HOA Law Blog

Assembly Bill 771 (Betsy Butler), which amends Civil Code Section 1368 regarding documents to be provided the buyer in an escrow, was sponsored by the California Association of Realtors and initially sought to place a cap on fees that may be charged by management companies and others who provide documents upon sale or transfer of a separate interest. This bill was opposed by all industry trade groups and was ultimately revised to remove the cap. As signed by the Governor, the bill sets out the items which are to be provided to a buyer as well as an estimated fee for each.
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By David Swedelson, Condo lawyer and HOA attorney; Senior Partner SwedelsonGottlieb

Despite significant industry opposition, the Governor has signed into law amendments to the Davis Stirling Act and specifically Civil Code Section 1363.05, also known as the Common Interest Development Open Meeting Act. Here is the story of how this new law came to be:

As most of you know, the Act was amended with the addition of this code section requiring that board meetings at California community associations be open to members except for certain specified executive session meetings when those meetings should be kept confidential or emergency meetings when the required notice to owners is not possible.
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By David C. Swedelson, Esq.; SwedelsonGottlieb Community Association Attorneys

SwedelsonGottlieb has been responding to a flood of inquiries regarding the recently chaptered California SB 150, a bill which amends Sections 1368 and 1373 of the Davis-Stirling Act and adds a new Civil Code Section to the Act affecting certain rental restriction provisions in CC&Rs that are recorded on or after January 1, 2012. As there seems to be a good deal of confusion about this bill (even among some attorneys in our industry), we thought it would be beneficial for the readers of HOALawBlog to clearly explain the applicability and effect of this new legislation.

The Legislative Counsel’s Digest contains a good summary of the purpose of the bill: “This bill would prohibit the owner of a separate interest in a common interest development from being subject to a provision in a governing document, or a provision in an amendment to a governing document, that prohibits the rental or leasing of all or any of the separate interests in that common interest development to a renter, lessee, or tenant unless that governing document, or amendment thereto, was effective prior to the date the owner acquired title to his or her separate interest.” As noted above, this bill applies to some, but not all, rental restrictions recorded on or after January 1, 2012.