Tenant and owner want HOA to put tenant up in a hotel

I'm assuming these are condos.

You should read your Declaration (CC&Rs) carefully because there should be sections that describe who owns what and who is responsible for what.

Then you should check any insurance that your community is carrying and see if it covers the common elements only or if it's "all included" which means that portions of the interiors will be covered if there is an insurable event.

Third, you need to understand the different between an insurable event and routine maintenance. If the property is damaged by a storm, that likely an insurable event. If a component of the electrical system dies for no obvious reason, it's probably considered routine maintenance. Your association's insurance agent can help you sort out the difference. If your community is like other condo communities, the owners are responsible for routine maintenance *even if the damage originates in the common elements* (an example of this would be mold that develops after a roof leak).

From your description, this event sounded like routine maintenance, so the association's insurance probably won't come into play and the individual owners are responsible for repairs to their homes. But do verify this. Individual owners should carry their own insurance, such as an HO6 policy, that *may* provide living expenses if their units can't be lived in. That's the owners' responsibility. If anyone is going to pay for a hotel stay, it will be the owner/landlord and not the association.

People get confused when condos are rented. The association does not have a legal relationship with the tenant - the relationship is with the owner, and all communication should be with the owner or the owner's local agent. It sounds like you did everything right. Continue to refer the tenant to the owner if there is an issue. (In some states, associations are prohibited from communicating with tenants for any reason, and could be hauled into court for interference in a contract if they ignore this prohibition.)

Again, please verify all this. Condos are basically the same everywhere, but there are state-to-state differences and individual Declarations can have their own unique features. The details matter.

Agree with Cathy.

This sounds like a simple, but inconvenient failure of an electrical component.

Association relates to owner, owner relates to tenant.

Be nice, but firm - simply tell the owner what happened, what the electrician told you, and that they need to deal with THEIR tenant.

I'm with melissa, Cathy and george. This is also why investor-owners get on my nerves - too many of them act as if the association property manager is a super cheap manager to deal with their tenants so they can sit back and cash rent checks.

Maybe this tenant should invest in a renters insurance policy - I rented for 14 years before buying my unit and it had coverage for incidents where I couldnt live in my apartment because of incidents like fires.

JeffT this wasn't a violation situation. Plus the HOA has no relationship with a tenant. They are a 3rd party. The owner's responsibility is with their tenant to make arrangements. It is NOT with the HOA. I'd go tell the owner to go pound sand.

I realize this is not a violation situation. I was using a violation to show that there is a clear legal relationship between the COA and a tenant, meaning that the tenant can be fined according to the law in CT. The tenant has a legal obligation to follow the CCRs and rules, and the association has a right to levy a fine. The association does not have to go through the owner. This is one example of what I call a (legal) relationship, and where the association is not a third party.

Of course, it depends what you mean by relationship. If you define relationship as being a member of the association, then I tend to agree, well at least that there is more relationship for an owner.

However, the tenant is bound by the CCRs so that is a legal relationship.

The COA also has a responsibility to provide services, such as electricity through the common elements. That is also a legal obligation or relationship.

Yes, an owner has more of a relationship (obligations and rights) than a tenant, but a tenant does not have zero relationship. That is a myth. On the other hand, some HOAs with separate houses have very little relationship with a tenant, but a condominium tends to have more relationship with a tenant.

I would also tell the owner (and tenant) to pound sand, but for a different reason: because the COA has no liability for a hotel room. It is incorrect to say the owner should pound sand because the COA has no relationship with the tenant. The COA has many obligations to the tenant (electricity, maintenance of the common elements, and so on), but providing a hotel is not one of them when the COA did not do anything wrong.

JeffT2 says that in CT, an association does have a legal relationship with the tenant. In Ohio, that is absolutely not the case (per our attorney). All communication must go through the owner/landlord, and in the case of a violation it is the owner who is fined, not the tenant. However in some states, some association can and do vet potential tenants. This is one of those areas where state laws can differ.

I agree with Augustin that tenants do have rights, but I think you have to be careful about deciding whether the right arises from the person's status as a tenant or something else. For example, the example of having safe and clean common areas so that you don't slip and fall would apply to all owners as well as guests and employees of the association (to avoid liability) - it isn't a duty that's owed only to tenants.

I think in some states tenants may have special rights, such as sitting on the board, but as far as I know that's pretty uncommon. Most rights conferred by ownership are limited strictly to owners.

I think we're all agreeing, though, that putting up a tenant in a hotel is not something that an association would do, especially in the case described by the OP. That's what loss-of-use insurance coverage is for.

The electric company never put me in a hotel when I lost power in my house so I can't see why my HOA would put me in a hotel when they lost power unless the HOA was negligent or ignored the issue. We have had issues and never put anyone in a hotel or compensated them when the food in their refrigerator went bad. I would not worry about and just move on.

In CT, the Common Interest Ownership Act applies to condos and HOAs (Common Interest communities) created after January 1, 1984 (with some applicability exceptions). Here is an excerpt:

Sec. 47-244...
(d) If a tenant of a unit owner violates the declaration, bylaws or rules and regulations of the association, in addition to exercising any of its powers against the unit owner, the association may:

(1) Exercise directly against the tenant the powers described in subdivision (11) of subsection (a) of this section;

(2) After giving notice to the tenant and the unit owner and an opportunity to be heard, levy reasonable fines against the tenant or unit owner, or both, for the violation; and

(3) Enforce any other rights against the tenant for the violation which the unit owner as landlord could lawfully have exercised under the lease, including any such right to bring a summary process action under chapter 832......

This is from a California law firm that I think applies to most HOA/COA in most states:

CC&Rs will sometimes have a broad statement that the document is binding upon "each member, tenant, resident, and occupant" and each has a duty to follow the association’s governing documents. If so, penalties may be levied against tenants as well as owners for rules violations.

I agree with Augustin.

One reason that I think it's more powerful is that the owner has signed a purchase contract of which the CC&Rs form a part (which is why the CC&RS are enforceable). The tenant has not. The tenant's rental agreement may have language stating that he/she must abide by the governing docs of the community (although some landlords may forget to include this even though it may be required in the CC&Rs, and others may not be required to do so). However, I don't know that the text of the CC&Rs form part of the lease agreement. I'm sure some lawyer somewhere would argue that "abide by the rules of the community" may be too vague unless they are spelled out verbatim, and some judge somewhere would agree.

In my community it's a moot point, we don't have the option of fining the tenant.

I understand about not fining renters in your community (and many others). I also understand that it is usually a lot easier to go after the owner.

Just to be clear, the law trumps the lease. According to the Ohio law that Augustin posted: "... tenants... shall comply with all covenants, conditions, and restrictions...the declaration, the bylaws, or the rules" and goes on to say that the owners association can "commence a civil action for damages, injunctive relief, or both...". So based on the law you can go to court to enforce your docs.