Condos, HOAs, and Written Inquiries

Many times I see situations where an owner sends a community a certified letter seeking the answer to questions about various issues.  The nature and manner of the responses is dictated by the type of community. The Florida Condominium Act states that when a unit owner of a residential condominium files a written inquiry by certified mail with the board of administration, the board from the condominium association shall respond in writing to the unit owner within 30 days after receipt of the inquiry. The condominium association board’s response shall either give a substantive response to the inquirer, notify the inquirer that a legal opinion has been requested, or notify the inquirer that advice has been requested from the division. If the condominium association board requests advice from the division, the board shall, within ten days after its receipt of the advice, provide in writing a substantive response to the inquirer. If a legal opinion is requested, the condominium association board shall, within 60 days after the receipt of the inquiry, provide in writing a substantive response to the inquiry. There are penalties if these deadlines are not adhered to. It should also be noted that the condominium association may, through its board of administration, adopt reasonable rules and regulations regarding the frequency and manner of responding to unit owner inquiries.

In contrast, the Florida Homeowners’ Association Act contains no such similar provision.  As such, the HOA is not required under the statutes to respond to the certified inquiry. That being said, the HOA’s governing documents still need to be checked to confirm there is no requirement therein to respond to an owner’s certified inquiry. Even if not legally required, the HOA board should consider whether it is advisable to respond to the owner’s complaints in some manner as a proactive step to possibly help resolve a dispute rather than letting it escalate further.  This decision should come after seeking advice from the association’s counsel.