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Setting Up Condo Association

Ask the Real Estate Lawyer: Real Estate Law Q&A

REM #LAW 714

By Ilyce R. Glink and Samuel J. Tamkin

Summary: A condo owner lives in a complex that is considering self-managment. Sam and Ilyce explain how condo assoications are set up.

Q: Our condo association is considering self-management. We have been told that we need a “registered agent.”
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Should we set ourselves up as a non-profit agency or can you recommend if we should hire an attorney to be our registered agent. If so, should we use a real estate attorney as the registered?

A: Normally, condominium associations are not-for-profit corporations, and each state has specific guidelines regulating them.

One guideline is to have a registered agent for the corporation. If the condominium association is involved in litigation, the registered agent is the person who will receive the legal notice of the suit.

Check your documentation to see whether the condo association is already incorporated and if you are, who is your registered agent. If your association is not incorporated, you can, in many cases, do the paperwork yourself to incorporate your association.

In some states, the forms are on the Internet and you can download them. You can start by looking up your Secretary of State's web site and its division of corporations.

If you must choose a registered agent and you choose one of your owners, keep in mind that you will have to change registered owners each time that registered agent moves from the building. You don’t want someone to be the registered agent if that individual no longer has a connection with the building.

If you choose to have an attorney help you out, a real estate attorney can probably do it or any attorney that handles corporate work. You can usually get a good referral from your local bar association.

Samuel J. Tamkin is a Chicago-based real estate attorney. Ilyce R. Glink’s latest book is 50 Simple Steps You Can Take To Sell Your Home Faster and For More Money In Any Market. If you have questions for them, write: Real Estate Matters Syndicate, PO Box 366, Glencoe, IL 60022 or contact them through Ilyce’s website www.thinkglink.com