“We own a two level condo in a four level building. The ground and top floors are single level and we occupy the second and third levels. Our CC&Rs do not allow the owners above the ground floor to install hard surface floors like wood and tile without jumping through hoops including getting the owner below to approve and essentially waive their right to sue the HOA.

Lucky us, the president of the HOA who has been the president for 7 maybe 8 years, owns the condo above us and at least 2 other top floor condos in the building. She’s a real peach so the three of us owners below her units have a Whatsapp group. She decided to install some kind of hard floors in her units. All of us lived through her construction and it wasn’t fun. Now we hear the clickity clack of high heels, German Shepherd paws running about, and forks dropping on the floor.

The second level of our condo has our kitchen, living room, washroom, and office, and our bedrooms are downstairs on the first level. To be fair, we don’t hear the tenants in the president’s condo when we’re all sleeping. As a group, we complained to the HOA, citing the CC&Rs’ requirements and objecting to the hard floors. The president responded personally by encouraging us to sue her, which she implied would lead to a disastrous outcome for anyone who dared.

Despite the annoyance, we wonder if it is worth the hassle since it does not disrupt our sleep?”

The President’s unhelpful response of warning against legal action is frustrating and does not promote positive neighborly relations. It is also inappropriate for her to be involved in the HOA’s handling of a complaint against her own violation of the CC&Rs.

While the noise from the hard floors may not currently disrupt your sleep, it’s important to consider the long-term impact of allowing a violation to go unchecked. This can set a precedent for future violations and undermine the effectiveness of the CC&Rs as a whole. Additionally, selling your unit and disclosing the violation to potential buyers could become problematic.

To begin, I suggest you demand an IDR hearing along with the other affected owners to attempt to resolve the issue informally. If the HOA refuses to force her to remove the hard floors, initiating a small claims lawsuit against the HOA and the President, both as defendants, and demanding $10,000 for your troubles could send a message.

While you may not be awarded the full amount, it would be a signal to the President and the HOA that their violations will not be ignored. If other owners have been denied the same improvements, see if they would be willing to appear as witnesses in court. Judges are not fond of selective enforcement.

It’s essential to hold the HOA and the President accountable for the violation and prevent future violations of the CC&Rs. Best of luck in resolving the issue.