Latest news with #JenniferBradley
Yahoo
12-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Condo crisis: HOA's level of insurance can block owners from refinancing. This man's did.
Anticipating a refinancing offer that could save him $647 a month, Dave Mayers of Jupiter instead got a jolt of reality: The deal was nixed after lenders saw the level of insurance his condominium association was carrying. Inadequate insurance is the most oft-cited reason that more condominium associations are on federal mortgage guarantor Fannie Mae's blacklist, a number that's more than tripled over the past two years. This kind of listing makes it more difficult for condo buyers to get loans, for condo associations to borrow for repairs and, for residents like Mayers, to refinance an existing mortgage. 'I've never been rejected for a loan in my life,' said the 74-year-old retired Pennsylvania furniture store owner. The Legislature this session passed a bill that made new rules for condo associations to take out loans and get lines of credit to finance needed repairs — seen as helping condo dwellers cope with new state regulations designed to avert a deadly disaster like the one that felled a 40-year-old Miami-area condo tower. The new legislation clarifies three options for acceptable levels of condo insurance. Still, following the guidelines set out in the bill awaiting Gov. Ron DeSantis's signature might not get associations a clean bill of health from financial institutions, which are looking for condos to be insured at full replacement value. Talking about the legislation's insurance tweak, the bill's sponsor, Sen. Jennifer Bradley, R-Fleming Island, said: 'There are associations in Florida that I think are being asked to carry coverage levels at an exorbitant cost and insurance levels they will never touch. So … in consultation with their insurance specialist, they (condo associations) will be able to land on the proper level that is adequate from a protection standpoint.' The bill allows for condos' common property to be insured at 'insurable value.' Fannie Mae, however, requires what may be a higher bar: that the common property is insured for the full replacement cost — a guidance that many banks follow in deciding who gets a loan. Andy Kasten, president of Fort Lauderdale-based Creative Financial Property and Casualty, said insuring for anything less than full replacement value could mean of a repeat of the Surfside debacle, where the association was unable to rebuild because of underinsurance. In that tragedy, 98 people were killed when the Champlain Towers South condominium in Surfside collapsed in the early hours of June 21, 2021. "If in fact they are allowing condos to insure at less than full replacement, where is the additional money going to come from to rebuild the structure in the event of a catastrophe?" Kasten asked. "It runs counter to what these laws that changed after the Surfside collapse were supposed to do. You can never assume that you are not going to have a 100% loss." Rep. Vicki Lopez, R-Miami, who sponsored the legislation about to become law, acknowledges that the clarified options in her bill don't line up with Fannie Mae's. She argues that it's financial institutions that need to adjust their requirements. What they consider acceptable levels of insurance when it comes to backing mortgages are holding condos hostage, she said. "If you are ensuring to the full replacement value, it could be said that you are over-insured, because never in a disaster has one of our condo buildings been leveled," Lopez said. "They may have roof issues, air conditioning issues, window issues, but the whole building doesn't go down. "... My next step is to try to connect with either U.S. Sen. (Ashley) Moody or Sen. (Rick) Scott or one of our congressional delegation members to say, look, we have to have a meeting with [federal home loan company] Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae so they are aware of the financial impact they are having on condo owners in terms of insurance when they insist on having full replacement value," she said. His condo's status has Mayers — and many more who may not know it — in a catch-22 he's been emailing lawmakers and state agencies about to no avail, he said. The condo can't get the required insurance because the roof is too old, but it's not old enough that it needs replacing, he said. 'They've been getting prices on replacing the roof, but they don't want to do it yet — it's not an emergency,' Mayers said. 'We have to fund other things the state is mandating.' As the state's scrutiny of the condition of condominium buildings increased following the Surfside disaster, the insurance market for condominiums worsened. Only two or three companies would insure garden-style, low-rise condos and coverage for high-rises were simply unaffordable compared to years past, according to Tyler Spaedt, vice president at Valley Insurance Services, which specializes in condo communities. 'The last three years were the toughest markets that there's ever been in Florida,' Spaedt said. In the last five to eight months, though, things have started looking better. 'People are starting to save and more (kinds of) coverages are becoming available,' Spaedt said. Still, he says, about one of the 10 of associations he's covering can't manage to buy the insurance that would pay for the full replacement value of a condo association's common property. 'It's not always about what they're going to save, even though that's a big part of it. … Some of it (the associations getting insured for less than the replacement value) is that it's not available to them, based on the condition of the building,' Spaedt said. There are 1,438 'blacklisted' Florida condos deemed ineligible for Fannie Mae-backed loans, and potentially other banks. The blacklisting, mostly confidential, is the result of answers given to lender questionnaires that involve everything from deferred maintenance to delinquent special assessments. One condo can be on the list for multiple problems, but insurance problems are cited the most often among these condos, according to attorney Jake Marcus, whose practice, Allcock Marcus, has offices in Miami and Massachusetts. Florida's condo crisis: Is it bad enough to call a special legislative session? There's some comfort, though. 'What's happening in Florida is eventually going to make its way to other jurisdictions,' Marcus predicted. Michael J. Gelfand, a West Palm Beach attorney who specializes in condo association law, said he urges associations to get the full replacement value if they can. 'Insuring a roof for its actual cash value doesn't work,' Gelfand said. 'When it's depreciated, it's pennies on the dollar for the cost of replacement.' Florida's condo crisis: In 3 Palm Beach County communities, big issues = high assessments Mayers said he was hoping the expected drop in his interest rate was going to help him pay for the new assessments triggered when his condo underwent its state-required structural integrity reserve study, trying to comply with the first set of state regulations that were passed, post-Surfside, in 2022. 'I was really counting on the savings I was going to receive from a refinance to help with all the added expenses of the increased reserves,' Mayers said. 'If condos in Florida can't acquire mortgages or refinancing because of Fannie (Mae's) … new mandates and pile that on top of the (structural integrity reserve study) mandates, what happens to seniors, like myself, and to the property values in Florida? This is just crazy.' Palm Beach Post reporter Kimberly Miller contributed to this report. Anne Geggis is the insurance reporter at The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA TODAY Florida Network. You can reach her at ageggis@ support our journalism. Subscribe today This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: New condo scrutiny gets associations blacklisted for insurance status
CBS News
11-05-2025
- Politics
- CBS News
The 2025 legislative session with Florida Sen. Jennifer Bradley
One-on-one with Jennifer Bradley Jim and State Senator Jennifer Bradley discuss the condo reform bill, and also the passage of the Tristin Murphy Act, as well as the inability for the legislature to pass a budget plan during the regular legislative session. Guest: State Sen. Jennifer Bradley/R-6th District About condo reform A key senator on Tuesday signaled a willingness to make further changes to safety laws that require inspections of older condominium buildings and adequate reserves for repairs, saying more urgent structural needs should be prioritized. Senate Regulated Industries Chairwoman Jennifer Bradley, R-Fleming Island, also indicated that lawmakers need to "clarify" some requirements included in measures passed after the 2021 collapse of the Champlain Towers South building in Surfside that killed 98 people. A panel of experts — including engineers, accountants and attorneys — gave the Regulated Industries Committee an update on how the laws requiring inspections and adequate reserves have affected the condo industry Bradley said she wanted to help "smooth the transition" for condominium associations to come into compliance with the laws, which many residents say are causing soaring costs. "We're here to find solutions. The condo market will be stronger. Floridians will be safer," she said. About the Tristin Murphy Act On Friday evening, April 15, 2025, the Florida Legislature formally passed the Tristin Murphy Act, the most comprehensive reform to mental health inside the criminal justice system in decades. Murphy, a 37-year-old schizophrenic, had been in and out of jail for years because of his mental illness, without ever receiving the treatment or long-term care he needed. Murphy's final arrest came when he allowed his pickup truck to roll into a pond near the Charlotte County Jail. Prosecutors charged him with littering, and because of the weight of the truck, it was deemed a third-degree felony. Arguing he had no other recourse, a judge sentenced him to three years in prison. On September 16, 2021, a month after arriving at the South Florida prison to begin serving his sentence, Murphy killed himself at the facility with a chainsaw. Murphy's story was chronicled in the 2023 CBS Miami documentary, "Warehoused: The Life and Death of Tristin Murphy."
CBS News
11-05-2025
- Politics
- CBS News
The 2025 legislative session
The 2025 legislative session Jim and State Senator Jennifer Bradley discuss the condo reform bill, and also the passage of the Tristin Murphy Act, as well as the inability for the legislature to pass a budget plan during the regular legislative session. Guest: State Sen. Jennifer Bradley/R-6th District About condo reform A key senator on Tuesday signaled a willingness to make further changes to safety laws that require inspections of older condominium buildings and adequate reserves for repairs, saying more urgent structural needs should be prioritized. Senate Regulated Industries Chairwoman Jennifer Bradley, R-Fleming Island, also indicated that lawmakers need to "clarify" some requirements included in measures passed after the 2021 collapse of the Champlain Towers South building in Surfside that killed 98 people. A panel of experts — including engineers, accountants and attorneys — gave the Regulated Industries Committee an update on how the laws requiring inspections and adequate reserves have affected the condo industry Bradley said she wanted to help "smooth the transition" for condominium associations to come into compliance with the laws, which many residents say are causing soaring costs. "We're here to find solutions. The condo market will be stronger. Floridians will be safer," she said. About the Tristin Murphy Act On Friday evening, April 15, 2025, the Florida Legislature formally passed the Tristin Murphy Act, the most comprehensive reform to mental health inside the criminal justice system in decades. Murphy, a 37-year-old schizophrenic, had been in and out of jail for years because of his mental illness, without ever receiving the treatment or long-term care he needed. Murphy's final arrest came when he allowed his pickup truck to roll into a pond near the Charlotte County Jail. Prosecutors charged him with littering, and because of the weight of the truck, it was deemed a third-degree felony. Arguing he had no other recourse, a judge sentenced him to three years in prison. On September 16, 2021, a month after arriving at the South Florida prison to begin serving his sentence, Murphy killed himself at the facility with a chainsaw. Murphy's story was chronicled in the 2023 CBS Miami documentary, "Warehoused: The Life and Death of Tristin Murphy."
07-05-2025
- Politics
Lawmakers seek to rein in citizen ballot initiatives with new requirements for petitions
Citizen activists supporting a public vote on important issues could have to brush up on their reading, writing and arithmetic if they want to get their initiatives on next year's ballot in some states. A new Arkansas law will bar initiative ballot titles written above an eighth-grade reading level. And canvassers will have to verify that petition signers have either read the ballot title or had it read aloud to them. In South Dakota, sponsors will need to make sure their petition titles appears in 14-point type on the front page and 16-point font on the back, where people typically sign. And in Florida, volunteers will have to register with the state if they gather more than 25 petition signatures from outside their family or risk facing felony charges punishable by up to five years in prison. Across about dozen states, roughly 40 bills restricting or revamping the citizen initiative process have passed at least one legislative chamber this year, according to a review by The Associated Press. Many already have been signed into law. Some advocates for the initiative process are alarmed by the trend. 'Globally, as there's movements to expand direct democracy. In the United States it's contracting,' said Dane Waters, chair of the Initiative and Referendum Institute at the University of Southern California, who has advised ballot campaigns in over 20 nations. Most of the new restrictions come from Republican lawmakers in states where petitions have been used to place abortion rights, marijuana legalization and other progressive initiatives on the ballot. GOP lawmakers contend their measures are shielding state constitutions from outside interests. 'This is not a bill to restrict. It is a bill to protect — to make sure that our constitutional system is one of integrity, and that it's free of fraud,' said state Sen. Jennifer Bradley of Florida, where the new initiative requirements already have been challenged in court. Since Oregon voters first used the process in 1904, a total of 2,744 citizen initiatives have appeared on statewide ballots, with 42% wining approval, according to the Initiative and Referendum Institute. But the process has long caused tension between voters and their elected representatives. Lawmakers often perceive the initiative process as 'an assault on their power and authority, and they want to limit it,' Waters said. 'They view it, in my opinion, as a nuisance – a gnat that keeps bothering them.' Because initiative petitions require thousands of signatures to qualify for the ballot, groups sponsoring them often pay people to solicit signatures outside shopping centers and public places. Some states now prohibit payments based on the number of signatures gathered. States also are trying to restrict who can circulate petitions. A new Arkansas law requires paid petition canvassers to live in the state. And a new Montana law will make petition circulators wear badges displaying their name and home state. The new Florida law expanding registration requirements for petition circulators also requires them to undergo state training and bars canvassers who are noncitizens, nonresidents or felons without their voting rights restored. In addition to providing their name, address and birth date, people signing initiative petitions in Florida also will have to provide either their Florida driver's license, state identification card or the last four digits of their Social Security number. That information is not required in other states, said Kelly Hall, executive director of the Fairness Project, a progressive group that has backed dozens of ballot initiatives in states. Hall said people concerned about privacy might hesitate to sign petitions. 'I work in ballot measures, and I deeply support many of the things that folks have tried to put on the ballot in Florida, ' Hall said, 'and I don't know if I could bring myself to do that – that's a very prohibitive requirement.' Many states already prescribe a particular format for initiative petitions. South Dakota's new mandate for specific font sizes was prompted by allegations that some people got duped into signing a petition for abortion rights last year, said sponsoring state Sen. Amber Hulse, a Republican. Printing the ballot title in large type 'might make it harder for some issues to get on the ballot if people know what they're signing. But that's actually a good thing," Hulse said. Before they can collect signatures, petition sponsors must get approval from state officials. New measures in several states give those officials greater authority. New Arkansas laws allow the attorney general to reject initiatives written above an eighth-grade reading level or which conflict with the U.S. Constitution or federal law. Utah's lieutenant governor, who already can reject unconstitutional petitions, now also will be able to turn away petitions that are unlikely to provide adequate funding for their proposed laws. A new Missouri law gives greater power to the secretary of state, instead of judges, to rewrite ballot summaries struck down as being insufficient or unfair. Most states require only a majority vote to amend their constitutions, though Colorado requires 55% approval and Florida 60%. Republican-led legislatures in North Dakota and South Dakota approved measures this year proposing a 60% public vote to approve future constitutional amendments, and Utah lawmakers backed a 60% threshold for tax measures. All three propositions still must go before voters, where they will need only a majority to pass. Voters rejected similar proposals in Ohio, Arkansas and South Dakota in recent years, but they approved a 60% threshold for tax measures in Arizona. Lawmakers contend the move has merit. 'Raising the threshold can help protect the constitution from being manipulated by special interest groups or out-of-state activists," North Dakota House Majority Leader Mike Lefor said earlier this year. Associated Press writers Jack Dura and Kate Payne contributed to this report.
Toronto Star
07-05-2025
- Politics
- Toronto Star
Lawmakers seek to rein in citizen ballot initiatives with new requirements for petitions
Citizen activists supporting a public vote on important issues could have to brush up on their reading, writing and arithmetic if they want to get their initiatives on next year's ballot in some states. A new Arkansas law will bar initiative ballot titles written above an eighth-grade reading level. And canvassers will have to verify that petition signers have either read the ballot title or had it read aloud to them. In South Dakota, sponsors will need to make sure their petition titles appears in 14-point type on the front page and 16-point font on the back, where people typically sign. ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW And in Florida, volunteers will have to register with the state if they gather more than 25 petition signatures from outside their family or risk facing felony charges punishable by up to five years in prison. Across about dozen states, roughly 40 bills restricting or revamping the citizen initiative process have passed at least one legislative chamber this year, according to a review by The Associated Press. Many already have been signed into law. Some advocates for the initiative process are alarmed by the trend. 'Globally, as there's movements to expand direct democracy. In the United States it's contracting,' said Dane Waters, chair of the Initiative and Referendum Institute at the University of Southern California, who has advised ballot campaigns in over 20 nations. Most of the new restrictions come from Republican lawmakers in states where petitions have been used to place abortion rights, marijuana legalization and other progressive initiatives on the ballot. GOP lawmakers contend their measures are shielding state constitutions from outside interests. 'This is not a bill to restrict. It is a bill to protect — to make sure that our constitutional system is one of integrity, and that it's free of fraud,' said state Sen. Jennifer Bradley of Florida, where the new initiative requirements already have been challenged in court. A right in some states, but not others About half the U.S. states allow people to bypass their legislatures by gathering signatures to place proposed laws or constitutional amendments on the ballot. ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW Since Oregon voters first used the process in 1904, a total of 2,744 citizen initiatives have appeared on statewide ballots, with 42% wining approval, according to the Initiative and Referendum Institute. But the process has long caused tension between voters and their elected representatives. Lawmakers often perceive the initiative process as 'an assault on their power and authority, and they want to limit it,' Waters said. 'They view it, in my opinion, as a nuisance – a gnat that keeps bothering them.' Restrictions on petition canvassers Because initiative petitions require thousands of signatures to qualify for the ballot, groups sponsoring them often pay people to solicit signatures outside shopping centers and public places. Some states now prohibit payments based on the number of signatures gathered. States also are trying to restrict who can circulate petitions. A new Arkansas law requires paid petition canvassers to live in the state. And a new Montana law will make petition circulators wear badges displaying their name and home state. The new Florida law expanding registration requirements for petition circulators also requires them to undergo state training and bars canvassers who are noncitizens, nonresidents or felons without their voting rights restored. ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW More requirements for petition signers In addition to providing their name, address and birth date, people signing initiative petitions in Florida also will have to provide either their Florida driver's license, state identification card or the last four digits of their Social Security number. That information is not required in other states, said Kelly Hall, executive director of the Fairness Project, a progressive group that has backed dozens of ballot initiatives in states. Hall said people concerned about privacy might hesitate to sign petitions. 'I work in ballot measures, and I deeply support many of the things that folks have tried to put on the ballot in Florida, ' Hall said, 'and I don't know if I could bring myself to do that – that's a very prohibitive requirement.' Making the fine print larger Many states already prescribe a particular format for initiative petitions. South Dakota's new mandate for specific font sizes was prompted by allegations that some people got duped into signing a petition for abortion rights last year, said sponsoring state Sen. Amber Hulse, a Republican. Printing the ballot title in large type 'might make it harder for some issues to get on the ballot if people know what they're signing. But that's actually a good thing,' Hulse said. More power for elected officials Before they can collect signatures, petition sponsors must get approval from state officials. New measures in several states give those officials greater authority. ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW New Arkansas laws allow the attorney general to reject initiatives written above an eighth-grade reading level or which conflict with the U.S. Constitution or federal law. Utah's lieutenant governor, who already can reject unconstitutional petitions, now also will be able to turn away petitions that are unlikely to provide adequate funding for their proposed laws. A new Missouri law gives greater power to the secretary of state, instead of judges, to rewrite ballot summaries struck down as being insufficient or unfair. A higher threshold for voter approval Most states require only a majority vote to amend their constitutions, though Colorado requires 55% approval and Florida 60%. Republican-led legislatures in North Dakota and South Dakota approved measures this year proposing a 60% public vote to approve future constitutional amendments, and Utah lawmakers backed a 60% threshold for tax measures. All three propositions still must go before voters, where they will need only a majority to pass. Voters rejected similar proposals in Ohio, Arkansas and South Dakota in recent years, but they approved a 60% threshold for tax measures in Arizona. Lawmakers contend the move has merit. 'Raising the threshold can help protect the constitution from being manipulated by special interest groups or out-of-state activists,' North Dakota House Majority Leader Mike Lefor said earlier this year. ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW ___ Associated Press writers Jack Dura and Kate Payne contributed to this report. ___ Payne is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.
