Question:
Hello,
I live in a 12 unit condo building. Our roof needs to be redone. Sitting atop our roof is a roof deck that was (per our contractor) inproperlly installed in 2014.
Our roof deck space is spearated into a large common (Commen Element) area and four separate “private” deck spaces that are the property of the four penthouse units (limited common element). Those private spaces are strictly held as unaccesssable or unavailable to any of the lower eight units.
In 2014, the deck was replaced (from a rotting wooden deck) and at that time the 4 private deck areas were paid for by their cooresponding unit owner while the common areas were split amongst all units.
in 2024 the roof needing to be redone also gave opportunity for us to replace and fix the improperly installed decking with the assumption that the precedent of payments would hold true.
Our HOA president (4th floor resident) has sought attorney counsel from our HOA attorney and our Board members (left unaware of the initial consultation) responded with language from our bilaws essentially stating that the bylaws language is ambiguous and could be interpreted as a split cost amongst all units OR a cost that all split the common elements and the 4th floor owners pay for their space of the decking (LCE).
I am curious if the precedent of prior payment along with the ambiguity of language in the bylaws would indicate the 4th floor units must pay for their own decking area.
– Keeley
Answer:
Hi Keeley,
Kindly review the governing documents to verify about what they say regarding limited common elements. If the provisions are ambiguous, then interpreting the document may require the help of a legal professional. The lawyer can help clarify the provisions and may take the previous payment allocations into account.
Disclaimer: We are not lawyers. The information provided on this website does not constitute legal advice.
