I wanted to share two recent news stories and discuss a question raised in an email sent to my blog over the weekend.
It’s always nice to read good things about the members of our ROC family and the efforts of some of the residents at Country Club Estates in Venice to encourage the display of the “stars and stripes” in that community are detailed in last Saturday’s Herald Tribune article, which was certainly a very timely recognition of Flag Day.
Several years ago, I posted an entry in my blog about the problems in ROC’s caused by wild animals, including Muscovy Ducks. As you can see from this Tampa Bay Times report, that issue has clearly not been resolved.
Finally, I received an email from members of a resident owned manufactured housing cooperative located in west central Florida. A third party investor had made an offer to purchase this community and the residents were very concerned that their “slice of paradise” would be sold to this investor (or some other prospective purchaser) without the unit owners’ approval.
Over the years, we’ve helped residents throughout the state purchase and convert mobile home parks to resident owned manufactured housing cooperatives. Our firm also assists private investors selling or buying manufactured housing or RV communities and we have occasionally helped investors purchase resident-owned cooperatives and return those communities to rental mobile home park status.
When a resident owned community receives an offer from a private investor, the members of the ROC should remember that the provisions of the documents that govern that community–such as the association’s bylaws and the master form proprietary lease or occupancy agreement–and certain provisions of both Chapters 719 and 723 of the Florida Statutes–will control what’s required in order for any such purchase to occur. In most cases, a substantial majority of the members will have to approve any such sale at a properly noticed meeting of the unit owners.
When an offer to purchase is received by a ROC board and the board wishes to explore that offer, the board should consult with the association’s attorney through every step of the process.