The Western Florida Cooperator, The Condo, HOA & Co-op Monthly

Management

Reopening Your Community

IREM Offers a Roadmap

Editor’s Note: During this crisis, The Cooperator family of publications will be passing along information, tips, and FA…

Management

May 7, 2020

COVID-19 Cases Plateauing in Some Areas

Not the Time to Relax, Say Experts

March 20, 2020

COVID-19 Q&A for Condos, HOAs, & Co-ops

Keeping Pace With the Crisis

March 20, 2020

Coronavirus & COVID-19

Practical Considerations for Boards & Management

Emergency Management

Readiness is Everything

Finance

Tapping Reserves in a Time of Financial Hardship

An Option to (Carefully!) Consider

It’s a question we’re asked all the time: "Can we use reserves to cover an operating fund shortfall?" Under normal circu…

Finance

What to Do About HOA Finances & Arrears During Coronavirus

How Associations Should Respond

2019 Winter

Keeping an Often Digital Paper Trail

Best Practices For Maintaining HOA Records

2015 July

Dealing With Code Violations

Better Safe Than Sorry

2015 July

Don’t Raid the Cookie Jar

Capital Budgeting is Essential

On The Board

CAI Releases Statement on Foreclosure Moratorium

Calls for 'Flexibility, Understanding, and Business Continuity'

Editor’s Note: During this crisis, The Cooperator family of publications will be passing along information, tips, and FA…

March 26, 2020

Dealing With Coronavirus Exposure

Board Powers & Limitations

Emergency Management

Readiness is Everything

March 20, 2020

Vulnerable Residents

Safety for All

Coronavirus & COVID-19

What Should Condos & HOAs Do?

Emergency Management

Readiness is Everything

Planning for a rainy day is pretty easy. Have an extra umbrella handy or a waterproof coat, and you’re probably fine. Pl…

March 20, 2020

Vulnerable Residents

Safety for All

Coronavirus & COVID-19

What Should Condos & HOAs Do?

2014 January

Knowing When to Call Your Manager

Response to Calls is an Essential Part of the Manager’s Job

2014 January

Secrets of Successful Managers

Communication, Accommodation, Cooperation

Emergency Management

Readiness is Everything

Planning for a rainy day is pretty easy. Have an extra umbrella handy or a waterproof coat, and you’re probably fine. Pl…

March 20, 2020

Vulnerable Residents

Safety for All

Coronavirus & COVID-19

What Should Condos & HOAs Do?

Board Owner Do’s and Don’ts

What Makes a Board Successful?

Keeping Track of Paperwork

Properly Managing Association Records

Maintenance

Multifamily Cleaning Tips

Keeping Your Community Safe

Editor's Note: To help prevent the spread of COVID-19 in your building or association, procedures and supplies should …

Maintaining Air Quality

Managing the Indoor Environment

Coronavirus & COVID-19

What Should Condos & HOAs Do?

2019 Winter

Elevator Refurbishment

Managing a Major Service Disruption

2018 December

Elevator Repair and Replacement Projects

Maximizing Safety, Minimizing Disruption

A Clear View

What’s New in Window Trends and Technology?

Windows can dramatically change any space, from transforming a tiny kitchen into a front row seat to a glorious skyline …

From the Outside In

Exterior Building Inspections in South Florida

Plumbing the Depths

Pipes, Drains, and Your Building's Water Supply

Of all the modern conveniences we take for granted, perhaps none is as profoundly basic —and indispensable—as indoor pl…

2014 November

The Art of Picking Professionals

To Choose or Not to Choose

2014 November

Your Building's Anatomy

Systems That Keep Your Building Functioning

Insurance

Cooperator Expo Western Florida Returns to Tampa

A Must-Attend for Board Members, Managers, and Condo/HOA Decision-Makers

To Claim, or Not to Claim?

The Insurance Dilemma

Homesharing and Insurance

What Your Board Should Know

Insurance: A Must-Have or Couldn’t Hurt?

Making Smart Yet Affordable Coverage Decisions

Who's Responsible for Repairs?

August 2014, Vol 3, No 8

Design

Splish-Splash

Enhancing Your Community with Water Features

Design for All

The Functionality of Universal Design

Organizations

The Florida Swimming Pool Association

Training, Education and Professionalism for Pool Administrators

The Florida Nursery, Growers and Landscape Association

Leading Florida's Green Industry

The Insurance Information Institute

A One-Stop Resource for Florida Homeowners

News

6/30/2020 Lost to coronavirus: Sick herself, West Palm Beach woman loses husband of 35 years to virus—Palm Beach Post

Snowbirds just might be the luckiest people in the world. At least that’s how Richard and Mona Beltram felt in January, when the New Jersey couple bought a condo at Century Village outside of West Palm Beach.
Read full story

6/30/2020 3 Reasons to Buy a Condo — and 3 Reasons to Beware—WTOP News

If you’re contemplating buying a house, especially in an urban area, you may be asking yourself: Is buying a condo a better deal?
Read full story

6/18/2020 StoneTurn Exec Says Force Majeure Clauses Lack Specificity—Law360

Many real estate owners, lenders and tenants — as well as buyers and sellers — are finding their force majeure contract clauses to be too broad as the COVID-19 pandemic brings increased scrutiny to such clauses, StoneTurn partner and law firm expert Jeffrey Matthews told Law360 in a recent interview.
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6/18/2020 Housing Tax Credit Tenants Brace For Evictions Due To Virus—Law360

Thousands of cash-strapped apartment dwellers are bracing for a wave of evictions next month that could worsen the national affordable housing shortage, placing pressure on owners of housing tax credit properties seeking to maintain financial solvency during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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6/16/2020 Hillsborough Mortgage Broker Gets 15 Months in Condo Scam—Tampa Bay Times

A former Hillsborough County mortgage broker has been sentenced to 15 months in federal prison for his role in a scam through which banks lost more than $5 million.
Read full story

6/12/2020 Steps For Commercial Real Estate Lenders As Biz Resumes—Law360

Lenders, just like most of us aren't coming out of quarantine 10 pounds lighter, caught up on Russian classics, or with a cleaned and organized garage, it's clear that borrowers are not going to emerge from any short loan-deferral cocoon looking like a monarch butterfly. Rather than expecting a monarch butterfly, best adjust your expectations and get ready to see a fat caterpillar.
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6/10/2020 Opinion: Fuzzy government rules leave condo boards in coronavirus quandary—Miami Herald

The COVID-19 pandemic has rewritten the operational script for many industries, including the community association industry. As with most of life’s challenges, we are acquiring take-away lessons that will help us adapt even more quickly the next time a curve ball heads our way.
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6/5/2020 Important Advisory—Emergency Powers, Hurricanes and Coronavirus—Law.com

In light of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic and the start of hurricane season, which officially began June 1, many Florida condominium and homeowner associations are facing critical and unique issues regarding the operation and governance of their communities. Both the Condominium Act (Chapter 718, Florida Statutes) and the Homeowners’ Association Act (Chapter 720, Florida Statutes) contain certain emergency powers.
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6/1/2020 Pinellas lifts virus restrictions on beaches, pools and playgrounds—Tampa Bay Times

Pinellas County has lifted the local mandate that beach visitors maintain social distancing amid the coronavirus pandemic, and law enforcement officers will no longer patrol the sands as they have since beach access re-opened on May 4.
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5/28/2020 Buyers begin closing on million-dollar condos in Virage Bayshore on the former Colonnade site—Tampa Bay Business Journal

Virage Bayshore was one of the first luxury condo towers in Tampa to break ground this real estate cycle.
Read full story

5/28/2020 Condo in The Beach Residences sells for $2.47 million—YourObserver.com

A condominium in The Beach Residences tops all transactions in this week’s real estate. Sheila Jellison, of Sarasota, sold her Unit 605 condominium at 1300 Benjamin Franklin Drive to John Gorman and Susan Schmedes, of Chevy Chase, Md., for $2,475,000. Built in 2005, it has two bedrooms, three baths and 3,302 square feet of living area. It sold for $1.9 million in 2005.
Read full story

5/21/2020 Existing-Home Sales Wane 17.8% in April—PR Newswire

Existing-home sales dropped in April, continuing what is now a two-month skid in sales brought on by the coronavirus pandemic, according to the National Association of Realtors®. Each of the four major regions experienced a decline in month-over-month and year-over-year sales, with the West seeing the greatest dip in both categories.
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5/19/2020 Ethos Specialty launches U.S. real estate liability program—Reinsurance News

Ethos Specialty has announced the launch of a new commercial general liability program for U.S. real estate owners and managers.
Read full story

5/13/2020 Daytona Beach Real Estate Agent Blames Coronavirus for Condo Sales Decline—Bay News 9

A Volusia County real estate agent says condo sales around the Daytona Beach area are taking a steep dive and he says coronavirus is to blame.
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5/11/2020 Marcus & Millichap Capital Corp. Arranges Fractured Condo Cash-Out Refi in Largo, FL—ConnectCRE

Marcus & Millichap Capital Corp. (MMCC) arranged a $19.65 million nonrecourse loan to refinance 153 fractured condominium units in Largo, FL, a suburb of Tampa-St. Pete. The units were accumulated since 2013 for a combined purchase price of $12.4 million, representing 87% of the property’s total.
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5/6/2020 Some in Northwest Florida keeping vacation rentals open illegally, condo manager says—WEARTV

Florida's ban on vacation rentals will stay in place through the first phase of reopening the state. The decision is being met with mixed reactions.
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5/6/2020 Tampa Multifamily Wrap-Up – April 2020—Multi-Housing News

Despite the uncertainty surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic, Tampa Bay’s multifamily market remained active in April. Even though investment slowed in comparison to previous months, development carried on, with construction declared an essential service during the statewide safer-at-home policy enacted at the start of the month.
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5/4/2020 Florida ICU nurse says condo won't rent to her, fears virus—Bay News 9

A Florida nurse filed an equal opportunity complaint alleging her condo rental application was denied because her ICU job brings her in contact with novel coronavirus patients.
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4/30/2020 Court ruling clears path for controversial tower in downtown St. Petersburg—Tampa Bay Times

A court order has cleared the way for the construction of the Bezu/Blue Lotus condo tower in downtown St. Petersburg, a project that has been mired in controversy since it was first introduced in 2017.
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4/30/2020 Your A/C is broken. The WiFi is down. Is it safe to let workers into your home during the quarantine?—Tampa Bay Times

Getting a technician to come into your home to fix the cable or wireless doesn’t just require an appointment during the COVID-19 pandemic. It also involves a questionnaire: Has anyone been sick or quarantined? Has anyone come in contact with someone who has or had COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus? Are you OK with following social distancing guidelines?
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Recent Articles

CAI Statement Supports Fair Housing, Condemns Discrimination

Tapping Reserves in a Time of Financial Hardship

Government Action Resources for Community Associations

Multifamily Developers Experiencing Pandemic-Related Delays

Important COVID-19 Reporting Updates from OSHA