Parking Violations at Your Condo: Your First Steps

Most homeowners and condo associations are still grappling with parking violations problems in condominiums, especially when unit owners fail to park in spaces allocated to them, leading to tensions. In Florida, the problem is quite eminent, and homeowners’ associations and their boards enforce strict guidelines under the Fair Housing Accessibility Guidelines. These guidelines are from the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), and they help handle parking violations in the interest of the unit owners.  

Enforcing condos parking in Florida  

Associations and their boards may apply the following enforcements to ensure compliance:

Provision of parking guidelines

Condo associations boards may develop standard parking guidelines for unit owners to ensure they are adequately informed. The policies should also include the consequences of non-compliance. When everyone is informed and consequences are well known, cases of non-compliance will be rare.

Imposing fines

This one of the most common measures to ensuring all condo unit owners comply with the parking rules. Usually, fines are imposed in monetary form. However, before imposing any fines, the offender must be informed. The condo association board of directors must authorize a violation letter to be sent to the unit owner. 

 In Florida, the law allows the condo associations to charge a violation fee of up to $100 with a maximum cap of $1,000 based on the violation identified. However, the unit owner is also at liberty to get a Florida condo attorney to petition the alleged violation.

Nonetheless, in the event the unit owner is found culpable but refuses to pay the fine, the association can hire a Coral Springs HOA attorney to file a lawsuit to compel the owner to pay the fine. This is as per the Florida Condominium Association law. 

Towing enforcement

The condo associations’ boards also have the liberty to formulate guidelines that deem necessary for the proper administration of the properties. In this way, they will have express authority to tow vehicles for a variety of reasons, including breaches of parking restrictions, expired stickers, inoperable vehicles, blocking fire lanes or other parking places, and so on.

Although the law does not explicitly give the authority to tow, Well-drafted guidelines can provide the association with avenues to enforce towing. Condo owners are allowed by law to tow vehicles or any vessels parked in their private spaces. In this case, the violator is liable for the towing fees but is not responsible for any damages caused to the property during the towing process.

Developing parking timeframes for guests

For residential and commercial condominiums, the association board of directors can set specific timeframes when guests can park in certain areas. Mostly, the first-come, first-served approach is effective.

However, the method can be challenging when residents receive frequent visitors and vehicles occupy all parking spaces leaving owners stranded. A system that allows condo owners ample parking while accommodating visitors will work best.

Condos associations boards may consider the number of vehicles that can park within residential or commercial condominiums based on the available parking spaces. This will determine the number of passes that can be given to incoming guests to avoid overflow. 

Vehicle type restrictions

The condo association’s board of directors can consider limiting the parking violations of certain vehicles such as commercial vehicles, trailers, RVs, and junk vehicles to avoid the overflow of parking spaces. 

Parking enforcement guards

Homeowners’ associations may need to get more security teams to help enforce parking guidelines. This is protected under the law as long as the penalties are applied to violators without bias.

Legal action for compliance 

The condo association can file a lawsuit in court with the help of a South Florida condominium attorney to restrain a party from violating parking regulations. Condo associations may also seek the same restrain order from the mandatory non-binding arbitration conducted by the Florida Department of Business.

If the unit owners continue to violate the parking rules, they can be found to be in contempt of court. This would prompt South Florida HOA attorneys to determine serious legal action to be taken against them in compelling them to comply.

However, if the association and unit owners prolong the legal battles with no signs of ending, a mediation approach to amicably resolve the stalemate out of court can be considered. 

Bakalar & Associates, P.A. can help!

Just like in any property, ample parking is essential in a condominium. However, ensuring that all parking guidelines are complied with can be stressful, and many condo owners and associations face this predicament from time to time. If there is an issue of contention regarding compliance violation, seeking the services of a South Florida HOA attorney would be a good idea. 

Bakalar & Associates is your trusted Coral Springs association law attorney. Our group of dedicated South Florida condominium attorneys is always ready to provide you with the best legal advice and represent you in cases involving condominium parking violations. Call us at (800) 495-4951 or fill out our online form to request your appointment today.