HOA Law Blog

By David Swedelson, Esq. and Cyrus Koochek, Esq.; Community Association Attorneys at SwedelsonGottlieb

AB 1738 is new law that amends Civil Code Sections 5910 and 5915 and makes two major changes to the requirements of internal dispute resolution (IDR) meetings held between an association’s board and its members. We opposed the adoption of AB 1738 (like just about everyone else who works with California HOAs) and discussed the reasons why in our September 3, 2014 blog article. AB 1738 has since been signed into law and became effective California law as of January 1, 2015.

Here are the big changes – first, any agreement between the parties during IDR must be in writing and signed by both parties. This is a common sense requirement and will prevent any complaints about what was actually agreed to between an association and owner. More problematic, however, is the addition of language that now permits members to be represented by an attorney (or another person explaining the member’s position). The new changes that now allow members to bring an attorney will, without a doubt, end up costing community associations more money for legal fees, as more members may decide to be represented by their attorney, which will in turn require the association to have its attorney present.
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By the Community Association Attorneys at SwedelsonGottlieb

Under Civil Code Section 714, a California community association can restrict its members’ installation and use of solar energy systems so long as the restrictions do not significantly increase the cost of the system or significantly decrease its efficiency or specified performance. “Significantly” used to be defined (through 12/31/14) as increasing the costs of the system by 20% (or $2,000 for photovoltaic systems) or decreasing the efficiency of the system by 20%.

AB 2188, effective January 1, 2015, redefines what reasonable restrictions an Association can require and amends Civil Code Section 714. Specifically, the new law has cut by half an association’s ability to restrict solar energy systems installed by members. A significant increase in the costs of a system will now mean an increase of 10% (or $1,000 for photovoltaic systems), and a significant decrease will now mean a reduction in the efficiency of the system by 10%. An association must now be even more careful with the conditions or limitations it places on an owner who wants to install a solar energy system.

By the Community Association Attorneys at SwedelsonGottlieb

Most associations have provided transfer disclosures/documents to an escrow at some point when an owner is selling his or her unit/home or property in a community association to a prospective purchaser. This task is usually completed by the association’s managing agent. Sections 4528 and 4530 of the Civil Code govern the requirements for complying with an Association’s escrow disclosure requirements. AB 2430, which amends Civil Code Sections 4528 and 4530 and is effective as of January 1, 2015, now provides some helpful points of clarification and one major affirmation of California case law.

First, AB 2430 now provides that it is the responsibility of a seller to compensate the association, person, or entity that provides the required documents to the prospective purchaser. This is the first time the Davis-Stirling Act has expressly made clear that the fees charged by an entity other than the association (e.g., management companies) are the responsibility of the seller. This change now makes the Civil Code on par with California case law. See our previous article to learn about the California cases which paved the way for this new legislation.