Maryland Condo Law Blog
An online resource for condominium and homeowner associations and their members, and for developers, builders, contractors, architects, engineers and others in the building industry.
Maryland Legislature Considers Requirements For Foreclosure of Liens By Condominiums, Coops and Homeowner Associations
House Bill 811, now pending before the Maryland General Assembly, would establish new notice requirements before a condominium, cooperative housing corporation or homeowner association would be able to pursue lien foreclosure for unpaid assessments. The proposed enactment of new Section 7-105.13 of the Real Property Article of the Annotated Code of Maryland would require that an action to foreclose a lien may not be filed until 45 days after written notice of intent to foreclose is provided. A complaint foreclose a lien would have to be accompanied by an affidavit establishing the debt owed and a copy of the notice of intent to foreclose. A foreclosure sale could not occur until at least 45 days after service of the complaint and supporting documents. read more…
Legislature Considers Clarifications to Maryland Contract Lien Act
The Maryland General Assembly is considering a bill that would clarify the language of the Maryland Contract Lien Act regarding the right to maintain a suit for monetary damages in addition to foreclosure. The proposed revisions in House Bill 628 would make clear that a lien holder, including liens for unpaid assessments held by a condominium council of unit owners, could be subject to a monetary suit for damages, even if the lien has not been foreclosed; that such suits for monetary damages may include costs and attorney’s fees; and that, after foreclosure, a suit for monetary judgment could be brought for any deficiency either within the foreclosure proceeding or as a separate suit. read more…
Maryland General Assembly Again Considers Legislation To License And Regulate Community Managers
A proposal to establish a new regulatory agency for the licensing of community managers, that failed in during 2012 legislative session, is again before this year’s session of the Maryland General Assembly. House Bill 576 would establish a new regulatory agency for the licensing of community managers of condominiums, cooperative housing corporations, and homeowners associations. read more…
Bill In Maryland General Assembly Would Preclude Lien Foreclosures From Including Amounts Due For Fines and Related Fees
A bill now pending in the Maryland Legislature would prevent condominium’s, cooperative housing corporations, and homeowner associations from including in a lien foreclosure action amounts due for fines and attorney’s fees incurred in recovering fines. Instead, under House Bill 286, foreclosure of a lien could only involve delinquent monthly or special assessments. read more…
Bill In Maryland Legislature Would Add Business Negotiations As A Further Basis For A Closed Meeting Of A Condominium’s Board of Directors
House Bill 388, now pending before the General Assembly, would permit a condominium’s board of directors to hold a closed meeting to discuss negotiations pertinent to a business transaction. It would amend Section 11-109.1 of the Maryland Condominium Act to permit closed board meetings for “consideration of the terms and conditions of a business transaction in the negotiation stage if the disclosure could adversely affect the economic interests of the council of unit owners.” read more…
Maryland Legislature Considers Bill To Require Information As To “Potential” Special Assessments In Resale Contracts
House Bill 23, now before the Maryland General Assembly, would require information concerning “potential” special assessments to be included in resale contracts for both condominium units and properties subject to a homeowers association. Perhaps in response to the protracted litigation in MRA Property Management, Inc. v. Armstrong, 426 Md. 83, 43 A. 3d 397 (2012), which concerned the alleged failure to disclose knowledge of defects that would ultimately require special assessments to repair, the proposed legislation would amend Section 11-135 of the Maryland Condominium Act and Section 11B-106 of the Maryland Homeowners Association Act to require that any resale contract include a notice of “any potential special assessment that is referenced within the preceding 12 months in” (1) the agenda or minutes of any meeting of the board of directors of a condominium, or the governing body of a homeowners association; or (2) a vote at a meeting of a condominium’s council of unit owners or a homeowners association. As proposed, the new requirement would apply to a mere reference to the possibility of a special assessment, and not to just actual special assessment proposals or enactments.
I Will Be Speaking On Construction Defects at a May 1 Seminar in Baltimore
I will be part of a faculty of local attorneys presenting a seminar entitled: “Anatomy of a Defect: What it is and the Rules that Apply.” The program is sponsored by the National Business Institute, and will be presented in Baltimore on May 1, 2013 at the Radisson Lord Baltimore Hotel. My presentation will focus on what constiutes a defect, including common types of patent and latent defects, as well as pertinent statutes, codes and regulations.
More Than Just A Game
[REPRINTED FROM THE BALTIMORE SUN, FEBRUARY 3, 2013
The spectacular playoff run that brings the Ravens to this week’s Super Bowl rightfully has the City literally and figuratively aglow in purple. Of course, there are those who will assert that it is only a game, and there are far more pressing issues that should rightfully occupy the local headlines. It is true that it is just a game. As in many ways game day is just another afternoon. But sometimes it is more than could have ever been imagined. read more…
Maryland Court of Appeals Grants Certiorari To Consider Admissibility Of Medical Testimony In Mold Cases
The Maryland Court of Appeals has granted a petition for certiorari and agreed to hear an appeal from a decsion of the Court of Special Appeals ruling that certain expert testimony is not admissible to support medical clams arising from exposure to mold and other environmental byproducts of damp buildings. read more…
Significant Maryland Condominium Arbitration Award Confirmed By Balitmore City Circuit Court
Ober|Kaler Construction Group principal Raymond D. Burke and associates Mathew T. Vocci and Jackson B. Boyd secured judicial confirmation earlier this year in the Circuit Court for Baltimore City of a significant arbitration award on behalf of the owner of a penthouse condominium unit located at 100 Harborview Drive in Baltimore’s Inner Harbor. The Circuit Court’s confirmation of the $1,252,487 arbitration award resulted in what is believed to be Maryland’s largest judgment against a condominium council of unit owners for its failure to maintain, repair, and replace the common elements of a condominium building (in this case, the roof system, exterior façade, and HVAC ductwork of a 27-story high-rise). The Circuit Court also confirmed the arbitration award’s order of specific performance, which requires the condominium’s council of unit owners to replace the building’s roof system, repair its exterior façade, clean its HVAC ductwork, and insulate its rooftop exterior HVAC ductwork. The value of the work required by the specific performance order is approximately $6 million. read more…
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The Maryland Condo Law Blog is written by Raymond Daniel Burke. One of the region's top construction and real estate development lawyers, Ray has more than 35 years of experience in matters relating to condominium and other multi-use development matters.