Working with Condo HOAs on Tenant/Owner Communication

[Carol DeFord]

Hi All! I have a tenant in a condo rental, and received communications that the tenant was in violation of bylaws. The letter included notes from another resident who followed, photographed, and "documented" my tenant for months. And had been sending regular personal "updates" to Condo Board members. But neither the property management company nor the Board sent anythging to myself or the tenant about it until now. I understand violating bylaws is unacceptable, but my concerns are two-fold: what is the general timeline to notify someone of said violation? (If the purpose is to correct a behavior, why wait months to do so?) And is it appropriate or even legal for independent residents to borderline stalk/harrass other residents, with or without tacit consent from Board Members? My tenant is one of the few non-white residents of the building, and when discussing this issue mentioned a neighbor following him and muttering derogatory comments on more than one occassion. My goal as a landlord is to offer safe housing for my tenants, and I don't know that I will be able to retain this property if the Board and/or the residents have the authority to single out and target individual residents. TIA for your input!