By Nanette Asimov

January 13, 2015

The year was 1959. Like many young families, Dorothy Mae Provost Adams, a saleswoman at Macy’s in downtown San Francisco, and her husband, Artemus Adams, a San Francisco police officer, dreamed of owning a home with a yard — perfect for their two little kids.

Unlike most families, they had to do their house hunting at night.

Their story is being remembered this week after the death of Dorothy Adams at age 85. She and her husband had to break into their own home in defiance of neighborhood restrictions against black homeowners. The U.S. Supreme Court had already ruled such restrictions unenforceable. But some neighborhoods — and neighbors — still held them dear.

The Adamses had their eye on Westwood Park, a neighborhood of bungalows just west of City College of San Francisco on the south side of town. Like communities across the country, Westwood Park had racist restrictions: “No person of African, Japanese, Chinese or any Mongolian descent shall be allowed to purchase, own or lease any real property in said Westwood Park,” said Article XIII of the neighborhood’s declaration of Covenants, Codes and Restrictions — the document given by title companies to all prospective homeowners. Westwood Park’s was written in 1920.  Read more:

By John L. Smith

January 13, 2015

Give credit where it’s due. Leon Benzer’s capable attorneys made a game effort.

But despite recent attempts to have the federal criminal charges against him disrupted, Benzer remains in the cross hairs of the FBI and Department of Justice. That’s no surprise.

Nor is it startling that counterpunches by the defense — allegations of government misconduct and the claim that pretrial press coverage has prevented a fair jury trial in Southern Nevada — missed their mark. They were at best legal long shots. Those shots were fired, I suspect, in part because when the pretrial smoke clears Benzer and his co-defendants figure to be buried under a mountain of damaging facts and the testimony of dozens of credible witnesses — including some former co-conspirators.

Attempting to change the venue of the trial because of adverse publicity was an academic exercise. As any rookie attorney knows, arguments for a change of venue are almost never granted. And lots of investigations and criminal cases have attracted much more pretrial publicity than the HOA scandal.

The defense became particularly prickly over the publication of an Oct. 30 article in the Review-Journal by veteran court reporter Jeff German. Drawing from a court document that was briefly in the public domain, the story revealed a failed attempt by prosecutors and Benzer to cut a deal. Read more:

January 13, 2015

By Shelley Childers

BROWNSVILLE –  A Brownsville man said his homeowners association is not working and wants the organization to shut down. Jack Jew wants his homeowners association to go away. He said, “We’re not getting our return on investment with it.” According to the homeowner, the Parkview neighborhood had a homeowners association that fizzled out.“A few years later, about four years ago, a new management company came in and started telling us in these letters we owe dues,” said Jew.

Not everyone is paying attention to this new Parkview HOA. According to their recent letter to homeowners, the total outstanding dues top $46,000.

Parkview HOA is now threatening legal action and an additional $250 lawyer fee.  Read more:

By Daniel Goldstein

January 9, 2015

If you’ve fallen behind on your condo or homeowner association (HOA) fees, this might be a shocker for you: Your HOA or condo association might have the right to foreclose on your property.

And even for the vast majority of homeowners who never face foreclosure, the ripple effects of this little-noticed legal development could eventually be costly — in the form of higher interest rates and fees on your mortgage.

The number of Americans who live under the rules of a homeowners’ association has been steadily growing; by one estimate, nearly 80% of new construction is now governed by an HOA or condo association, and as many as 65 million Americans live in such properties. HOA fees, which can amount to $300 or $400 a month, typically pay for services that developments provide, such as landscaping, grass cutting and snow removal, as well as other capital improvements. And during tough economic times, it’s fairly common for squeezed homeowners to fall behind on those fees.

The new wrinkle: A legal process called a “super lien,” which got its beginnings in the 1980s and is now allowed in more than two dozen states, and under consideration by nearly a dozen more.  Read more:

By Tammie Fields

January 9, 2015

Riverview, Florida — Imagine you’re out running to stay in shape when all of a sudden you’re stopped by sheriff’s deputies and asked to identify yourself. That’s what a Riverview couple says happened to their son who is a track star at Armwood High School. He was was out training for the upcoming season with one of his buddies.

10 News is digging deeper trying to get answers after the parents say it’s not what the sheriff’s office did, but what their homeowners association did that has them calling this a case of racial profiling.

For Dawn Barnum, nothing is more important than faith and family. Her 17-year-old son Jordan is a record holder in track. Her husband is a reverend. But she says their world was rocked last Sunday when their son and one of his buddies were stopped by two sheriff’s deputies while going for a run just a few miles away from the Pavilion subdivision they both live in.  Read more:

By Bob Norman

January 7, 2015

Many South Floridians live under the rules of homeowners associations — non-profit organizations that govern neighborhoods. But what happens when a board member profits from his position?  See TV story:

January 7, 2015

A Milford man employed as comptroller for a Westport property management company was sentenced today to 10 months in prison after pleading guilty to federal fraud charges in connection with embezzlement of approximately $108,000, prosecutors said.

U.S. District Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer in Bridgeport ordered David Liptak, 50, to undergo three years of supervised release following his imprisonment. He also was ordered to pay full restitution and a fine of $3,000.

LIptak had entered the guilty plea before Meyer in Bridgeport last May 14. (See WestportNow May 14, 2014) The formal charge of one count of interstate transportation of money obtained by fraud could could have brought a maximum 10-year prison term and a fine up to $250,000.

Prosecutors said Liptak was employed by Consolidated Management Group (CMG), 1555 Post Road East, which manages accounts for condominium associations, including Westport’s Whitney Glen Condominium and Strathmore Lane Condominium Association.

According to court documents and statements made in court, from approximately June 2008 to March 2012, Liptak embezzled approximately $108,000 from CMG.

A lawsuit filed by Whitney Glen against Liptak in September 2012 alleged it was missing $230,000. Strathmore Lane Association said it was missing more than $330,000, according to published reports.  Read more:

By Larry Szabo

January 2, 2015

Delaware Court of Chancery decision (December 22, 2014)

Topic:  Governing Documents / Dispute Resolution

This case involved a dispute between a condominium owner and her homeowners association over the owners attempted modifications to her separate interest property that the association contended were in violation of the association’s governing documents. Specifically, the unit owner  sought to extend a deck and enclose her porch using large windows on the rear side of the unit, rather than  the sliding glass doors which were utilized when the unit was constructed. The homeowners association (governing council) denied the requested modifications on the basis that the applicable restrictions mandated that the desired improvements be “substantially similar to the original construction” and that meant the owner had to use sliding glass doors.  Read more:

By Larry Szabo

December 29, 2014

U.S. Federal District Court, Eastern District of Kentucky, lawsuit filed on December 23, 2014.

 

The U.S. Department of Justice (“DOJ”)  has filed a federal court lawsuit against a homeowners association and a property management company for allegedly discriminating and retaliating against a family who installed a playhouse on their property without prior approval from the homeowners association to provide therapy for their disabled son .  The lawsuit alleges that the defendants violated the federal Fair Housing Act by failing to make reasonable accommodations for the family.  Read more:

BY BAY NEWS 9

January 4, 2015

PARRISH — A Parrish family’s obsession with their favorite show has their homeowners association’s attention.LeAnn and Davis Moder received a letter from the association requesting their time machine and spacecraft, called the TARDIS, inspired by the popular British TV show “Doctor Who,” be removed from their driveway.

“It struck me as very, very funny,” said David Moder. “It was like it was just a very formal letter, and I was like, what a nerdy problem to have like to get a letter saying your TARDIS is in violation.”  Read more: