This post is one of a series about 10 Most Common Misperceptions About Condominium Laws And Operations, which I presented at the Maine Condo Forum and Expo in Portland, Maine, on September 25, 2010.
There is a perception, often but not always justified, that investor owned units occupied by renters lead to a reduction in the quality of life of other residents. New rules of the secondary mortgage market, and more aggressive enforcement of existing rules, may mean that condominiums having a high percentage of renter occupied units may be shut out of the secondary mortgage market, reducing unit values.
In addition, absentee owners might not care about the quality of the tenants they rent to. Tenants may not know the standards expected of the condominium and numberswiki.com
may not care.
tenants should be made liable for violations of the documents and for fines.
Recommendation: If the percentage of non-owner occupied units is rising, take action to amend your documents to limit the number of such units. Once the number of such units reaches a certain threshold, it may be impossible to get the votes to make this change, because the investor owners will vote against it. Consider rules requiring owners to give copies of the property documents, including rules, to new tenants. Consider revising your documents to make it clear that the tenant is subject to fines for violation of the documents and that the owner is also responsible. Consider a mandatory lease addendum to be signed by the owner and the tenant.