C.M. from New Haven County writes:
Dear Mister Condo,
Can a condo board ask for references from potential buyers or renters? Must a landlord furnish the lease to the board?
Mister Condo replies:
C.M., two very different topics there. Let’s start with the references from buyers or renters. Depending on what the by-laws say, the Board may be well within its right to ask for references, credit checks, and whatever else is in the by-laws. If the by-laws are silent, the Board may wish to pass some rules or new by-laws requiring these things if needed. Of course, the Board will need to follow the rules for adding such measures. The Board also needs to take care to make sure it isn’t using these rules to create a potential discrimination lawsuit from a buyer or renter who didn’t measure up in the Board’s opinion. I would certainly recommend any such rules be reviewed by the association’s attorney to make sure they are in compliance with any local, state, or federal housing laws.
The lease is a totally different matter. The Board certainly has a right (and a need) to know who is leasing a unit within the association. This is typically in most condo docs. It protects both the tenant and the landlord in the event there are any problems with the unit. Absentee landlords are common but the Board may need to communicate with the resident of the unit for a number of reasons. The landlord is typically obligated to provide a copy of the lease and can usually be fined or have their tenant removed if they don’t. Condo documents are legally binding on the landlord and enforcement of the association’s covenants is the duty of the Board. If a landlord refuses to provide a copy of the lease, there are several legal remedies available to the Board. Again, it is time to involve the association’s attorney if this happens. All the best!
It may be that legally — and this is not legal advice, just a thought — any references, credit/ background checks may compromise everybody if they are ‘passed around’.
Proof of performance by a landlord that due diligence was performed on these details may be sufficient. I.e., receipts from finance/ background checks as proof of task completion, but not the details.
If an association is a co-op, they can inspect potential buyers; at least in Washington State, no inspection of prospective buyers into a common interest community — except Co-ops where the governing documents allow them — is legal.
Check with your state laws and your governing documents.