Posted on 06/27/2021 8:33:55 AM PDT by TheWriterTX
There is a lot of misinformation floating around FR on the Miami condominium collapse. As a high-rise condominium manager, this story hit home. So here is a quick primer to help people combat fake news.
First, this is not an apartment complex. In an apartment complex, an investor or group of investors owns the building and everyone is a transient tenant. It is a for-profit business. If there are major repairs needed, landlords can raise the rents to cover repairs.
This is a condominium. Each unit has a separate owner, they purchase it with a mortgage or cash.
Every month, unit pay assessments to cover the operational expenses of the building (water, electric, maintenance, staff, grounds, pool, portering, systems, etc.). The condominium functions under a non-profit Association.
Each year, the owners have an Annual Meeting to vote for a Board of Directors. The same way we elect representatives to make laws and spending decisions on our behalf, so too does this community.
It is important to note that condominiums and homeowners associations are self-funded. They only have the money that the owners give it. If there is a big, expensive repair needed, and the association does not have enough money set aside to do it, then the Board must call for a special assessment to raise the money. The special assessment is in addition to the regular monthly assessments and must be approved by the owners (usually 67% must vote yes).
If the manager brought this to the board and the board did not move ahead, the liability is now on the board and there is nothing the building manager can do other than resign. If the board brought this issue to the communuty and the owners did not vote to approve, there is nothing the building manager could do other than resign. The liability falls back on the individual owners for refusing to fix it.
Approximately 2.5 years ago, the building had a structural engineer evaluate spalling, cracking in the underground parking garage, and building envelope issues. The report warned then that major repairs were needed and that structural integrity was compromised.
The building manager should have recommended and the board should have voted to approve having the engineering firm create a scope and then gone out to bid ASAP while calling for a massive special assessment. If they did not, they are in trouble.
Another issue that was impacting this building was land movement. Parts of the building were shifting at different degrees. All of these were putting stressors on the building envelope, as evidenced by external cracks and lawsuits for water intrusion.
So, the long and short is this:
1. There were warning signs the building was in trouble.
2. There were engineer reports the building was in trouble.
3. This was not some McAfee conspiracy theory controlled demo false flag event.
4. If the manager raised the alarm and the board/community did nothing, the manager is not liable.
5. If the board raised the alarm and the owners did nothing, the owners are liable to each other. Let the lawsuit party begin.
6. Buildings are evaluated every 40 years by law. Annual building inspections typically only deal with fire life safety equipment, boikers, chillers, elebators and other components, not structural. That may change in light of this event.
7. People blaming DeSantis are delusional. Give them a dime and tell them to buy a clue.
Thank you for your analysis based on your personal expertise.
Clear, concise, fact-filled, not prone to hyperbole. As they used to say, not a speck of cereal.
Thank you.
Good information. Thanks.
How do I become a boiker inspector? 😈
Thank you for posting that. I read the building inspector’s report from three years ago and it was damning, to say the least. If I were in any way involved with management of this property, I would be lawyering up.
Good Post.
Thank you.
Very good and clear write up. A lot of lawyers are going to be very busy on this.
One question I had that you might be able to answer. Many of these condo units would have been rented out by the owner. If the owner voted against spending money on repairs, and their renter was then injured or killed, will the owner be on the hook for a large settlement?
Looks like you had al baby write number 6
When bad things happen, they are always the fault of the nearest white man with power. /s
The left will try to pin this on DeSantis and probably Trump too. Baseless smear jobs is what they do.
<< 7. People blaming DeSantis are delusional. >>
That’s one I haven’t seen. On this site?
One final word:
Depending on the condition of the building, the manager may have been working on this issue as well as triaging a bunch of other issues. Only they know how many monster projects were on their plate. Hindsight being 20/20, it is easy to say what they should have done, and it was decades of issues they were trying to repair.
Great post!
Great report. Thanks
Sorry, typing on my phone. Should have done it on a larger screen.
Sorry for the spelling errors. Thought I caught them all.
no worries poking more fun at myself than you btw I have been a board member and past president of our small 44 unit complex you summed it up very well
I read somewhere that the special assessment to fix the problems could have been as much as 100 thousand per unit. Dunno if true.
As you know,DeSantis is not to blame. Trump is! Doncha know?
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