Article
Courtesy of JD SUPRA
By
Shumaker, Loop & Kendrick, LLP
Published June 23, 2021
On June 16, 2021, Governor Ron DeSantis signed Senate
Bill (SB) 56, adding new requirements to various sections of the Florida
Statues relating to condominium, homeowners, and cooperative associations,
with an effective date of July 1, 2021.
SB 56 increases the period of time a condominium or cooperative unit owner
has to pay a monetary obligation under current statutory lien notices from
30 to 45 days, synchronizing the time frames with homeowners associations.
Additionally, SB 56 adds an additional mandatory notice for condominium,
cooperative, and homeowners associations as part of the assessment
collection process: the association must provide owners with written notice
of a past due assessment before it may require payment of attorney fees by
an owner in connection with the past due assessment. The association must
send the notice by first-class mail to the owner at his or her last known
address reflected in the association’s records in addition to the unit
address in substantially the following form for condominium, cooperative,
and homeowners associations:
NOTICE OF LATE ASSESSMENT
RE: Unit …. Of … (name of association) …
The following amounts are currently due on your account to … (name of
association) …, and must be paid within 30 days of the date of this letter.
This letter shall serve as the association’s notice of its intent to proceed
with further collection action against your property no sooner than 30 days
of the date of this letter, unless you pay in full the amounts set forth
below:
Maintenance due … (dates) … $…..
Late fee, if applicable $…..
Interest through … (dates) … * $…..
TOTAL OUTSTANDING $…..
*Interest accrues at the rate of …. percent per annum.
The notice is deemed to have been delivered upon mailing, and the
association may utilize a sworn affidavit to provide a rebuttable
presumption that the association complied with the notice and delivery
requirements for this new notice of late assessment.
Additionally, SB 56 changes how, and by what delivery method, condominium,
cooperative, and homeowners associations may deliver invoices or a statement
of account to an owner by requiring the following:
-
The association must send invoices or statements of
account by first-class mail or electronic transmission to the owner’s
email address maintained as part of the association’s official records;
-
The association must give written notice to the owner
by first-class mail to the owner’s address maintained in the
association’s official records at least thirty (30) days in advance
before changing the delivery method for invoices or statements of
account;
-
The owner must affirmatively acknowledge his or her
understanding that the association has changed the delivery method of
invoices or statements of account to deliver by electronic transmission;
-
The association must maintain an owner’s affirmative
acknowledgment as part of the official records, however such record is
exempt from inspection or copying by other members.
Condominium, cooperative, and homeowners associations and
their board members should carefully review their delinquent assessment
collection practices with their attorney to ensure the association and its
agent’s collection practices are compliant with these statutory changes.
Click here to
READ SB 56
as signed by Governor Ron DeSantis
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