I regularly preach that a condemning authority must make sure the legal description in the resolution must match the legal description appraised by the appraiser, and must match the legal description in the petition in eminent domain. Pretty straight-forward.

A decision from this summer points out that the legal description must be clear, also.

In the Altman v Brevard County decision, the County used an easement description having two possible boundaries for one side of the easement. The Fifth District Court of Appeal found that the conflicting easement boundaries in the legal description rendered the County’s petition in eminent “fatally defective” and reversed the trial court’s order of taking.

Continue Reading Legal Descriptions for a Condemnation: They Gotta Match — But They Need to be Clear, Too!

To update my earlier post of August 12 (Important Update Regarding Florida’s Moratorium on Evictions and Foreclosures), on the evening of August 31, 2020, Governor DeSantis issued Executive Order 20-211, which extended the relief provided in Executive Order 20-180 through 12:01 a.m. on October 1, 2020.

Other than extending the moratorium for 30 days, all other terms of Executive Order 20-180 remain unchanged. Executive Order 20-211 can be viewed here.

On April 2, 2020, Governor DeSantis signed Executive Order 20-94, which placed a moratorium on mortgage foreclosure actions, as well as residential eviction actions related to the non-payment of rent. The purpose of the moratorium was to provide targeted, temporary relief to Floridians in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Since Executive Order 20-94 was enacted, three additional orders were signed by Governor DeSantis in order to extend the stay.

Most recently, on July 29, 2020, Governor DeSantis signed Executive Order 20-180, which extended the foreclosure and eviction moratorium through September 1, 2020. However, the new order made substantial changes to limit the types of cases that are covered by the moratorium.

Changes to the stay on mortgage foreclosures

Previously, all mortgage foreclosure cases were suspended, regardless of the reason the foreclosure action was filed. In contrast, under the new order, the foreclosure stay only extends to “single-family mortgagors adversely affected by the COVID-19 emergency”, and only for cases where the default is directly tied to non-payment.

Continue Reading Important Update Regarding Florida’s Moratorium on Evictions and Foreclosures

As of July 1, 2020, Florida law no longer requires leases for a term of more than a year, residential or commercial, to be signed in the presence of two witnesses. In fact, witnesses are no longer required on any real property leases. See,  http://laws.flrules.org/2020/102

While the legislative bill that led to the new law was filed before the COVID-19 pandemic became a reality in Florida, many professionals within the industry have a newfound appreciation for only needing one person in a room, not three, to get a deal done.

If you should have any questions on leasing in Florida, please feel free to contact Henderson Franklin’s Real Estate team at 239-344-1100.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, most of us have been forced to incorporate greater use of technology to conduct our business. For many associations, some tasks have been done for the first time using electronic technologies, such as video meetings under the exceptions permitted by the board’s emergency powers.

Conducting business by electronic means can increase efficiency and save paper, money, and storage space. Now that we are all getting used to conducting more business solely by solely electronic means, boards and managers may be wondering what they can do under the law to continue to use technology to operate their associations under “normal” circumstances. Here are some reminders of what is permitted under the Florida Statutes.

Meeting Notices

E-mail can be used to provide meeting notices only for owners who have consented in writing to accept notices by electronic means and who have provided an email address for that purpose. Meeting notices must also still be posted in a conspicuous place on the property if otherwise required. In addition to mailing, hand delivering or e-mailing notices, an association may adopt a procedure for conspicuously posting and repeatedly broadcasting the notice and agenda on a closed-circuit cable television system serving the association. If used, the broadcast notice and agenda must be broadcast in a manner and sufficient length of time so as to allow an average reader to observe, read and comprehend the entire content.

Websites

Continue Reading Incorporating Electronic Technology Into Association Operations

(As published in the “Roundtable” in the July 2020 Issue of Suite Life Magazine)

While residential tenancies have many terms and protections set out in the Florida statutes that cannot be waived, the same cannot be said about commercial tenancies. As a result, the general rule of thumb is that if a condition or situation is not addressed by your commercial lease, the Florida statutes will be of no use.

Thus, commercial property owners and landlords should always strive to use the most comprehensive lease agreement with their tenants. Below are some of the most common “absent provisions” that have come back to bite a commercial landlord.

Tenant Improvements

Your lease should be specific about which party has the authority to approve all plans and hire the contractors. The lease should also contain very specific information about the payment of any tenant improvement allowance (lump sum versus payment in the form of rent abatement) and the timing of such payment.

Casualty Loss

In the event of a casualty (fire, storm, etc.), the lease should state who is entitled to the insurance proceeds. There should be deadlines within which the landlord or tenant are required to make repairs, and there should always be a provision that addresses whether a lease may be terminated in the event of a casualty that renders the property unusable.

Non-Monetary Default

Continue Reading Commercial Leasing: The Devil is in the Details

Guest post by Nick J. Oliveri, Summer Law Clerk

In late June, Governor DeSantis approved Florida’s version of the Uniform Commercial Real Estate Receivership Act (“UCRERA”) and the Act became effective July 1, 2020. This law begins its life in a time of great uncertainty for the Florida business community as the Sunshine State’s recently-relaxed business restrictions underwent a near full reversal as COVID-19 cases spiked around the state. This retightening of COVID-19 business restrictions and the uncertainty associated with it will likely mean Florida businesses may continue to struggle. This is where UCRERA comes in.

UCRERA codifies Florida common law around receivership and even expanded it in some cases. Those involved in Florida’s commercial real estate industry, whether on the lending or the borrowing side, would do well to take note of these changes as an increase in foreclosures is predicted as a result of COVID-19’s negative impact on Florida’s businesses.

What do Florida lenders need to look out for?

If you are a commercial lender, this law is definitely in your favor due to the expansive powers it gives receivers to help pay back the commercial lenders who appoint them. Lenders should focus on three things:

  • the mandatory receivership duties under UCRERA;
  • what actions receivers are allowed to do “in the ordinary course of business” and outside of it; and,
  • what actions they need court approval for.

The latter two things often go hand in hand as you will see below.

Impact on Borrowers

Although this sounds bad for borrowers, borrowers should be on the lookout for language like “with court approval” because that means a borrower will likely have the chance to contest whatever the receiver is trying to do.

Continue Reading Understanding Florida’s Commercial Property Receivership Act and its Impact on Lenders and Borrowers Amidst COVID-19

Most of us in the construction industry are familiar with contractual provisions which require one of the parties to obtain insurance on the project (frequently called “builder’s risk” policies). These provisions are typically accompanied by “waiver of subrogation” provisions. Usually, if everything goes well on a construction project, these provisions don’t ever come up for discussion. However, in the event there is an accident during the course of construction, these provisions can be critical for purposes of allocating risks and potentially protecting a contractor or its subcontractors from liability.

How do these provisions work?

Typically, a construction contract will require the owner (or the contractor) to obtain property insurance to protect the project during the course of construction. For example, the standard AIA General Conditions require the owner to “purchase and maintain property insurance upon the entire work at the site to the full insurable value thereof.” This insurance is to include the interests of the owner, the contractor and all subcontractors. In short, the insurance is intended to protect the project against all “perils” and is generally intended to provide protection for everyone involved in the work.

A “Waiver of Subrogation” provision is typically designed to prevent an insurance company from asserting claims against the party who may have been responsible for causing damage to the property. Thus, if the project is damaged during construction and the insurance company is forced to pay for the damage, the insurance company is prohibited from asserting claims against the contractor or its subcontractors or others who may have been responsible for the damage.

Florida Law

Continue Reading Construction Contracts: Property Insurance and Waiver of Subrogation Provisions

Permit Extensions for Emergency Declarations

Pursuant to Florida Statute 252.363, the Governor’s declaration of a state of emergency tolls the period remaining to exercise rights under a permit or other authorization, essentially extending the life of the permit or authorization.

The expiration date of the permit or authorization is tolled for the duration of the emergency declaration plus an additional six months, and applies to the following:

  • development orders issued by a local government;
  • building permits;
  • permits issued by the Department of Environmental Protection or a water management district; and
  • the buildout date of a development of regional impact.

On March 9, 2020, Governor DeSantis issued Executive Order 20-52 declaring COVID-19 a public health emergency. Such declaration triggers the provisions of Florida Statute 252.363 and allows extensions of the permits and authorizations mentioned above.

Requests for extensions must be submitted to the appropriate permitting authority within 90 days after the emergency declaration has expired. Executive Order 20-52 is set to expire on May 8, 2020, unless further extended.

Suspension of Mortgage Foreclosures and Evictions

Continue Reading COVID-19: Real Estate Updates Halfway Through the Stay-at-Home Order

On April 2, 2020, Governor Ron DeSantis issued Executive Order No. 20-94 (“E.O. 20-94”), which addressed mortgage foreclosure and eviction relief. In the preamble (i.e., the “whereas” section), the Governor recited that the Federal Housing Administration implemented an immediate foreclosure and eviction moratorium for FHA-insured single-family mortgages for at least 60 days, and recited that the Federal Housing Finance Agency similarly directed Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to suspend foreclosures and evictions for Enterprise-backed single-family mortgages for at least 60 days. Based on those Federal moratoriums, Gov. DeSantis issued E.O. 20-94.

The language of E.O. 20-94 states:

  • Section 1: I hereby suspend and toll any statute providing for a mortgage foreclosure cause of action under Florida law for 45 days.
  • Section 2: I hereby suspend and toll any statue providing for an eviction cause of action under Florida law solely as it relates to non-payment of rent by resident tenants due to the COVID-19 emergency for 45 days.
  • Section 3: Nothing in this Executive Order shall be construed as relieving an individual from their obligation to make mortgage payments or rent payments.

Continue Reading COVID-19: Mortgage Foreclosure and Eviction Relief