Florida HOAs Want the Same Gov Support as Condo Owners

If you live in Florida, but don't live in a condominium, timeshare or mobile home - in other words, if you live an HOA community - and a board member commits fraud, you may just be out of luck when it comes to looking for advice from the state. If you need guidance understanding your responsibilities when it comes to home repairs and you live in a condominium, your condo association can most likely help you. But here again, community homeowners will find themselves out on their own.

Many homeowners' association members in Florida believe this is unfair and are finding a communal voice to make some changes. The Community Association Member Party has already signed more than 300 homeowners to its community in hopes of persuading lawmakers to create an agency that will protect homeowners, or at least expand their current unit to include them.

Condo owners believe they have earned this right because they pay an association fee, whereas HOA communities are typically single-family, unattached properties that don't share common amenities. Condo and timeshare owners do pay their fee, although the fee for the Division of Florida Condominiums is only $4 per unit per year - a sum homeowners would gladly pay in order to protect their properties.

Although having a government agency working alongside you isn't always a blessing, in the case of an HOA or Condo Association, it definitely is. Condo owners are not subject to government regulations, but they have support should they need someone to back them up.

Because homeowners do not currently enjoy this service, an experienced attorney can provide helpful advice when trying to resolve an HOA dispute or fraud claim. Until homeowners are protected by the Division of Florida Condominiums, Timeshares and Mobile Homes Agency, or until they have one of their own agency, an attorney may be the only person able to help them.