Condo Living Made Easy
Presented by Haus Financial Services, LLC - Elevating Small Condo Management.
Condo Living Made Easy
Presented by Haus Financial Services, LLC - Elevating Small Condo Management.
"Who is Responsible?" A refresher...
- Details
- Written by Lauren Peddinghaus
- Category: What We're Thinking About Lately...
Our "Ask the Expert" column receives regular submissions regarding who is responsible--the association or the unit owner--for various portions of a condominium building.
A primer on the difference between Common Elements and Limited Common Elements can be found in our Maintenance A-Z article "Who is Responsible? Common Elements & Limited Common Elements." Understanding the fundamentals between common elements and limited common elements is important for every condo owner.
If you have further questions or your governing documents require clarification (or revision), consultations with the Chicago Condo Resource Center are available to help your association address this issue. Please feel free to contact us!
Mailboxes need some spiffing up?
- Details
- Written by Lauren Peddinghaus
- Category: What We're Thinking About Lately...
One of the easiest ways to spruce up your entryway is to standardize the labels on your mailboxes. Self-managed buildings are notorious for having a hodgepodge of labels stuck to owners' mailboxes in haphazard fashion. If they have labels at all!
I found customized labels online at www.mailboxworks.com for only $3.95 each. The labels can be engraved with each owner's name and unit number, and they fit perfectly into the slot in the mailbox door. Our entryway seriously looks a thousand times better since we installed the custom tags.
Now if we could only figure out how to do the same for our buzzer system!
Time for annual boiler maintenance!
- Details
- Written by Lauren Peddinghaus
- Category: What We're Thinking About Lately...
While we're still enjoying warmer temperatures, colder months are just around the corner and HVAC companies are already getting booked up with annual maintenance appointments. I just called today to make an appointment for our 4-unit building and aside from one open slot on Sept. 25th, they are pretty well booked through October.
If your building has a common boiler, it's time to call and make an appointment to have it serviced before you turn it on for the season. A sub-zero day is not the best time to find out that you've got a boiler problem!
For recommended vendors, see our Heating and Air Conditioning vendor listing page.
Association must take action to rent units under possession
- Details
- Written by Lauren Peddinghaus
- Category: What We're Thinking About Lately...
Dealing with owner delinquencies can be a time-consuming and expensive process. However, once the association takes physical possession of a unit and obtains a renter, delinquencies can often be recovered quite quickly.
It's important to note that if the association fails to take action to rent a unit under possession once an owner has been evicted, the owner has a legal recourse to regain possession. The possession action is intended as a remedy for the association to recoup delinquencies. Leaving the unit vacant could cost the association the right to continue to possess the unit.
If your association is experiencing delinquencies, it's important to act quickly. The Chicago Condo Resource Center offers education on the collections process and can help you to make a decision about legal action. Please see our Education & Training page for details.
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"Ask the Expert"
Our association would like to update its Bylaws. Is a template available?
Q. Could you point me in the direction of the Bylaws template for small Chicago condo associations? Our building is using the original from the 1960’s or something like that, and I would like to propose a revamp.
My condo management company claims I have not made a payment. What can I do?
Q.The new Management that took over in January has caused me to place a stop payment on my payments. They are currently accusing me of not paying for 1 month last year and attaching late fees.
Limits on Special Assessments for Condominiums
Q. What is the maximum amount that the board can set as a special assessment WITHOUT having to get the association to approve?
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