Home Keyword Index

Financial Records

The association is required to keep and maintain a variety of financial records pursuant to Civil Code sections 5200 et seq. and 4525. Under these sections, the association must maintain financial documents including balance sheets, income and expense statements, budget comparisons, the general ledger and all of the documents required to be provided as part of the annual disclosures. The association must retain these financial records and make them available to members upon demand for the current fiscal year, plus the prior two fiscal years.

Gross Negligence

Gross negligence is the lack of any care or an extreme departure from what a reasonably careful person would do in the same situation to prevent harm to oneself or to others. A person can be grossly negligent by acting or failing to act. California courts have recognized gross negligence as either a “want of even scant care” or “an extreme departure from the ordinary standard of conduct.” (City of Santa Barbara v. Superior Court (2007) 41 Cal.4th 747, 754.)

Liability, Limiting

More and more contracts, especially those of design professionals, contain language that tries to limit the liability of the service vendor. These enforceable provisions should be deleted whenever possible, as they serve to transfer the risk of loss to the association rather than the service vendor. Service vendors should remain responsible for any damage or loss their work causes.

Mobilehome Associations

A term generally applied to associations of tenants within a mobilehome park or community which does not qualify as a common interest development. While there are some common interest developments wherein the dwellings are mobilehomes, many mobilehome communities are either rental communities or converted, resident-owned communities which are not common interest developments (typically because they lack recorded CC&Rs or maps.)

Occupant, Defined

One who resides in a separate interest (usually a dwelling). An “occupant” may be an owner, or may refer to a tenant, or family member of the primary occupant. Usually distinguished from “guest” (meaning a person who does not intend to reside in the separate interest for an extended period of time, and who says in the separate interest at the invitation, and in the company, of the occupant.

Service Animal

A term used to distinguish between a pet and an animal which provides a necessary service to a disabled person. A “service animal” is an individually trained animal, per the 2011 ADA regulations. California law also recognizes “emotional support animals” as service animals, under circumstances wherein the use of such animals by persons with emotional or mental disabilities is necessary to afford an equal opportunity to use and enjoy housing.

Recording Meetings

There is no requirement that board or owner meetings be recorded. The issue usually arises either when an owner insists on recording a meeting, or does so surreptitiously. The board has the right to adopt a prohibition against such recording, and insofar as the meeting is considered private rather than public, surreptitious recording of the meeting may violation Penal Code §632.

Satellite Dishes

A association may not prohibit the installation of a satellite dish as described in California Civil Code section 4725. However, an association may impose reasonable restrictions on the installation. Reasonable restrictions means those restrictions that do not significantly increase the cost or significantly decrease its efficiency or performance. Thus, an association could require an owner to submit an application and obtain approval of the association for the installation, however, the issuance of a decision on the application shall not be willfully delayed. The association could also require the owner to maintain, repair or replace roofs or other building components in connection with the satellite dish, and that the installers indemnify or reimburse the association for loss or damage caused by the installation, maintenance, or use.