This year, there will be a few important changes to HOA legislation. Following the passage of AB 1410, which was signed into law by Governor Gavin Newson on September 30, we will see the regulations outlined in this bill become effective at the beginning of 2023.
AB 1410 addresses issues that arose from certain isolated incidents throughout the state of California, which has resulted in three changes to state law. These changes discuss social media usage, taking on boarders, and failure to comply with HOA requirements during emergencies.
Regarding social media usage, AB 1410 prevents HOA governing documents (including bylaws, rules, and CC&Rs) to ban the use of social media or other online resources to discuss the HOA, its legislation, public elections, or other related issues. It also clarifies that HOAs are not obligated to provide social media or online resources to community members or allow them to post anything on the HOA’s website.
The second portion of the bill, which adds a new Civil Code Section 4739, allows members living in their HOA home to take on long-term boarders, if they desire. The bill essentially prevents HOAs from prohibiting homeowners who live in their residencies from renting a room to a tenant, but also specifies that the rental must be longer than 30 days in duration (which still protects against issues that could arise from short-term rental services like AirBnB and Vrbo) and that the owners must still be residing in the home they own during the rental period.
Finally, the third part of AB 1410 prevents HOAs from pursuing “enforcement actions” during a declared emergency. This means that if an emergency takes place that prevents a homeowner from finding a solution to a violation, they will not be in additional trouble with the HOA. This change does not apply to the enforcement of payment of assessments, which can still be enforced during an emergency period.
For more information on the application of AB 1410 and its impact on your HOA community, please contact our Director of Community Associations, Dominic Cirillo. Atlantic & Pacific Management has over 40 years of experience managing HOA communities throughout San Diego, making us a great resource to HOAs throughout the county.