Gas Lines and Common Property

Started by MaryL3 • 3 replies • 2366 views

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MaryL3 (Pennsylvania)
Posts: 6

Posted:

I live in a condo/townhouse development with a homeowners association.

I received a letter from our local gas company stating that "the gas line running from your home to the main pipeline is your responsibility and it can cost as much as $800 or more to repair" if there were any problems.

I wrote the managing agent for our development with the following question: Since we are talking about common property, wouldn't the gas line be the responsibility of the homeowner's association if any repairs were needed?

The reply I received from the managing agent was: "It is my understanding that the individual utility lines are the responsibility of the owner whose house it is serving. The main line prior to any "branching" off would be the responsibility of either the utility company or the association."

I'm not sure that this is an accurate answer. Any comments would be appreciated.

Mary

DonnaS (Tennessee)
Posts: 5,671

Posted:

Mary,
With every document that I have ever read, that is exactly how the common property is divided up from owner responsibility to association responsibility.
My villa property has it spelled out even more detailed, stating that the sewer lines are association responsibility from the main line towards the unit BUT it becomes owner responsibility at the "Y" junction. That means where the sewer pipe splits to go to each seperate unit. Not uncommon at all.

Most likely that applies to your power line feeder too after it hits the unit. Association responsibility has to end somewhere and this seems to be the fairest that they could come up with, otherwise if they paid for every maintenance, it might as well be called an apartment.

GeraldT4
Posts: 1,022

Posted:

DonnaS is correct. However, if there is a break in a gas or sewar line the utility company will fix it and deal with the billing after the fact, especially a gas line break.

JosephW (Michigan)
Posts: 882

Posted:

Sorry, but its going to depend on how your documents are worded and how the site plans were drawn. In Michigan, for most condos, the documents make all utility lines the association's responsibility up to the point of connection in the unit or at the meter outside. If the pipes run under common area, they are usually common also.

Joe

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