Board can terminate lease between owner and tenant

Q. There is a renter of a condominium unit in our association who causes serious problems, and frequently violates numerous rules and provisions of the declaration of condominium. Plain and simple, this renter makes life difficult for his neighbors; several of whom are considering moving! What can the board of the association do about this situation?

A. The board of managers of the association has an extremely powerful remedy at its disposal. The board can terminate a lease between an owner and a tenant as a result of the tenant's violations of the association's rules or the declaration of condominium. This is permitted under Section 18(n) of the Illinois Condominium Property Act.

The termination of the lease is accomplished by issuing a 10-day notice of termination to the owner and the tenant. If the tenant does not voluntarily vacate the unit within the 10 days, the association can file an eviction suit.

Given the drastic nature of the lease-termination remedy, I generally suggest that the association issue a written notice of the violation and an opportunity for a hearing to the owner and tenant before the board votes to terminate the lease. Further, many associations reserve this remedy for a situation where other remedies, like levying fines, don't bring about a positive change in the conduct of the tenant.

Q. Is it acceptable or allowable to post a draft of our board meeting minutes as long as they are clearly marked "draft." Otherwise, it may be three months later if one waits until the next board meeting for the minutes to be approved.

A. The association is not required to make draft minutes of board meetings available to the unit owners. In general, I do not suggest posting or otherwise distributing draft minutes to the owners, even if they are clearly marked "draft." That is because the draft minutes could include incorrect or inaccurate information. That could lead to confusion, and exposure to liability.

Sometimes draft minutes are "spot on," or only require minor revisions to be approved. However, I have seen many situations where the draft minutes were seriously flawed, and could cause problems if distributed, even when marked "draft."

I recall one particular situation where the draft minutes, prepared by a third party and not reviewed by the board, were posted to the association's website. The draft minutes reflected that a significant and controversial project was not approved by the board, when it actually was! That created quite a stir, and claims that the oversight was intentional, and a lot of unnecessary headaches for the board members and owners alike.

Once the minutes are approved by the board at a meeting, owners would be entitled to examine and copy them. And of course, owners can avoid the suspense of waiting for the approved meeting minutes by actually attending the board meetings.

Q. I live in a condominium, and I have two parking spaces. Can I sell one of my parking spaces?

A. This simple question raises numerous legal issues that affect the answer here. If the parking space is a "unit," it can be sold and transferred by deed just like your residential unit. However, you would need to review the association's declaration to determine if the parking unit can be sold to a person who does not also own a residential unit.

If the parking space is a limited common element, it can be sold and transferred to another unit owner. However, this would require an amendment to the declaration to memorialize the transfer of the limited common element from one unit to another unit. The procedure for such an amendment is simpler than the typical amendment to an association's declaration, as it does not require approval of the other owners in the association.

If the parking space is a general common element that has been assigned to your unit, it generally could not be sold or transferred by you.

• David M. Bendoff is an attorney with Kovitz Shifrin Nesbit in the Chicago suburbs. Send questions for the column to him at CondoTalk@ksnlaw.com. The firm provides legal service to condominium, townhouse, homeowner associations and housing cooperatives. This column is not a substitute for consultation with legal counsel.