[NJ] [Condo] owners rights

Recently, I had a leak in my unit and wanted to shared some things I learned throughout the process that may help others owners and inform board members.

In New Jersey, the state law says: (j) An association shall exercise its powers and discharge its functions in a manner that protects and furthers or is not inconsistent with the health, safety and general welfare of the residents of the community.

(j) An association shall exercise its powers and discharge its functions in a manner that protects and furthers or is not inconsistent with the health, safety and general welfare of the residents of the community.

(k) An association shall provide a fair and efficient procedure for the resolution of housing-related disputes between individual unit owners and the association, and between unit owners, which shall be readily available as an alternative to litigation…”

My leak started 9/26. Water was coming from a recessed light in my bathroom. I am a ground level unit and most if not all of my piping goes down. So, the only logical reason for this leak is a common element or my upstairs neighbors bathroom (he sits on the board as the president).

Because the water was coming through an electrical line, it’s considered a safety hazard which brings the leak into emergency territory (reference j above).

The property manager acknowledged the same, that it needs to be addressed urgently. The HOA president (upstairs neighbor) insisted his unit had no parts in the issue. It was later found, the section of the piping between his is where the water was coming from.

The HOA dragged the heck out of their feet.

1. I requested ADR, they ignored it (required by NJ state law). The HOA attorney offered to another resident a few years ago but ignored all of my requests for ADR.
2. They acknowledged the emergency and failed to act. When we found out the leak was coming from the main stack (plumbing that passes waste water), they still delayed to act knowing the health hazard.
3. Although there is an exclusion for subro, I had my personal insurance policy do the mitigation work (removed wet drywall, insulated, etc.). After the mitigation was done, more damage was caused because the HOA didn’t fix the leak (our bylaws say we as owners cannot hire anyone to fix common elements). Additional drywall had to be removed, my thermostat damaged and I have no heat in my bathroom.
4. I filed the claim with the master policy, a check was sent and the HOA is still unresponsive to my requests for repair timeline.

Now, not only have they had to pay attorney fees because I forced their attorney to get involved, there’s now a second water claim on the books. Since it’s been over a month, I cannot let my bathroom walls remain open and electrical wiring exposed. I now have to pay out of pocket for repairs (based on the adjusters estimate) and hope the HOA reimburse me. If not, it’s going straight to court.

I hope this lets owners know that you can advocate for your rights (it may cost you your sanity).

I also urge board members in NJ to get with the CAI and educate yourself on board management. I took a course and have a certificate in Board Leadership. I would also suggest taking risk management courses and knowing state and federal laws. This situation would’ve costed way less and saved everyone’s time if the association was more informed of their obligations. Otherwise, this wouldn’t have backfired on all of us owners (including me).

I have a petition for change and if any owners would like to read/sign send me a message.