how the new Utah HOA laws that went into effect on May 10, 2011, affect you most, as well as some recommended “action items.”  Contact us for help with any action item.  Also, see the other posts on this blog for more detail on the new laws.  This blog does not contain a comprehensive list of the new laws, just those that affect your daily operations the most.

1.  Register or No Lien.  Register as an HOA (separate and apart from registering as a nonprofit corporation) with the State of Utah and keep it updated when directors change, or else you can’t enforce any liens against delinquent owners.  *Action item:  subscribe to this blog (on the right side of this page under “Email Subscription”) and we’ll post the info on how to register as soon as we know about it.

2.  Insurance.  All HOAs in Utah must have property and liability insurance coverage for their common areas (this was not required before in non-condominium HOAs).

Unless the CC&Rs require each homeowner to insure the homeowner’s dwelling, all HOAs with attached housing (such as townhomes) are required to have 100% replacement cost coverage for all permanent improvements, including fixtures and betterments to an attached dwelling made by a homeowner.  The association must set aside an amount equal to the amount of the deductible (or $10,000, whichever is less).  The master policy must be primary, even for unit related losses.   However, the law gives the HOA a method to allocate or transfer risk to the homeowner or homeowner’s policy.  For claims against the association’s master policy which are associated with a particular home, the association can require that homeowner to pay the deductible if a notice had already been sent to all homeowners stating they will be responsible for the deductible on the association’s master policy.  *Action item: send notice to all owners regarding payment of the deductible, and make sure your deductible is somewhere in the $2,500 to $10,000 range to reduce minor or frivolous claims against the master policy by homeowners that drive up the premiums.

3.  Rules.  As of May 10th, rules can no longer be changed or adopted without giving notice to all homeowners 15 days in advance of the board meeting where the rule change will be considered and allowing homeowners an opportunity to be heard at that meeting.  The new or changed rule must then be sent out to all homeowners within 15 days of being adopted.  The homeowners can call a special meeting and disapprove a new rule within 60 days from the date it was adopted, if 51% of the total votes in the association vote to disapprove at the special meeting.

4.  Payoff Info.  An association is now prohibited from charging a fee for providing payoff information needed for closing on a unit, unless the fee is authorized by the CC&Rs, bylaws or rules, and, no matter what, the fee can’t exceed $50.  Payoff information must be provided by the HOA within five business days from when a closing agent makes a proper request for it (has to be in writing, signed and dated by the owner, etc.), or the lien is not enforceable at closing.

When a unit owner is closing on a unit and the owner needs payoff information because he or she has not been paying their share of the common expenses, providing that payoff information is an administrative burden on the HOA that is appropriately paid for by the offending/delinquent owner, not by the other paying owners.   *Action item:  adopt a rule authorizing a fee for providing payoff information.

5.  Reserves.  Every five years, a homeowner-elected board must perform, or hire someone to perform, a reserve analysis by (1) determining which improvements have a useful life of 3 years or more, then (2) determining what the cost is for maintaining those improvements over the next several years, and (3) then determining what they think the appropriate amount of the reserve fund should be.

The reserve analysis has to be reviewed and, if needed, updated every two years.  The reserve analysis has to be presented to the homeowners at the annual meeting each year where the homeowners at the meeting vote on whether to fund a reserve account and, if so, how to fund it and in what amount.  The results of that vote have to be reflected in the minutes.

The money in the reserve fund has to be kept separate from other funds and may not be used for daily maintenance expenses, unless approved by the owners, or for any other purpose other than the purpose for which the reserve fund was established.  *Action Item: for those who haven’t conducted a reserve analysis since March 1, 2008,  the law requires you to do one by July 1, 2012.

6.  Budgets.  A new law requires a homeowner-elected board to adopt a budget annually and to then present that budget to the homeowners at a meeting.  Since the budget will have already been adopted by the board, there is no requirement that the homeowners vote to approve the budget at the meeting.   The homeowners can, however, call a special meeting within 45 days of the first meeting and vote to disapprove the budget.  The budget will be disapproved if 51% of the total votes in the association vote to disapprove it “at a special meeting specifically called for that purpose by the lot owners.”

7.  Electronic Notice.  A new law states that you can provide notice to homeowners solely by electronic means (e.g., email, website) if authorized by your CC&Rs, bylaws, or rules (unless a homeowner opts out in writing).  *Action Item: adopt a rule authorizing electronic notice instead of notice by mail, at least for certain things.

Curtis G. Kimble

2 Comments | Governance, HOA Finances, Insurance, New HOA Laws, New Non-Condo HOA Laws, Non-Condo HOA, Reserves | Tagged: , , , , , , | Permalink
Posted by Curtis G. Kimble

New Laws on Rule-Making Procedures & Authority

May 2, 2011

Two new laws that go into effect on May 10, 2011, deal with rule-making authority and procedures in non-condo HOA’s.  These two new laws will become part of the Utah Community Association Act (but not part of the Utah Condo Act, so you condominiums can ignore them).

Utah Code § 57-8a-217.  From now on, before a board can adopt or change a rule (including architectural guidelines or design criteria), they have to provide an open forum at a board meeting giving lot owners an opportunity to be heard.  The board has to send out notice at least 15 days before that board meeting to every owner stating that the board is considering a change to a rule.  The board also has to send out notice within 15 days after a new rule is adopted.

This means a board has to listen to homeowner concerns before it makes a final decision.  The board does not need to conduct a vote of the homeowners to adopt a rule.  The decision to initially adopt a new rule is still entirely up to the board.

However,  the homeowners can disapprove a new rule by calling a special meeting within 60 days from the date it was adopted.  If 51% of the total votes in the association vote to disapprove the rule at the special meeting, then the rule will be nullified.  The procedure for lot owners to call a special meeting is usually set forth in the bylaws or CC&Rs.  The board has no obligation to call a meeting of the lot owners to consider disapproval unless lot owners submit a petition in accordance with the procedures in the bylaws or CC&Rs.

This is a big change, and an unfortunate one at that.  While it has value as a “checks and balances” type recourse for homeowners faced with unfair or inappropriate rules, it simply goes too far and is much too burdensome, especially for larger HOAs.  The law doesn’t go into effect until May 10, so it doesn’t apply to any rules a board adopts before then (so you’ve still got a few days to adopt that rule you’ve been putting off adopting without having to go through these new steps).

Utah Code § 57-8a-218.  This law mostly just restates common sense and common law principles regarding rules that I and other HOA attorneys have long been preaching (e.g., a rule must be reasonable, an association can adopt generally applicable rules for the use of common areas, and a rule can’t be contrary to the CC&Rs).

However, a couple of new things do come out of it.  For one, it states that an association may require a minimum lease term by rule alone (as long as it wouldn’t be contrary to the CC&Rs).  So, if you don’t have such a rental restriction in your CC&Rs already, the board can simply adopt a rule prohibiting rentals of less than X amount of time (e.g., 30 days, 6 months, 1 year).

Another thing that’s helpful in this law is that, even if not authorized in the CC&Rs, now an association may by rule:

  • impose a fee or charge 1. for the use, rental, or operation of the common areas, and 2. for a service provided to a lot owner, or
  • impose a late fee for late payments.

Finally, the law states that a rule may prohibit smoking inside attached dwellings (e.g., townhomes) if such smoking “creates the potential for smoke to enter a neighboring unit, the common areas, or limited common areas.”  So, for instance, without amending the CC&Rs, an association could adopt a policy stating that smoking is prohibited anywhere, including inside a unit, if it is possible that smoke will drift into another unit or into the common area or limited common area.

This new law parallels the existing law in the Utah Condo Act and it underscores the Utah Legislature’s position that smoking is a health and safety issue first and foremost.  Smoking is not a right, but rather it is every homeowner’s right to enjoy their dwelling free from the carcinogens and health hazards forced upon them at the whim of their smoking neighbors.  That is why the law provides that this is not an issue that needs to be voted on by the homeowners, a board can simply adopt a rule protecting the health of the residents and the livability of the units.

Curtis G. Kimble

3 Comments | Governance, New HOA Laws, New Non-Condo HOA Laws, Non-Condo HOA | Tagged: , , | Permalink
Posted by Curtis G. Kimble