(Continued from page 13)


learns early on that to be successful in that endeavor, one must be persistent…and paent. As reported in the last two issues of Community Assets, in 2014 a law was passed that authorizes a foreclosing lender to expedite the foreclosure process when the property is “vacant and abandoned” (NJSA 2A: 50-73 et. seq.). However, in pracce it has been seen that foreclosing lenders, in general, are choosing not to expedite the process, resulng in vacant and abandoned homes languishing as a drain on the nancial health of community associaons all across New Jersey. As a result, the NJ LAC has supported legislaon to amend this law, providing that if the foreclosing lender chooses not to expedite the process, the lender would be required to pay to the associaon the assessments imposed against the unit unl tle is transferred to a new owner, or the lender would be required to agree to the appointment of a rent received so that the associaon could recover the past due and ongoing assessments from the rents received from the unit (Assembly bill 3793/Senate bill 2545). In December of last year the Senate version was voted out of commiee with strong biparsan support and moved to the full Senate chamber where it was voted on and unanimously approved shortly before the end of the legislave session in early January 2016. Unfortunately, the Assembly failed to call its version of the bill for a vote before the end of the session. Therefore, both bills will have to be reintroduced in the new 2016-2018 legislave session. On a posive note, in light of the strong support for the bill in the Senate, it is expected that these bills will be fast-tracked in the new session, and hopefully voted on and approved soon.


The New Jersey LAC remains commied to being paent and persistent in pursuit of its legislave goals to benet the 6,600 community associaons in New Jersey and the cizens who live in them. Those goals for the new year 2016 include: 1) passage of the pending foreclosure reform legislaon noted above; 2) review and reform of the Municipal Services Act by expanding the municipal services for which community associaons are reimbursed by municipalies; 3) passage of legislaon requiring cercaon of community associaon property managers; and 4) review and passage of legislaon regarding the elecon process of Boards of Directors of community associaons.


More specics on these and other pending issues will be provided in upcoming issues of Community Assets. If you would like to see which bills pending in the NJ Legislature are being monitored by the NJ LAC, go to www.cainj.org/ legislave.


ABOUT THE AUTHOR George Greatrex, Esq. is a partner with the Cherry Hill law rm of Shivers, Gosnay & Greatrex, LLC, a CAI Business Partner, and serves as a delegate to CAI’s NJ-LAC. His pracce focuses on community associaon law, and his rm represents approximately 160 community associaons in South and Central New Jersey. Mr. Greatrex can be contacted via email at ggreatrex@sgglawrm.com. 


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