The master association for one of Broward County’s largest homeowners associations is set to vote on changes that some owners say would restrict property rights and allow the association to discriminate against landlords and tenants.
The association, which covers more than 3,100 homes across more than a dozen subdivisions in Coral Springs and Parkland, plans to vote on the proposed rules and regulations at its meeting Wednesday night.
The changes are meant to create red tape and stricter rules to make leasing out units more difficult, owners say.
If approved, the changes would:
- Restrict owners to one annual lease per unit, even if a tenant terminates their lease, is evicted or dies during the term of the original lease. If a lease were to end before the 12 months end, the owner would not be allowed to re-lease their unit to another tenant until that period ends.
- If a tenant would like to extend or renew their lease, they must sign a new lease and go through the same tenant registration process.
- Prospective landlords would be required to complete and deliver a landlord orientation each time a new lease is signed or an existing lease is renewed.
- If a tenant or occupant violates any of the association’s rules, regulations or governing documents, the association would be able to evict the tenant.
- Any tenant with two or more violations would not be eligible for a renewal or lease in another unit within Heron Bay.
- Tenants, in some cases, would be subject to more severe violations than owner-occupants. If caught speeding at double the community speed limit, tenants could be evicted upon a second violation and fined, while owner-occupants would be fined and temporarily lose access to amenities. The amenities include a clubhouse, pool and fitness centers.
A group of owners and tenants told The Real Deal that the proposed rules would be overly restrictive and anti-landlord, if passed. They were first proposed last month, after a new board was elected earlier this year. The board includes President Ken Gesund, Treasurer Michael Curtis, Secretary Elliott Rothberg, and directors Jessica Farbman-Price, Brian LaTorre and Jason Lumsden.
Gesund, Rothberg and LaTorre did not respond to requests for comment. Farbman-Price, who is also a real estate agent, and Lumsden declined to comment, referring questions to KW Property Management & Consulting, the property management firm for Heron Bay.
KWPMC, one of the largest property management firms in the state, declined to comment.
A number of owners sent letters to the board with these concerns, and some have threatened to sue.
Jack Dhanji, an owner-resident and landlord at Heron Bay, told TRD these rules would create a hardship for landlords across price points in the community, which could hurt property values. About 250 owners have expressed their opposition to the proposed rule changes, he said.
A.J. Steigman, a landlord, told TRD that in certain Heron Bay subdivisions, the rules are increasingly, “show me the tenant or landlord, and I will show you the violation,” echoing Stalin’s head of the secret police who said “Show me the man, and I will show you the crime.”
Another landlord who declined to go on the record for fear of retaliation said the proposed guidelines would be “excessive and misguided.”
“This will adversely affect not only investors and landlords, but also homeowners here,” Dhanji said, adding that he believes “a tinge of racism” is fueling these proposed changes. Other residents also told TRD that increased surveillance and unequal treatment of tenants versus landlords is discriminatory. Dhanji is a longtime real estate agent.
On some Heron Bay Facebook groups, residents have posted allegedly discriminatory remarks regarding allowing Section 8 tenants to live at Heron Bay, screenshots obtained by TRD show. Some board members are administrators on these pages.
Steigman, who’s a top real estate broker in Atlanta, said the proposed rules have “nothing to do with safety.”
“There should be a full HUD investigation in Heron Bay,” Steigman said.
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