Transfer of association control

Common Elements summary — Section 719.301 governs the cooperative analog to condominium turnover. The developer must relinquish control of the board of directors and turn over the association to the members within three months after 90% of the units have been sold, OR three years after the first unit is sold, whichever comes first. Members may petition for earlier transfer if the developer has been declared bankrupt or has abandoned development. At turnover, the developer must deliver to the new board: all financial records back to inception, all governing documents, all contracts, all permits and warranties, an audit of the association's finances, all insurance policies, and the keys to everything. The new board has the right (and effectively the duty under fiduciary principles) to immediately commission an independent audit and a forensic engineering review. For successor boards: the construction-defect tolling rule in 719.117(7) (parallel to condo 718.124) means the statute of limitations doesn't start running until turnover. Don't sit on suspected defects post-turnover — the SOL clock is now ticking against you.

Not legal advice. Click through to the official source for statutory text.