Condominiums are one of the fastest growing ways to divide property, especially in the City of Seattle. They are a fantastic way to add value and additional housing to properties that cannot be otherwise divided through the traditional subdivision process.
The Washington Uniform Common Interest Ownership Act (WUCIOA) is the state law that governs condos. While condos are typically faster and less costly than subdivisions, there are a lot of nuances and details to the process, so it’s important to work with an attorney who is familiar with the City, County, and State requirements.
Dimension Law Group’s Condo Attorneys have been helping clients develop their properties with condos since WUCIOA first went into effect in July of 2018, helping clients with more than 500 condos.
Our attorneys are well versed in the statutory requirements and other various options related to condo divisions, including utilities, HOA insurance, HOA budgets, accessory dwelling units, and other common issues that clients run into. They are available to conduct informational condo sessions, and consult with teams of builders, developers, and real estate offices.
Our attorneys can assist with every part of the condo process, including:
- Drafting the required legal documents: Declaration, Bylaws, and the Public Offering Statement
- Incorporating the homeowners’ association with the WA Secretary of State
- Working with the surveyor to ensure the condo map represents the client’s interests and meets WUCIOA’s requirements
- Coordinating with jurisdictions to ensure the documents conform with their requirements
- Overseeing recording of the documents
- Consulting with buyers, agents, title, escrow, and lenders as needed to ensure smooth closings.
- HOA Transfer Meeting: it’s important to ensure that the new owners are familiar with their HOA, to make sure that the HOA is fully transferred, and that the developer has been removed completely.
- Other matters that may arise: title issues, title transfer, easements, encroachments, neighbor issues, etc.