Can a condo require you to ditch shutters and add hurricane windows?

Can condo force you to remove shutters and install hurricane windows? Palm Beach Post files

Do you live in a home governed by a condominium, co-op, or homeowners association? If so, you may have questions about what those associations can and cannot require. Boca Raton attorney and author Ryan Poliakoff has answers.

Question: I own a unit in an oceanfront, mid-rise condominium project and have lived there for more than 30 years. More than a decade ago, I installed accordion hurricane shutters. Three years ago, the association began balcony repair work that required the shutters to be removed. Once the repairs were finished, my shutter contractor said the shutters had reached the end of their economic life.

I had new shutters installed that complied with code. More recently, the association held a meeting and adopted a rule saying that all sliding doors must be converted to impact hurricane sliding balcony doors by the end of 2027. My question is whether I am grandfathered in because my shutters already meet Florida requirements and were installed before this new rule. Or will I still have to follow it? Signed, T.H.

Dear T.H.,

Your description suggests the new rule requires all sliding doors to be converted to impact glass. That is not the same as saying you must also remove your shutters once those doors are installed. Many owners keep hurricane shutters even after installing impact windows, and many installers recommend that approach for extra protection. Still, I will assume the rule is intended not only to require impact glass, but also to eliminate any existing shutters.

I should note that I do not believe such a requirement would be enforceable unless it were adopted as an amendment to the condominium declaration, rather than merely as a board rule. Even so, I do not think that distinction changes the outcome here.

The Condominium Act, in Section 718.113, Florida Statutes, states that “notwithstanding any other provision in the residential condominium or mixed-use condominium documents, if approval is required by the documents, a board may not refuse to approve the installation or replacement of hurricane protection by a unit owner which conforms to the specifications adopted by the board.”

Both impact glass and code-compliant shutters qualify as “hurricane protection” under the statute. That means the law does not let a board force one type over another. Owners have the right to install the kind of hurricane protection they prefer, and likely more than one type. The board may set specifications, but it cannot require you to remove an existing, code-compliant form of hurricane protection simply to satisfy a new standard. So I do not think you need to worry.

That said, even if you keep your shutters, an amendment to the declaration could still require you to install impact glass sliding doors as well. You would have the right to keep the shutters, but you would not have the right to ignore the new requirement if that was your concern.

Question: My HOA has just over 600 homes spread across seven subdivisions. Two subdivisions are made up of single-family houses, while the other five contain condos, townhouses, duplexes, and other attached homes. The two single-family subdivisions own their lots and pay for their own lawn maintenance. The homes in the other five subdivisions do not own land, so the HOA handles landscaping, irrigation, and lawn care for them.

The issue is that the HOA includes all lawn care expenses in the common expense budget and divides those costs equally among all homes, including the homes that do not receive those services. That adds about $1,000 per home each year to HOA dues. In effect, the owners in the two single-family subdivisions must maintain their own yards and also pay an extra $1,000 annually to subsidize the landscaping costs for the other five subdivisions.

Is that allowed? Is there anything that can be done to change it? Signed, K.W.

Dear K.W.,

As we have discussed in earlier columns, fairness is rarely the deciding factor in community association disputes.

Your answer is in the HOA’s declaration of covenants. That document defines the common expenses and explains how they are allocated. You generally cannot change that allocation simply because it seems unfair. Shifting those costs so that only the multi-family homes pay them would require those owners’ consent, and that is not likely to happen.

That said, one possible solution would be to amend the declaration so the master association becomes responsible for landscaping for the single-family homes as well. That would effectively create a more even arrangement.

Of course, obtaining the vote needed to make that change may be difficult. Even if it seems fair to you, the owners of the multi-family homes may not want to take on the costs for the single-family homes. Still, depending on the wording of the declaration, it may be worth exploring.

Ryan Poliakoff, a partner at Poliakoff Backer, LLP, is a board-certified specialist in condominium and planned development law. This column is dedicated to the memory of Gary Poliakoff. Ryan Poliakoff and Gary Poliakoff are co-authors of “New Neighborhoods - The Consumer's Guide to Condominium, Co-Op and HOA Living.” Email your questions to [email protected]. Please be sure to include your location.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Can condo force you to remove shutters and install hurricane windows?

Reporting by Ryan Poliakoff, Special to the Palm Beach Post / Palm Beach Post

USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

Copyright Reuters or USA Today Network via Reuters Connect