Struggling Florida Condo Associations Continue Requesting Court Orders For Blanket Receiverships In Effort To Stay Financially Afloat

In Palm Beach County, Florida, the Palm Beach Post reports:

• With 50 percent of its owners owing a total of more than half-a-million dollars in overdue maintenance fees, a suburban West Palm Beach condo association wants to seize control of delinquent units, bypass owners when it comes to rent collection and possibly even rent units through a third party. The move by the Palm Beach Grande Condominium Association(1) is a desperation measure as coffers dwindle to amounts unable to support the association through the end of the year, according to a petition filed in Palm Beach County Circuit Court.

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• Since 2007, nearly 160 of Palm Beach Grande's 304 units have faced a foreclosure filing, according to Condo Vultures, a Miami-based consulting company. About $675,000 is owed Palm Beach Grande's association.

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• Now, faced with hundreds of delinquent units, "blanket receiverships" are becoming more common. Recent court decisions in Miami-Dade and Broward counties have granted blanket receiverships, allowing a court-appointed representative to directly collect rents to pay off maintenance fees. [...] The new legal tool appears to be moving north with one Palm Beach County property management company saying it expects about five condo boards it represents to file receivership requests within the next 30 days.

For the story, see Condo association says half its owners are behind on a total of $675,000 in fees.

(1) Reportedly, Palm Beach Grande was a rental apartment complex until 2006 when it converted into a condo.