Common Element Walkway

Started by WilliamW • 2 replies • 1917 views

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WilliamW (Florida)
Posts: 11

Posted:

A homeowner (HOA)placed tile on top of his walkway with premission from the Board several years ago. The tile was placed on top of the walkway (common element) that leads to his front door. Now it appears that the tile is breaking up in spots and his claim is that the original walkway was not poured properly. He wants to re-tile the walkway but is requesting that the Association pay for the coast of putting in a new concrete walkway first. Could the tile that was placed on top of the walkway contributed to the problem that exists now? Or, once you change the common element, you own it!

Opinions please...

LindaC2 (California)
Posts: 5

Posted:

We had the same problem with our upstairs exclusive use decks in each 4-plex of our community. We found that the tile broke down in the grout areas and that allowed water intrusion causing wood rot and mold to the underlying support structure because the tile was not maintained with a waterproof sealant that needed to be placed every few years. Our BOD special assessed us 8K each to replace the decks. I believe your HO should have been responsible for the maintenance of the tile. If he cannot produce the maintenance records, I believe he should be responsible for the repairs. If a HO is given permission to modify common area, he is responsible to maintain it or return it to original condition.

RogerB (Colorado)
Posts: 5,067

Posted:

William, the commmon element remains the responsibility of the Association. The Board can choose to do nothing, or remove the tile when it becomes necessary and leave the sidewalk if it doesn't need to be replaced, or if necessary remove the tile and old sidewalk and pour a new sidewalk - without tile over the sidewalk.

breaking up of the tile may be caused by the underlying sidewalk or the soil under the sidewalk. It could also be the result of a poor tile job.

I would not allow the owner place tile over sidewalk in the common area again.

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