Important Legal Bulletin for Community Associations and their Board Members: Complying with the new federal Corporate Transparency Act

January 28th, 2024 | Blog, Community Association Law Blog, News

By Eric F. Frizzell, Esq. On January 1, 2024, the federal Corporate Transparency Act, became effective. Congress passed the Act due to concerns that “malign actors” seek to conceal their ownership of corporations, limited liability companies, and similar entities that facilitate the financing of terrorism, human and drug trafficking, and

Important Changes in New Jersey Law Requiring Structural Inspections, Conducting Capital Reserve Studies, and Funding Reserves for Condominium Associations and Cooperatives

January 19th, 2024 | Attorney Articles and Publications, Blog, Community Association Law Blog

By Eric F. Frizzell, Esq. On January 8, 2024, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy signed into law, effective immediately, legislation that addresses two important concerns for community associations: (1) protecting the structural integrity of certain residential condominium and cooperative buildings through a stringent inspection process and (2) imposing new requirements

Dealing with Unit Owner Requests to Inspect Community Association Financial Documents – A Summary of the DCA Guidelines

July 11th, 2023 | Blog, Community Association Law Blog

By Eric F. Frizzell, Esq. Community associations frequently receive requests to review their financial records from unit owners. How should your association respond to such a request? The New Jersey Condominium Act provides that associations are responsible for “the maintenance of accounting records in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles

Counting Paper Ballots in Community Association Board Elections – Avoiding Mistakes and Assuring Accuracy

May 13th, 2023 | Community Association Law Blog

By Eric F. Frizzell, Esq. May 12, 2023 It is the night of your community association’s annual meeting and there is a hotly contested election for the Board of Directors, which is being conducted by paper ballot. Candidates and unit owners anxiously await the results, which could dramatically change the

Annual Meeting Election Reminders

March 6th, 2023 | Community Association Law Blog

By Eric F. Frizzell, Esq. You are planning for your community association’s upcoming annual meeting and board election. In the last three years, you have become quite familiar with the “Radburn” regulations governing board elections that were enacted by the NJ Department of Community Affairs in 2020. Complying with the

BFC Welcomes Attorney Mary Ellen Liberatore

September 28th, 2022 | Community Association Law Blog, News

BFC is pleased to announce that Mary Ellen Liberatore, Esq. has joined the firm as Of Counsel.  Mary Ellen’s law practice is focused on representing community associations as well as purchasers and sellers in residential real estate transactions. Mary Ellen has been practicing law for over seventeen years. She has

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac Issue New Loan Eligibility Requirements for Units in Community Associations

February 2nd, 2022 | Community Association Law Blog, News

By Vanessa Pena, Esq.   February 2, 2022 New loan eligibility requirements for units in community associations have been issued by the Federal National Mortgage Association (“Fannie Mae”) and the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (“Freddie Mac”) in response to the collapse of Champlain Towers in Florida. These new requirements may

Governor Murphy Declares Public Health Emergency Due to Omicron Variant of COVID-19

January 15th, 2022 | Community Association Law Blog, News

By Eric F. Frizzell, Esq. On January 11, 2022, Governor Philip D. Murphy, citing numerous concerns relating to the rapid spread of the Omicron variant of COVID-19, issued Executive Order No. 280 again declaring a Public Health Emergency in New Jersey. For community associations, this raises concerns regarding whether the

New NJ Law Requires Community Association Boards to Remove Discriminatory Restrictive Covenants from Governing Documents

December 28th, 2021 | Community Association Law Blog

By Eric F. Frizzell, Esq. On November 8, 2021, Governor Philip Murphy signed into law a new statute requiring the removal of discriminatory restrictive covenants in deeds, and imposing specific obligations on community associations to remove them from governing documents. In enacting the statute, the State Legislature recognized that sections

Alert: A New Ordinance Enacted by Jersey City Requires Periodic Structural and Facade Inspections and Repairs of Multi-Story Buildings

September 24th, 2021 | Community Association Law Blog

By Eric F. Frizzell, Esq. and Vanessa Pena, Esq. In August 2021, the City of Jersey City recently enacted a new ordinance pertaining to structural and façade inspections of multi-story buildings. The Jersey City Council passed this ordinance in August 2021 in response to the tragic events that took place