My mother-in-law moved into a condo (she bought it, doesn’t rent), last year. At the time, pets were allowed, and she brought her cat with her. Now she has received a notice from the condo association saying that pets are no longer allowed, and that all residents with pets should make arrangements to get rid of them!
Is this legal? I know that they can say pets will not be allowed for future residents, or even that current residents cannot get more pets, but if she brought a pet with her when they were allowed can they force her to get rid of it or sell her condo? This seems outrageous to me.
Does she need a lawyer? Now she is thinking of just ignoring the notice, as she says, who would know if she has a cat or not? It’s always inside and doesn’t make any noise.
I used to live in a condo complex that allowed pets when I moved in (I rented), but later did the “pets not allowed” thing, people who already had pets were allowed to keep them. I don’t know about laws though. I would definitely get a lawyer - if anyone tried to force me to get rid of my pets, it would be a cold day in hell.
I used to rent a condo that had gone dogless, but had grandfathered in any pets already living there. That I can understand. I don’t know how you can make someone get rid of an animal that is on their own property and was allowed at the time of purchase. If they’d told her at the time of sale that animals wouldn’t be allowed past a certain date, that would be one thing, but I dont’ see how they could get by with this.
The CA may have amended the by-laws, which had said that pets were allowed, or made no ban on them. To amend the by-laws, recourse to the by-laws themselves must be had for the procedure. Usually at least 2/3 of the owners must have consented to the amendment.
The Board of Directors is empowed to promulgate rules and regulations (pursuant to the powers vested in it by the By-laws), and if that was done in this case, then they cannot ban anything which was done prior. Definitely, if this is what happened, she must be allowed to keep her pet. If the by-laws were amended, I believe that she also must be allowed, as her pet is “grandfathered” in. However, it would be well to determine the cause of the change in the condo’s policy on pets. I suggest that she write a letter to the B/D or Manager of the CA and explain her position, that she had the pet prior to the change in policy and intends, therefore, to continue having it. And if she doesn’t know (but she should) how the policy change was effected, she should also inquire as to that.