COLUMN: Barbara Holland

Q. When a property owner leases his home or condominium, does that lease automatically include use of all common areas, such as tennis courts, pools, fitness centers and other amenities? Is it legal for a management company to charge people who rent or lease an additional fee to use those facilities?

Most of the damage done to our community is a result of renter negligence. We want to impose a fee of perhaps $50 a month for use of the facilities. Is this legal?

A. A property owner does not have to include the use of facilities in a lease agreement. From a financial and marketing view, it would not make much sense for an owner to exclude the use of common areas, as they add value and allow the owner to charge a higher rent.

Your governing documents may not allow you to change policy so you can charge renters. Most governing documents allow the owner to transfer facilities privileges to tenants.

State law allows a special assessment to be charged to a homeowner only if that homeowner receives some benefit not enjoyed by the rest of the membership. An example might be limited RV parking in an enclosed area that an owner might lease from the association.

What is really needed in your case is enforcement of the governing documents. Tenant registration helps an association ensure that tenants are receiving copies of rules and the latest newsletters that inform all residents of the issues of the day. It also provides the association with information pertaining to the manager who can be contacted if there is a problem with a tenant.

Q. In all of our documents, there is nothing mentioned about 10 percent of homeowners' signatures needed for a petition to remove a board member. Is 10 percent the number required by state law?

A. To remove a board member, there must first be a quorum per the association's governing documents to conduct any business, which is affirmed by state law. Of the quorum, there must be a two-thirds vote of approval by the membership to remove a director.

Thus, if you had 100 members, and your quorum was 51 percent, there must be 51 units represented at the meeting to remove the board member. Of the 51 units, two-thirds, or 34 percent of all owners, must vote to approve the removal.

The 10 percent figure you cite refers to calling a special meeting. If 10 percent of all owners petition for a special meeting for a specific purpose, the president and secretary are required to call a meeting not less than 10 days and not more than 60 days from the date of receipt of the petition.

Questions for Barbara Holland may be sent to Association Q. & A., P.O. Box 7440, Las Vegas, NV 89125. Her fax number is 385-3759.

Barbara Holland, Certified Property Manager, is president and co-owner of H&L Realty and Management Co. She is a member of the Institute of Real Estate Management and is the author of two books on the subject. Holland is a past president of the Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors.

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