California Senate Bill 900 (SB 900), effective January 1, 2025, introduces significant changes to the responsibilities of homeowners associations (HOAs) in common interest developments, particularly condominiums. The legislation mandates that HOAs take immediate action to repair utility service interruptions originating in the project’s common area, such as gas, heat, water or electrical service, even if the issue extends into individual units. Repairs must commence within 14 days of the disruption. Key Provisions Impacting Condo Owners and HOAs Expanded Repair Responsibilities. SB 900 amends Civil Code Section 4775, part of the Davis-Stirling Common Interest Development Act, to require HOAs to repair
The Davis-Stirling Common Interest Development Act (California Civil Code Section 4000 et seq.) (“Act”) is the primary body of law governing residential common interest developments (“CIDs”) and homeowners associations (“HOAs”) in California. Several bills – such as those relating to HOA elections, the permissibility of electronic voting, maintenance responsibilities for public utilities serving CIDs, and dispute resolution procedures for construction defect claims – were recently enacted by the state legislature and signed into law by Governor Newsom. These modifications to the Act have since been codified in the California Civil Code and became effective January 1, 2025. The following is
In a litigation result that will have a number of positive consequences for developers and housing advocates, the City of La Canada Flintridge (“City”) last week moved to dismiss its appeal of a closely-watched “Builder’s Remedy” case. After the appeals court ordered the City to post a $14 million bond on appeal, the City chose not to do so and will now comply with the trial court decision and process a housing application to build an 80-unit apartment project (“Project”). Readers may recall us reporting on this litigation previously. (California Housing Defense Fund v. City of La Cañada Flintridge (L.A.
Most sophisticated real estate professionals understand that before real property is acquired, a review of the condition of title is an essential part of the due diligence process. But the nuances of title insurance coverage are often not understood. In most cases, a prospective buyer of real estate will receive a preliminary title report or title commitment from a title insurer affiliated with the escrow agent for the transaction. That document typically includes the legal description for the property, a statement about the proposed form of title insurance policy, the exceptions to the title insurance coverage that the title insurer
The Commercial Tenant Protection Act, which was passed by the California legislature in 2024 and took effect as of January 1, 2025, expanded certain protections which already may benefit residential tenants to include certain classes of commercial tenants. Specifically, tenants who are (i) microenterprises (those businesses with 5 employees or less and have limited access to capital or loans), (ii) restaurants with less than 10 employees, and (iii) nonprofit entities with less than 20 employees, all collectively known as “Qualified Commercial Tenants” (“QCT”). In order to qualify as a QCT, a tenant must annually represent to its landlord that it
Legislation has been introduced in San Francisco that would suspend the imposition of the “Empty Homes Tax” until a final decision is reached in litigation against the tax, promising certainty for taxpayers as the courts decide the legality of the tax. Aimed at bringing residential housing stock back into the local rental market, the Empty Homes Tax was adopted by San Francisco voters with the passage of Measure M in November 2022 and imposes a tax on vacant residential units beginning in the 2024 tax year, with payments generally due beginning in April 2025. As we previously reported on November
