The Gene Molloy Real Estate Blog

May 2008

May. 15, 2008 - A Rose By Any Other Name

Sometimes I tend to forget that all real estate is local and that the same thing has different names in different locals. Also, the same thing might be referred to by different names in different circles. Therefore when I posed the question "What exactly is a Community Association?" I seem to have caused some confusion. Let me try to straighten that out.

The term Community Association is probably the most common moniker. It is the term I use. It is also the term used by The Community Association Institute and The Florida Bureau of Condominiums. I am sure it is widely used by others as well.

If you are speaking to someone from The National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws you would hear them referring to a Community Association as a Common-Interest Community or CIC for short.

Then there is The American Institute of Certified Public Accountants who likes to refer to a Community Association as a Common Interest Realty Association or CIRA.

Once you get way out west The California Department of Real Estate refers to a Community Association as a Common Interest Development or CID.

Now that I have cleared that up, what do you call a Community Association?

As always, if you have found yourself receiving my blog postings via e-mail, it is because I have either blogged about you personally, blogged about something I know is of interest to you, or I consider you to be a person of deep thinking and intellect and I would love to have you occasionally commenting on my blog. If you would like to be removed from the list simply send me an e-mail saying so.

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May. 14, 2008 - What Exactly Is A Community Association?

I have long maintained that if you don't know what you are selling you should not be selling it. The same thing goes for buyers, if you don't know what you are buying you should not be buying it. There is a saving grace for buyers however, and that is a knowledgeable REALTOR®.

If you, as a buyer, are considering moving into a Condominium, a Co-operative or a community with a Home Owners Association, you are considering moving into a Community Association and you need to ask your REALTOR® exactly what that means. If he or she alludes to the fact that it is anything other than a group of owners who are bound together for the purpose of providing a communal basis of preserving, maintaining, and enhancing their homes and property you need to move on to another REALTOR®. It doesn't have to be those exact words, but whatever they say should embrace the same spirit. It is a group of owners whose property brings them together with a common cause.

You should also be told that there are three important points to consider. When you buy into a Community Association membership in the Association is not optional. You will be bound by certain documents that govern the Community Association. The assessments that are levied in order to operate and maintain the Community Association are mandatory. In other words, you are going to have to abide by the governing documents of the Community Association so you had better review them and make sure they are something you can live with before you make an offer to purchase. Once the purchase of the property has closed you are an assessment paying member of the Association and that should be a beautiful and harmonious thing.

As always, if you have found yourself receiving my blog postings via e-mail, it is because I have either blogged about you personally, blogged about something I know is of interest to you, or I consider you to be a person of deep thinking and intellect and I would love to have you occasionally commenting on my blog. If you would like to be removed from the list simply send me an e-mail saying so.

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May. 13, 2008 - Ain't Wasting Time No More

You may construe from the title of this entry that I think blogging is a waste of time, especially since I have not posted in a while. Or perhaps you think that I feel as if the real estate lifestyle is a waste of time these days. If either one of those thoughts have entered your mind you are way wrong. While many other agents are flocking to classes and seminars on foreclosure and short sales I have been getting an education of a different sort.

I have been going a few rounds with The Florida Real Estate Commission trying to convince them that as an Illinois resident they should consider granting me permission to take the Florida Brokers License Exam. I have sent so many of my "baby boomer" clients off to the Sunshine State it's not funny. Don't get me wrong, referral fees are fine, but I am a hands on kind of guy. Besides, as often as I find myself in Florida I figure I should make at least some of my trips tax deductible.

I really respect the fact that The State of Florida is so stringent when it comes to approving those folks that it would license. That is very good for the consumer however, it has been rough on me. It seems that whatever I had to prove to The State of Illinois regarding my good moral character has to be proven to Florida three times over. Not to worry though my friends, I will prevail.

The other "education" I have been pursuing has resulted in me becoming a CMCA®. For those of you not familiar with that acronym it stands for Certified Manager of Community Associations. It is held and highly respected in the Property Management field. As I am sure you may have noticed in the past, I have often ranted about some REALTORS® being less than astute when it comes to dealing with properties in Condominiums, Co-ops and Home Owner Associations. Since I believe that Property Management (not to be confused with Asset Management) is an important part of "the real estate lifestyle" I will leave the foreclosures and short sales to those who can stand to deal in human misery and try to keep my focus on the kind of things that attracted me to this lifestyle to begin with, the enrichment of my clients and the enhancement of their property values.

As always, if you have found yourself receiving my blog postings via e-mail, it is because I have either blogged about you personally, blogged about something I know is of interest to you, or I consider you to be a person of deep thinking and intellect and I would love to have you occasionally commenting on my blog. If you would like to be removed from the list simply send me an e-mail saying so.

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