Resolution on Occupancy and Lease Control - Public Comment

Gil Citro Last updated 
RESOLUTION OF THE COUNCIL AMBERSON TOWERS CONDOMINIUM ASSOCIATION ESTABLISHING A POLICY ON OCCUPANCY AND LEASING OF UNITS

WHEREAS, Article VIII, Section 2(a) of the Code of Regulations states, "Leasing of Units is permitted only as provided herein;" and

WHEREAS, Article VIII, Section 2(b) of the Code of Regulations states, "It is the policy of the Condominium Association to discourage the purchase of Condominium units solely for investment (i.e., where the Purchaser does not intend to occupy the unit);" and

WHEREAS, Article VIII, Section 2(f) of the Code of Regulations states, "Any new lease must have the written approval of Council before it will be valid;" and

WHEREAS, Article VIII, Section 2(g) of the Code of Regulations states, "Council is granted the authority to establish rules and regulations to include a system for selecting Unit Owners who will be permitted to lease their Units, and such other rules and regulations as it deems necessary from time to time for the proper administration and management of leasing in the building;" and
 
WHEREAS, Article VIII, Section 2(g) of the Code of Regulations states, "In any rules and regulations that it may adopt, Council may grant leasing preferences to Unit Owners based on their seniority as owners of Units in the building;" and

WHEREAS, Article VIII, Section 2(g) of the Code of Regulations states, "No Unit Owner shall be approved to lease his Unit unless he has resided in the Unit for one continuous year;" and

WHEREAS, Article VIII, Section 4(a) of the Code of Regulations states, "Occupancy of any unit must include at least one person over 21 years of age;" and 

WHEREAS, the Council wishes to afford unit owners maximum latitude to live with whom they choose, and have visitors and guests, without explanation or justification; and

WHEREAS, the Council wishes to afford unit owners who are temporarily unable to occupy their units a reasonable opportunity to defray their expenses by renting their units; and
 
WHEREAS, the Council also wishes to preserve the character of the building as primarily owner-occupied, to preserve the right of all residents to the peaceful enjoyment of the premises, and to limit noise and other characteristics associated with transient housing,

NOW THEREFORE, be it resolved by the Council of Amberson Towers Condominium Association as follows.

Section 1. The Rules and Regulations shall be amended as follows: 

  1. Definitions
    1. An Owner of a unit shall be a natural person who 1) is listed as an owner in the records of Allegheny County, or, for a unit owned by any corporation, limited liability company, partnership, trust, or other legal entity, has at least 50% ownership and control of such legal entity, and 2) signed the resale certificate as an owner at the time of most recent sale or transfer. 
    2. Family Members shall be natural persons who are spouses, parents, grandparents, stepparents, brothers, sisters, children, stepchildren, grandchildren, and the same relations of a spouse. A Member of the Family shall be a Family Member of a current Owner.
    3. An Eligible Beneficiary of a trust shall be a natural person who was declared as a beneficiary on the resale certificate at the time of last sale or transfer at which a capital contribution was paid, and either 1) was, at the time, a Member of the Family, or 2) has at least 50% beneficial interest in the trust. For units held in trust at the time of adoption of this policy, the Owner(s) will be given a one-time opportunity, without cost, within 90 days of the adoption of this resolution, to amend the resale certificate to specify the beneficiaries. 
    4. A Tenant shall be a natural person, over the age of 21, who is named on a lease or is otherwise a party to a written or verbal agreement that gives them the contractual right to such possession or occupancy and/or obligates them to pay, or exchange value, for the same.  Such an agreement will be presumed to exist If an individual becomes an occupant of a unit pursuant to the placement of an advertisement, whether placed by the Owner or Tenant, and whether accessible to the public or not. 
    5. A Guest shall be any natural person who occupies a unit, who is not an Owner, Member of the Family, Eligible Beneficiary, or Tenant. 
    6. A Long-Term Guest is a Guest who 1) occupies a unit for more than 10 continuous days, or 2) occupies a unit for more than 30 days out of 365 consecutive days, or 3) uses the address of any unit as their legal address, for identification, voting, and/or other official purposes, or 4) regularly has mail or packages delivered to a unit. 
    7. A Short-Term Guest is a Guest who is not a Long-Term Guest.
    8. An Unattended Guest shall be a Guest who occupies any unit overnight, when an Owner, Member of the Family, or Eligible Beneficiary is not also present overnight in the same unit.
    9. A Primary Residence shall be a unit used as a bona fide primary residence, as demonstrated by 1) use of the address of the unit by an individual as a legal address for official purposes, including state-issued identification and voting records, and 2) occupancy by the same individual who a) has occupied the unit for more than half of the preceding 365 days, or b) if the unit has been sold or transferred within the past year, has a bona fide intent to occupy the unit for more than half of the coming 365 days. 
  2. The following shall apply to all units and occupants thereof.
    1. The cap on the number of units eligible for leasing shall apply to all units in which a Tenant is present, whether the Tenant(s) occupy the entire unit or a portion thereof.
    2. The presence of Tenant(s) shall not be permitted in any unit unless a current Owner has made use of the same unit as a Primary Residence for one continuous year since the time of the last sale or transfer.
    3. The presence of Tenants shall not be permitted at all in any unit owned, in whole or in part, by any corporation, limited liability company, partnership, trust, or other legal entity, unless, as of the date of adoption of this policy, it was owned by the at least one of the current Owner(s), via the same legal entity.
    4. If Owners of more than 20 units seek permission to have Tenants, priority will be given to those who have owned their units for the longest time, except that permission may be denied if occupants of the unit have, within the past year, repeatedly, seriously, or willfully demonstrated disrespect for the rights of others, and/or if the Owner(s) are not current in their financial obligations.  
    5. Every lease agreement must utilize a standard form provided by the Association, with a term of exactly one year.  Any modifications or riders to the standard lease must be approved by the Association and must not conflict with the Code of Regulations or Rules and Regulations.  However, any lease agreement in effect at the time of adoption of this policy may continue in effect for up to one year, until expiration.
    6. Every Tenant who is party to a lease agreement shall be at least 21 years of age.  
    7. Every lease agreement shall list the names of all persons, of any age, who will have occupancy and/or possession of any unit or portion thereof pursuant to it, and all such persons who are not themselves party to the lease shall be Family Members of at least one person who is party to the lease.  
    8. All Long-Term and/or Unattended Guest(s) shall be 21 years of age and shall be limited to units currently being used as a Primary Residence by an Owner, a Member of the Family, or an Eligible Beneficiary, who is above the age of 21. Tenants may not have Unattended Guests or Long-Term Guests who are not named on the lease agreement.  
    9. Every Long-Term Guest, and at least one Owner of any unit occupied by such Guest(s) must sign a statement disclaiming the existence of any agreement between the parties which would qualify the Guest(s) as Tenant(s).
    10. Every occupant of any unit, other than Short-Term Guest(s), must be listed on the Unit Occupancy and Emergency Contact form for the unit.  
    11. The requirement that "Occupancy of any unit must include at least one person over 21 years of age" shall be met by use of the unit as a Primary Residence by an Owner, Member of the Family, Beneficiary, or Tenant over 21 years of age, or by occupancy of the unit exclusively by individuals over 21 years of age. 
    12. The number of occupants of any unit, excluding children under the age of six, born or adopted within the last two years, shall be limited to the twice the number of bedrooms plus one.  
    13. The Owner(s) of every unit shall maintain an H06 insurance policy and shall provide a copy to the Association.  Every occupant of any unit who is not covered by the same shall maintain an H04 insurance policy and shall provide a copy to the Association.
    14. If documentation is required to determine the eligibility of any person for occupancy, the Council shall be entitled to receive such documentation, at the expense of the Owner(s), to charge a fee to the Owner(s) if it is necessary to have such documents examined by an attorney, and to deny to any person the benefits of any status that has not been documented. 
    15. For one year after the adoption of this policy, no individual shall be in violation if, at the time the policy was adopted, and continuously since that time, 1) they have been living in the same unit, 2) they were in compliance with a plausible interpretation of provisions of the Declaration, Code of Regulations and prior Rules and Regulations, 3) they had been and continue to be respectful of others, 4) within 30 days of adoption, the unit and all occupants come into compliance with provisions regarding registration, documentation, financial obligations, and insurance.

Section 2. Any other resolutions or portions thereof conflicting with this resolution are hereby repealed.

Section 3. This resolution shall take effect immediately. 

I hereby certify that the foregoing Resolution was adopted by the Council of Amberson Towers Condominium Association, at a duly assembled meeting of Council on the _______ day of ___________________, 2023.
 
ATTEST: COUNCIL OF AMBERSON TOWERS CONDOMINIUM ASSOCIATION 

______________________________ By: ______________________________________ Secretary 

______________________________ By: ______________________________________ President

History:
  1. Posted in Governance Committee: Thursday, October 19, 2023
  2. Posted for legal review: Sunday, October 29, 2023
  3. Discussed by Governance Committee: Sunday, November 19, 2023
  4. Posted in Governance Public: Tuesday, November 21, 2023
  5. Voted on by Council:  Sunday, December 4, 2023 (planned)