Q: I live in a community association.  I have been told that we are a condominium association and not a planned urban development (PUD).  Allegedly I am responsible for all repairs to my unit, but how can I be sure about what I am responsible for?  Specifically, who pays for termites?  

A:  What you own and what you have an obligation to maintain under your association's governing documents may not coincide. Categorizing what type of development you live in may not be what your maintenance obligations are as an owner.  You have to read your Association's governing documents (CC&Rs, Bylaws etc.). 

 The language of the association's CC&Rs (covenants, conditions and restrictions) define the maintenance rights and responsibilities of the association and the owner. For example, if you live in a condominium association, certain portions of the building within which you reside may be defined under the CC&Rs as "common area." Usually, but not always, in a condominium, what you own is "airspace" from the surface of the perimeter walls and floors of your unit inward.  However, under the same set of CC&Rs, in the "maintenance obligation" provisions, you, as the unit owner, are legally responsible for maintaining the plumbing which services your unit, no matter where it is located.

 If your CC&Rs are silent or unclear, certain provisions of the Common Interest Development Act (Civil Code Section 1350 et seq.), address these matters.  Under Civil Code Section 1351, unless your CC&Rs provide otherwise, shutters, awnings, window boxes, doorsteps, stoops, and other fixtures designed to serve a single separate interest are considered "exclusive use common area" for that separate interest.  

 Taking it further, under Civil Code Section 1364, unless your CC&Rs provide otherwise, the owner of each separate interest is responsible for maintaining the "exclusive use common area" appurtenant to his/her separate interest.  In other words, if it is your "exclusive use common area," you are responsible for maintaining it.  

 So who is responsible for termite eradication?  Look first at your association's CC&Rs.  If it's not addressed, then Civil Code Section 1364 would apply.  This law states that where your CC&Rs do  not provide otherwise, in a condominium association, the association is responsible for termite eradication in the "common area."  For a planned development, the law provides that the owner of the separate interest is responsible for the termite eradication. 

Check with your association's board of directors or management company to see if your Association has such a checklist dividing responsibilities.

Laura V. Kwiatkowski is a member of the Community Associations Institute (CAI) and is a San Diego attorney.  Readers can visit the CAI website at www.cai-sd.org and can get their condominium or homeowners association questions answered by calling the Community Associations Institute at (619) 299-1376 or e-mail at q&a@cai-sd.org or sending questions to: Condominiums, Homes, San Diego Union-Tribune, P.O. Box 120191, San Diego 92112-0191

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