September 25, 2025
Fair Housing & HOAs: Can an Emotional Support Animal Be Denied if Another Unit Owner Has Allergies? In typical circumstances, each owner in a homeowners association must comply with the restrictions defined in the governing documents. Most governing documents contain some restriction concerning pets, whether it be a restriction on the number of pets that may be kept or an…
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June 18, 2025
Disputes over whether fences that violate restrictive covenants are a reasonable accommodation under the Fair Housing Act are often tricky for condominium and homeowners associations to navigate. Requests for fences related to individuals with disabilities are becoming more common, as many HOA bylaws prohibit fences, only allow fences for pools, or limit the type of fence that can be installed…
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June 4, 2025
Summer is approaching, and one of the top priorities for Michigan HOAs and condo associations this time of year is opening up their swimming pools. There are many items to check off the list to get your pool ready for the summer: checking for damage, cleaning the pool, testing the water, inspecting the equipment, getting permits, and so on. An…
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December 19, 2024
Holiday displays are a frequent source of contention within community associations, often raising questions about how to regulate them fairly and uniformly. Courts have consistently emphasized that community associations can enforce reasonable restrictions on holiday decorations, provided these rules are neutral, uniformly applied, and focused on objective factors like time, location, and size. For example, in Osborne v Power, 319…
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November 21, 2023
Over the last several years, emotional support animals have been a continuous source of speculation and confusion for many Michigan condo and HOA boards. We all have seen the news stories of individuals attempting to bring animals such as squirrels and even alligators into places of public accommodation under the claim that they are emotional support animals. Many will read…
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June 29, 2023
Michigan is now the 23rd state with a law that bars racial discrimination to include discrimination based on hair texture and hairstyles such as braids, locks and twists. Senate Bill 90, also known as the Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair or CROWN Act updates the definition of race in the state’s Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act to…
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