Those who serve on the board of a homeowners association (HOA) in Pennsylvania have a lot of difficult responsibilities. They need to monitor the state of their community and foster positive relationships with as many local homeowners as possible. They need to…

Someone’s real property is often their most valuable asset. They may make payments for years and feel a sense of pride about their home. The entire family may have an emotional attachment to someone’s home because of the memories created there. Parents who are…

Homeowner associations (HOAs) establish specific standards for their communities and then work to enforce those rules to preserve property values. Successful HOAs help to preserve the unique charm of their communities and keep homeowners in compliance with the…

Every homeowners’ association (HOA) has a set of rules that governs what community members can do with their properties. Different communities may require different kinds of regulations based on the expectations of local homeowners and other factors. However, there…

The boards that manage condominium associations often receive no attention from condo owners and residents until something goes wrong. Your work may vacillate between being incredibly mundane and intensely stressful depending on the behaviors of the people who live in…

Condominium associations fall into an awkward social role where they must provide services to the property owners that join their association while also enforcing rules among those same property owners. Everyone who buys into a condominium association will likely do so fully aware of the requirements and restrictions created by the condominium association's rules. Unfortunately, some people feel like those rules should only apply to other people, not to them. If you have had to deal with a condo owner who violates aesthetic rules, refuses to contribute to general maintenance funds, or otherwise violates condominium association rules and guidelines, you may need to take enforcement action against that individual in order to protect the property values of everyone who lives there and to ensure continued compliance among other owners…

Any buyer of a residential property is advised to obtain a home inspection. There are a number of misunderstandings about what exactly a home inspection is supposed to accomplish. Home inspectors are considered “generalists”. In a manner similar to your general practitioner doctor, a home inspector looks for symptoms and identifies conditions which should be looked at more carefully or more fully inspected. For example, if a home inspector sees a stained area in the ceiling or on a wall, the home inspector should point out the stained area. The home inspector is not normally allowed to dig into a wall because that would involve a destructive inspection for which a buyer could be responsible…

If a real estate broker from 1900 were to be transported to our current time and asked to fill out a real estate sales agreement, it is very likely that the broker from 1900 would be stunned beyond belief. There are many “old timers” who talk about how sad it is that we can’t do business with a handshake or with a simple agreement of sale. The truth is we can’t do business that way because people have demonstrated their inability to do so successfully…

There is no three day right of recision for real estate sales. If you are not sure about whether you want to sell a house, don’t list it until you are sure. If you are not sure whether you want to buy a house, don’t waste the time of a real estate agent. If you want to look at houses, that’s fine, but keep in mind that most real estate agents only make money when they sell real estate, so be respectful of the real estate agent’s time. Make sure you understand the real estate sales agreement before you sign it. If you are not sure you understand, ask your real estate agent. If your real estate agent is either not knowledgeable or is uncomfortable explaining the details, hire an attorney…