SENATE BILL 30

51st legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 2013

INTRODUCED BY

Timothy M. Keller and Alonzo Baldonado

AN ACT

RELATING TO REAL PROPERTY; ENACTING THE HOMEOWNER ASSOCIATION ACT; PROVIDING FOR THE FORMATION AND MANAGEMENT OF HOMEOWNER ASSOCIATIONS; PROVIDING FOR DISCLOSURE OF RECORDS; REQUIRING DISCLOSURE OF HOMEOWNER ASSOCIATION INFORMATION TO PURCHASERS;

REQUIRING FILING OF NONPROFIT CORPORATION BYLAWS WITH THE PUBLIC REGULATION COMMISSION.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.--This act may be cited as the "Homeowner Association Act".

     SECTION 2. DEFINITIONS.--As used in the Homeowner Association Act:

          A. "articles of incorporation" means the original or restated articles of incorporation or articles of consolidation, and all amendments thereto, of a homeowner association;

          B. "association" means a homeowner association;

          C. "board" means the body, regardless of name, designated in the declaration or bylaws to act on behalf of the association;

          D. "bylaws" means the code of rules adopted for the regulation or management of the affairs of the association, irrespective of the name by which such rules are designated;

          E. "common area" means property within a development that is designated as a common area in the declaration and is required by the declaration to be maintained or operated by an association for use of the association's members;

          F. "community documents" means all documents governing the creation and operation of the association, including the declaration, bylaws, articles of incorporation and rules of the association;

          G. "declarant" means the person or group of persons designated in a declaration as declarant or, if no declarant is designated, the person or group of persons who sign the declaration and their successors or assigns who may submit property to a declaration;

          H. "declaration" means an instrument, however denominated, including amendments or supplements to the instrument, that:

                (1) imposes on the association maintenance or operational responsibilities for common areas, easements and portions of rights of way; and

                (2) creates the authority in the association to impose on lots or on the owners or occupants of such lots, or on any other entity, any mandatory payment of money in connection with the provision of maintenance or services for the benefit of some or all of the lots, the owners or occupants of the lots or the common areas. "Declaration" does not include a like instrument for a condominium or time-share project;

          I. "development" means real property subject to a declaration that contains residential lots and common areas with respect to which any person, by virtue of ownership of a lot, is a member of an association and is obligated to pay assessments provided for in a declaration;

          J. "homeowner association" means an incorporated or unincorporated entity upon which maintenance and operational responsibilities are imposed and to which authority is granted in the declaration;

          K. "lot" means a parcel of land designated for separate ownership or occupancy shown on a recorded subdivision plat for a development or the boundaries of which are described in the declaration or in a recorded instrument referred to or expressly contemplated by the declaration, other than a common area;

          L. "lot owner" means a person or group of persons holding title to a lot, including a declarant; and

          M. "proxy" means a person authorized to act for another.

     SECTION 3. CREATION OF A HOMEOWNER ASSOCIATION.--An association created after July 1, 2013 shall be organized as a nonprofit corporation in accordance with the laws of the state. The membership of the association shall consist exclusively of all lot owners in the development.

     SECTION 4. POWERS AND DUTIES OF A HOMEOWNER ASSOCIATION.--

          A. Subject to the provisions of the declaration and this section, the association may:

                (1) adopt and amend bylaws and rules;

                (2) adopt and amend budgets for revenues, expenditures and reserves, and collect assessments for common expenses from lot owners;

                (3) hire and terminate the employment of managing agents and other employees, agents and independent contractors;

                (4) institute, defend or intervene in litigation or administrative proceedings, or engage in arbitration or mediation, in the association's own name on behalf of itself or two or more lot owners on matters affecting the development;

                (5) enter into contracts and incur liabilities;

                (6) regulate the use, maintenance, repair, replacement and modification of common areas; maintain easements and portions of rights of way; and make reasonable accommodations or permit reasonable modifications to be made to lots or common areas to accommodate lot owners, residents, tenants, employees and people with disabilities, as defined by prevailing federal, state or local statute, rule, code or ordinance;

                (7) cause additional improvements to be made as a part of the common areas; provided that the association does not materially impair a lot owner's quiet enjoyment of the lot;

                (8) acquire, hold, encumber and convey in the association's name any right, title or interest to real or personal property other than common areas; provided that the association does not materially impair a lot owner's quiet enjoyment of the lot;

                (9) grant easements, leases, licenses and concessions through or over the common areas; provided that the association does not materially impair a lot owner's quiet enjoyment of the lot;

                (10) impose charges for late payment of assessments and, after notice and an opportunity to be heard, levy fines for violations of the declaration, bylaws and rules of the association;

                (11) suspend a lot owner's right to use common areas because of late payment or nonpayment of assessments, following notice to the lot owner and an opportunity to be heard;

                (12) impose reasonable charges for preparation and recording of amendments to the declaration or preparation of a disclosure certificate as required by the Homeowner Association Act;

                (13) provide for the indemnification of its officers and board and maintain directors' and officers' liability insurance;

                (14) exercise any powers conferred by the declaration, the bylaws or the articles of incorporation; and

                (15) assign the association's right to future income, including the right to receive common expense assessments. Reserve funds held for future major repairs and replacements of common areas shall not be assigned or pledged.

          B. Except as provided by the declaration, the association shall be responsible for maintenance, repair and replacement of the common areas and any improvements thereon, and the lot owner shall be responsible for the maintenance, repair and replacement of the lot owner's lot and any improvements thereon. A lot owner shall allow the association and other lot owners, and the association's and other lot owners' agents and employees, access through the lot owner's lot as is reasonably necessary for the maintenance, repair and replacement of the common areas and any improvements thereon. If damage is inflicted on the common areas or on any lot through which access is taken, the lot owner or the association responsible for the damage is liable for the prompt repair thereof.

          C. The association shall have a lien on a lot for any assessment levied against that lot or for fines imposed against that lot's owner from the time the assessment or fine becomes due. If an assessment is payable in installments, the full amount of the assessment shall be a lien from the time the first installment becomes due.

          D. Recording the declaration constitutes notice recorded in the office of the county clerk in the county or counties in which any part of the real property is located and perfection of the lien.

          E. Upon written request by a lot owner, the association shall furnish a recordable statement setting forth the amount of unpaid assessments against the lot owner's lot. The statement shall be furnished within ten business days after receipt of the request and is binding on the association and the board.

          F. A lien for assessments may be enforced by lawsuit against a lot owner but shall not result in an action for foreclosure. A judgment or decree in any action brought under the Homeowner Association Act may include costs and reasonable attorney fees for the prevailing party.

          G. Unless otherwise provided in the declaration, the lien established pursuant to this section shall be subordinate to other liens or encumbrances.

     SECTION 5. BOARD MEMBERS AND OFFICERS--DUTIES--REMOVAL--BUDGET.--

          A. Except as provided in the community documents or other provisions of the Homeowner Association Act, the board acts on behalf of the association. In the performance of their duties, officers and members of the board shall exercise, if appointed by the declarant, the degree of care and loyalty required of a trustee of the lot owners and, if elected by the lot owners, ordinary and reasonable care.

          B. The board shall not act on behalf of the association to amend the declaration, to terminate the planned community, to approve the annual budget or to elect members of the board or determine the qualifications, powers and duties or terms of office of board members, but the board shall fill vacancies in its membership for the unexpired portion of any term.

          C. Notwithstanding any provision of the community documents to the contrary, the lot owners, by a two-thirds' vote of all persons present and entitled to vote at any meeting of the lot owners at which a quorum is present, may remove any member of the board with or without cause other than a member appointed by the declarant.

          D. Within thirty calendar days after adoption of any proposed budget for the association, the board shall provide a summary of the budget to all the lot owners and shall set a date for a meeting of the lot owners to consider ratification of the budget not less than fourteen nor more than thirty calendar days after mailing the summary. Unless at that meeting a majority of all the lot owners or any larger vote specified in the declaration rejects the budget, the budget shall be ratified, whether or not a quorum is present. In the event the proposed budget is rejected, the periodic budget last ratified by the lot owners shall be continued until such time as the lot owners ratify a subsequent budget proposed by the board.

     SECTION 6. PROXY AND ABSENTEE VOTING--BALLOT COUNTING.--

          A. The association shall provide for votes to be cast in person, by absentee ballot or by proxy and may provide for voting by some other form of delivery.

          B. Vote by directed or undirected proxy is allowed only for the annual lot owner meeting. The proxy vote shall:

                (1) be dated and executed by a lot owner, but if a lot is owned by more than one person, each owner of the lot may vote or register protest to the casting of votes by the other owners of the lot through a duly executed proxy;

                (2) allow for revocation if notice of revocation is provided to the person presiding over the annual lot owner meeting; and

                (3) be valid only for the meeting at which it is cast.

          C. If proxy voting is utilized at the annual lot owner meeting, a person shall not:

                (1) cast undirected proxies representing more than fifteen percent of the votes of the association; and

                (2) pay a company or person to collect proxy votes.

          D. If absentee ballots are used, the ballot for any action taken at an annual, regular or special meeting of the members shall:

                (1) set forth each proposed action;

                (2) provide an opportunity to vote for or against each proposed action;

                (3) be valid for only one specified election or meeting of the members and expire automatically after the completion of the election or meeting;

                (4) indicate the number of responses needed to meet the quorum requirements;

                (5) state the percent of votes necessary to approve each matter, other than for election of directors;

                (6) specify the time and date by which the ballot shall be delivered to the board in order to be counted, which shall be at least seven calendar days after the date the ballot is delivered to the board; and

                (7) authorize only the lot owner to vote.

          E. Votes cast by proxy and by absentee ballot are valid for the purpose of establishing a quorum.

          F. Ballots shall be counted by a neutral third party or by a committee of volunteers. The volunteers shall be lot owners who are selected or appointed at an open meeting, in a fair manner, by the chair of the board or another person presiding during that portion of the meeting. The volunteers shall not be board members and, in the case of a contested election for a board position, shall not be candidates.

     SECTION 7. RECORD DISCLOSURE TO MEMBERS--UPDATED INFORMATION.--

          A. All financial and other records of the association shall be made available for examination by a lot owner at any reasonable time.

          B. The association shall not charge a fee for making financial and other records available for review. The association may charge a reasonable fee for copies.

          C. As used in this section, "financial and other records" includes:

                (1) the declaration of the association;

                (2) the name, address and telephone number of the association's designated agent;

                (3) the bylaws of the association;

                (4) the names and addresses of all association members;

                (5) minutes of all meetings of the association's lot owners and board, other than executive sessions, records of all actions taken by the lot owners or board without a meeting and records of all actions taken by a committee in place of the board or on behalf of the association;

                (6) the operating budget for the current fiscal year;

                (7) current assessments, including both regular and special assessments;

                (8) financial statements and accounts, including amounts held in reserve;

                (9) the most recent financial audit or review, if any;

                (10) all contracts entered into by the association or the board on behalf of the association;

                (11) insurance policies, including company names, policy limits, deductibles, additional named insureds and expiration dates for property, general liability and association director and officer professional liability, and fidelity policies; and

                (12) other financial information of the association.

     SECTION 8. FINANCIAL AUDIT.--The association, upon a majority vote of all of the lot owners, may request that the board provide for a financial audit or review of the association's records. The audit or review shall be made available to lot owners within thirty calendar days of its completion.

     SECTION 9. RECORDING OR FILING OF HOMEOWNER ASSOCIATION NOTICE AND DECLARATION.--

          A. An association organized after July 1, 2013 shall record a "Notice of Homeowner Association" and a copy of the declaration in the office of the county clerk of the county or counties in which the real property affected thereby is situated no later than thirty days after the date on which the association's articles of incorporation are filed with the public regulation commission.

          B. An association organized prior to July 1, 2013 shall, before June 30, 2014, record a "Notice of Homeowner Association" and a copy of the declaration in the office of the county clerk of the county or counties in which the real property affected thereby is situated.

          C. A "Notice of Homeowner Association" pursuant to Subsection A or B of this section shall fully and accurately disclose the name and address of the association and shall contain a legal description of the real property that is subject to the powers of the association. A "Notice of Homeowner Association" pursuant to Subsection A of this section shall also include the public regulation commission number of the association.

          D. If an association fails to record a "Notice of Homeowner Association" pursuant to this section, the association shall forfeit any authority to charge an assessment, levy a fine for late payment of an assessment or enforce a lien for nonpayment of an assessment until the "Notice of Homeowner Association" is recorded.

     SECTION 10. DISCLOSURE CERTIFICATE--RIGHT OF CANCELLATION OF PURCHASE CONTRACT.--

          A. Except as provided in Section 11 of the Homeowner Association Act, a person selling a lot that is subject to an association shall provide in writing a disclosure certificate that states that the lot is located within a development that is subject to an association. If the lot is located within a development that is subject to an association:

                (1) a seller shall obtain a disclosure certificate from the association and provide it to the purchaser;

                (2) a purchaser has the right to cancel the purchase contract until closing and transfer of title; and

                (3) the right to receive the disclosure certificate and the right to cancel the purchase contract are waived conclusively if not exercised before closing.

          B. If the disclosure certificate pursuant to Subsection A of this section is not furnished to the purchaser, the purchaser's sole remedy is to cancel the contract prior to closing.

     SECTION 11. SALE OF LOTS--DISCLOSURE CERTIFICATE.--

          A. Unless exempt pursuant to Subsection E of this section, prior to closing, a lot owner shall furnish to a purchaser copies of:

                (1) the declaration of the association, other than the plats and plans;

                (2) the bylaws of the association;

                (3) any covenants, conditions and restrictions applicable to the lot;

                (4) the rules of the association; and

                (5) a disclosure certificate from the association containing:

                     (a) a statement disclosing the existence and terms of any right of first refusal or other restraint on the free alienability of the lot;

                     (b) a statement setting forth the amount of the monthly common expense assessment and any unpaid common expense or special assessment currently due and payable from the selling lot owner;

                     (c) a statement of any other fees payable by lot owners;

                     (d) a statement of any capital expenditures anticipated by the association and approved by the board for the current fiscal year and the two next succeeding fiscal years;

                     (e) a statement of the amount of any reserves for capital expenditures and of any portions of those reserves designated by the association for any approved projects;

                     (f) the most recent regularly prepared balance sheet and income and expense statement, if any, of the association;

                     (g) the current operating budget of the association;

                     (h) a statement of any unsatisfied judgments or pending suits against the association and the status of any pending suits material to the association of which the association has actual knowledge;

                     (i) a statement describing any insurance coverage provided for the benefit of lot owners and the board of the association;

                     (j) a statement of the remaining term of any leasehold estate affecting the association and the provisions governing any extension or renewal thereof; and

                     (k) the contact person and contact information for the association.

          B. Within five business days after receipt of a written request from a lot owner, the association shall furnish a disclosure certificate containing the information necessary to enable the lot owner to comply with the provisions of this section. A lot owner providing a disclosure certificate pursuant to Subsection A of this section shall not be liable to the purchaser for any erroneous information provided by the association and included in the disclosure certificate.

          C. A purchaser shall not be liable for any unpaid assessment or fee greater than the amount set forth in the disclosure certificate prepared by the association.

          D. A lot owner shall not be liable to a purchaser for the failure or delay of the association to provide the disclosure certificate in a timely manner.

          E. The information contained in the disclosure certificate shall be current as of the date on which the disclosure certificate is furnished to the lot owner by the association.

          F. A disclosure certificate shall not be required in the case of a disposition:

                (1) pursuant to court order;

                (2) by a government or governmental agency;

                (3) by foreclosure or deed in lieu of foreclosure;

                (4) that may be canceled at any time and for any reason by the purchaser without penalty; or

                (5) of a lot restricted to nonresidential use.

     SECTION 12. PURCHASER'S CANCELLATION OF A PURCHASE CONTRACT.--

          A. If a purchaser elects to cancel a purchase, the purchaser may do so by hand delivering notice of the cancellation to the lot owner or by mailing notice of cancellation, by prepaid United States mail, to the lot owner, or to the lot owner's agent for service of process. Cancellation shall be without penalty, and all payments made by the purchaser before cancellation shall be refunded within fifteen days.

          B. The purchaser's right to cancel the purchase contract shall be the purchaser's sole remedy.

     SECTION 13. APPLICABILITY.--

          A. The Homeowner Association Act shall apply, in its entirety, to all homeowner associations created within this state after July 1, 2013.

          B. Except as provided in this subsection, Sections 5 through 12 of the Homeowner Association Act shall apply to all homeowner associations created in this state before July 1, 2013. Sections 5 through 12 of the Homeowner Association Act shall apply only with respect to events and circumstances occurring after July 1, 2013 and do not invalidate existing provisions of the articles of incorporation, declaration, bylaws or rules of an association created in this state before July 1, 2013.

          C. The Homeowner Association Act shall not apply to a condominium governed by the Condominium Act.

     SECTION 14. EFFECTIVE DATE.--The effective date of the provisions of this act is July 1, 2013.

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