Posted in Condominium & Homeowner Association Law

Florida’s Mandatory Condominium, Cooperative, and HOA Certification Requirements for Newly Elected Board Members

All Florida Condominium, Cooperative, and Homeowners Association’s (“HOA”) should be aware that Florida law requires mandatory certification of newly elected members of an Association’s Board of Directors within 90 days after becoming elected to the Board. Failure of a Board Member to meet the certification requirements results in the Board Member being suspended from the Board until the certification requirement is met.

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Posted in Business Law,General Practice,IRS & Tax Information,Real Estate Law

Many local governments have enacted laws which require the owner of a short term rental property to obtain a certificate or other permit in order to utilize the property as a rental. This regulation comes in addition to obtaining a license from the Department of Business and Professional Regulation, a local business tax receipt, and the remission of Florida Sales Tax to the Department of Revenue. The issue of regulating short term vacation rentals has also been addressed recently by the Florida legislature.
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Posted in Condominium & Homeowner Association Law

Florida’s Marketable Record Title Act (“MRTA”), Chapter 712 of the Florida Statutes, was enacted to simplify the title examination process and facilitate real property transactions.  MRTA removes title defects and interests in title from properties and extinguishes stale claims which came into existence more than 30 years ago to enhance the marketability of title. Prior to MRTA’s enaction in 1963, practitioners would have to search title records back as far as the initial Spanish land grants. 
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Posted in Condominium & Homeowner Association Law

Is your condominium or homeowner’s association properly prepared for a natural disaster event such as a hurricane?  The Atlantic hurricane season officially began on June 1^st of this year and will continue until November 30^th. The season began with a bang as tropical storm Alberto proves you need to be ready now. It is predicted for 2018 that we will have 12 named storms, 6 of which will become hurricanes.

Florida condominium and homeowner associations are encouraged to take the following steps to ensure that they are properly prepared for an upcoming weather event and to put themselves in the best position to respond should damage to property occur. The list below is not all inclusive but should provide a solid basis for preparation.  In addition to seeking advice of legal counsel, community associations should work carefully with their Community Association Manager (CAM), insurance advisors, property maintenance staff, and providers.  
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Posted in Estate & Personal Planning

Many people have either a fear of probate or confusion about it.  However, probate generally does not deserve the bad feelings its name evokes.  On one hand, sometimes the probate process is beneficial, whereas on the other hand, sometimes it may be more efficient and cost-effective to create a plan to avoid probate.
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Posted in Real Estate Law

This Spring, St. Johns County residents along with visitors across the county flocked to an area of a state protected beach in Guana State Park. With help from national news coverage, the visitors came to lay eyes on a 48-foot section of a once sunken ship which is believed to date to the 1700’s. Had this amazing artifact washed up later this year on a privately-owned stretch of beach subject to an ordinance establishing the customary public use of that part of the beach, the passing of House Bill 631 on March 8, 2018 could have allowed a private owner of beach to prevent the public from viewing the wreckage.
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Posted in Condominium & Homeowner Association Law

We’ve prepared the following bottom-line outline of the recent legislative amendments enacted in House Bill 841 affecting Florida condominium, homeowners’, and cooperative associations.  The amendments will take effect July 1, 2018. 
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Posted in Estate & Personal Planning,IRS & Tax Information

How did tax reform affect estate planning? The tax reform signed into law on December 22, 2017 increased the estate tax exclusion from $5.49 million[1] to slightly over $11 million.[2]  Estate tax is a tax on property transferred upon your death, but only estates valued in excess of the exclusion may owe tax.  In general, assets of a decedent in addition to any lifetime gifts that exceed the annual gift tax exclusion[3] on which gift tax has not been paid, are included in the calculation. For married couples, each spouse could have an exclusion[4]. Most individuals and couples do not have assets exceeding $11 million and $22 million, respectively, so the group to which estate tax is relevant has drastically reduced.
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