Blogs & Resources

This article is Part IV of a four part series. Part I was meant to inform the Board of a Condominium or Homeowners Association of some basic steps that should be taken when significant latent construction defects are discovered. Part II was meant to inform the Board about the process of retaining an expert witness and serving a Notice of Claim. Part III was meant to inform the Board about common insurance coverage issues, whether to bring a direct claim against the subcontractors and whether the Board can be forced to arbitrate the claim. This article will discuss how to quantify damages and will discuss the mediation process.

This article is Part III of a four part series. Part I was meant to inform the Board of a Condominium or Homeowners Association of some basic steps that should be taken when significant latent construction defects are discovered. Part II was meant to inform the Board about the process of retaining an expert witness and serving a Notice of Claim. This article will discuss how to determine if the Board is obligated to arbitrate its claims, whether to bring direct claims against the subcontractors and will discuss common insurance coverage issues.

This article is Part II of a four part series. Part I was meant to inform the Board of a Condominium or Homeowners Association of some basic steps that should be taken when significant latent construction defects are discovered. This article will discuss the retention of the lead expert witness and providing the statutorily required notice of defect claim. Part I stressed that an attorney should be retained shortly after latent construction defects are discovered and that only emergency repairs should be made without first consulting an experienced attorney.

The Board of a Condominium Association or Homeowners Association has many decisions to make when it discovers telltale signs of construction defects in common property. These latent construction defects can manifest themselves in a number of different ways, including but not limited to, water intrusion, peeling paint, staining, wood rot, cracking of stucco, concrete spalling, curling shingles, or cracking or separating sealant. Construction defects can also occur in other property that may be owned by a community association or a community development district (“CDD”), such as roads, pools, tennis courts, or other property commonly owned by the association or CDD.