COLUMN: Water seepage damages downstairs condo

Q. A drain pipe in the wall of the unit above my condominium broke and for several days the water drained into my unit causing considerable damage to the ceilings, walls, rugs and pad. We were out of town when the leak occurred and discovered the damage about two or three weeks later.

When the leak was fixed, no one from the association or management company inspected our unit for damage. The association is fixing our walls and ceiling, but disclaims any responsibility for replacing the rugs or pad, repairing our damaged paint, or getting rid of mold.

The association has a problem getting insurance because of water-related problems, and recently a company underwrote it after raising the deductible from $1,000 to $5,000. Do I have any recourse?

A. It is not unusual for an association to increase its deductible to obtain an insurance policy at a reasonable yearly premium. There are times when the insurance company will want a higher deductible, especially if the association has been experiencing problems, as in this case with the water.

Without reviewing the governing documents of your association, specifically the maintenance responsibility sections of the covenants, I cannot determine if the association should be responsible for making repairs to your unit. Generally speaking, an association would not be responsible for repairing the interior damages unless there was a case of negligence by the association. In your case, it does not appear that the association had knowledge that this particular pipe would break.

Normally, your next step would be to contact the insurance company. In your case, the deductible is probably more money than the damages to the unit. With this "catch 22," you do not have any real alternative unless you have an additional insurance policy on the unit. If you do, you should contact your agent and attempt to file a claim. Otherwise, you will unfortunately have to pay for the repairs.

Q. I have a two-bedroom, two-bath condominium. How many people can live in this size of condominium? When I bought it 10 years ago, I understood it to be a single-family condominium.

Next door, there are four adults and three children; they were only supposed to be there for three or four months and now it has been more than a year. Please let me know where I stand, as I am paying the same association dues and they are using a lot more water.

A. Fair housing laws prohibit discrimination in housing. Unless a community meets the federal requirements for the housing of the elderly, the housing must be open to all types of people.

There is no legal thing as a single-family condominium. You do not have to be related to live in the same unit. As to occupancy restrictions for a two-bedroom condominium, it is generally accepted that there is a two person rule per bedroom, or in this case a maximum of four people total.

Most associations do not have any housing restrictions regarding the maximum number of people who can live in a unit. You will have to review your governing documents to see if your association has established occupancy guidelines.

As for the amount of dues that you pay, it is not based on the number of people within a unit, but is based upon the standards established in your governing documents. Many association have only one fee regardless of unit size; other associations have a fee schedule based on square footage. Even if your association dues were based on square footage, it still would not take into consideration of the number of people per unit.

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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