Latest news with #condominium
Free Malaysia Today
3 days ago
- Politics
- Free Malaysia Today
Residents protest condo project, demand safety guarantees
Residents of Empire Residence in Damansara Perdana are seeking safety assurances regarding a proposed 21-storey condominium set to be built in the area. PETALING JAYA : A residents group in Damansara Perdana have expressed concern over a proposed 21-storey condominium that is set to be built near their houses. The group said with the condominium being constructed on a hillside, it had triggered memories of the 1993 Highland Towers tragedy, in which one of three blocks of apartments had collapsed due to a landslide. 'We're not anti-development. However, building a condominium on a steep slope? Do our lives have no value?' Simon Ng, an Empire Residence joint management body (JMB) committee member told FMT. FMT was informed that residents had raised concerns about the condominium project with the Petaling Jaya City Council (MBPJ) during a briefing on another project on June 3. Simon Ng. Sinar Harian, which covered the meeting, reported that 'tensions flared' when more than 100 Empire Residence homeowners strongly objected to the proposed development of three apartment blocks planned for construction on a Class IV slope. Another JMB committee member, Joshua Tan, said residents want all parties involved to conduct a more thorough study and provide safety guarantees. He said he had observed landslides in the area during rainy weather and feared that the project could destabilise the ground's structure. Joshua Tan. 'Can the politicians, developers, and relevant authorities provide us any guarantees?' he asked. Meanwhile, Simon stated that the residents have sent over 130 protest letters to MBPJ opposing the condominium project. He questioned how the project could be approved, claiming that the town and country planning department has classified the area as high-risk, with 23% of the land being Class IV slopes and 64.8% Class III slopes. FMT is currently seeking responses from the area's state assemblyman and the developer listed on the project's signage. When contacted, MBPJ councillor Suriase Gengiah said the June 3 briefing was only for a road project and did not cover other aspects of the proposed development.
Free Malaysia Today
21-05-2025
- Free Malaysia Today
7-year-old dies after falling from 29th floor of Puchong condo
Preliminary findings showed that the seven-year-old girl climbed out of the window, which had no safety grills installed. PETALING JAYA : A seven-year-old girl died yesterday after falling from the 29th floor of a condominium in Puchong, Subang Jaya. Subang Jaya deputy police chief Fairus Jaafar said officers were dispatched promptly after receiving a distress call at around 12.30pm. 'Investigations found the victim lying face-up on the fifth floor of the building after falling from the babysitter's home,' he said in a statement today. Fairus said further investigations found no criminal elements involved. 'The victim's mother was taking care of another child who was under home quarantine, and the father was at work during the incident. 'Preliminary findings indicate that the victim climbed out of the window, which had no safety grills installed,' he said. A medical officer at the scene confirmed the girl's death. Police have also recorded a statement from the caregiver for further investigation. The case is being investigated under Section 31(1)(a) of the Child Act 2001, which carries a maximum penalty of a RM50,000 fine, up to 20 years' imprisonment, or both upon conviction.
Wall Street Journal
18-05-2025
- Business
- Wall Street Journal
Is a Condo Really Worth It Right Now? This Buyer Decided to Take the Plunge
There are a lot of reasons not to buy a condominium these days. Gordon Miller did it anyway. He looked past the homeowners-association dues that are rising across the country, and the special assessments that more buildings are charging for major repairs. He acknowledged that a condo probably wouldn't appreciate as quickly as a single-family house, and might eventually be tougher to sell.
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
CBC
09-05-2025
- Entertainment
- CBC
Inside a colour-drenched condo that's the epitome of 'restrained maximalism'
Call to mind a condo and you may think of a modern blank canvas at best or a boxy space devoid of character at worst. Chad Burton's condominium in Toronto's Little Portugal neighbourhood couldn't be further from the stereotypes. The separate living room makes the home where Burton lives with his husband, Burger, and their cat, Terrence, feel more like the main floor of a house to him. Curves also feature throughout the space. Burton added a pair of symmetrical archways off the living room, and a barrel archway between the entry and kitchen. He even created an archway for Terrance to pass through en route to his litter box. Burton — a fashion, still life and interiors stylist — shares that his space is accentuated with stylish "tchotchkes" and souvenirs from worldwide travels. Some of the ceramics on display are Burton and his husband's creations, including the custom handles on the secretary desk. "Burger created these beautiful little ceramic pulls based off our cat — including the little butthole," said Burton. But perhaps the defining design detail of Burton's home is colour. From walls to ceilings to desks to cabinets, virtually every surface has been painted, and each room in his space has a colour story. I like to say I use restrained maximalism — bringing a lot of objects and ideas to the table but thoughtfully curating them and allowing for moments of calm and quiet. Inspired by terracotta tiles, Burton painted the living room a warm shade of red. In the kitchen slash dining area, he took inspiration from the travertine table and selected creamy tones for the walls, cupboards and ceiling. And for the sole bedroom, Burton used colour-drenching to its fullest extent: painting the walls, ceiling, custom cabinets and chair a powder blue, and bringing in linens and upholstery of the same shade. Powder blue curtains hang at the window, and Burton also hung a powder blue curtain in place of a bedroom door, which he loves for its ability to muffle sound. Punctuating the wash of blue are small hits of red, including a red picture frame hanging on the wall. "There's like an 'unexpected red theory,' where a little pop of red works in every room," said Burton. "And it kind of does." A Noguchi-style pendant lamp hangs above the bed. "It's kind of like a soft floating cloud in a sea of blue sky." Watch this episode of On the Inside to see Burton's vibrant yet refined home, and read on to learn more about his approach to balanced decorating. Chad Burton on home decor and design (As told to CBC Life. These answers have been edited and condensed.) I like to say I use restrained maximalism — bringing a lot of objects and ideas to the table but thoughtfully curating them and allowing for moments of calm and quiet. Our place is a colourful and quirky version of Spanish revival meets English countryside meets '80s modernism. We just surround ourselves with colours and objects that make us happy. I feel like the arches we had installed really stand out [to guests] — especially the striped barrel arched tunnel leading from the entryway to the dining room. They're also drawn to the powder blue colour-drenched bedroom. Colour choice can come very easily sometimes and work immediately, but other times can take a bit of work to get right. So swatches and sample tins, and seeing colours next to each other and at different times of day, is important when choosing. I would say my home is saturated, cosy and full of joy. We just surround ourselves with colours and objects that make us happy. Some items are trendy, but some are vintage and timeless, and it's that mix of high and low — and how they interact with each other — that makes the space our own.
