NANCY V. LIMNER, APPELLANT,
v.
COUNTRY PINES CONDOMINIUM ASSOCIATION, INC., A FLORIDA NOT-FOR-PROFIT CORPORATION, APPELLEE
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A mortgagee's liability for unpaid condominium assessments is limited by section 718.116, Florida Statutes, to the lesser of six months of unpaid assessments or one percent of the original mortgage debt, and this limitation applies to a former unit owner who took back a first mortgage as part of a sale.
Section 718.116, Florida Statutes, limits a mortgagee's liability for unpaid condominium assessments to the lesser of six months of unpaid assessments or one percent of the original mortgage debt.
[1] Section 718.116, Florida Statutes, limiting mortgagee liability for unpaid condominium assessments applies to a former unit owner who took back a first mortgage as part o…
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceNancy Limner obtained title to a condominium unit and took back a first mortgage as part of the sale; the condominium association recorded a lien for …
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PER CURIAM.
We hold that section 718.116, Florida Statutes (1993), limits the mortgagee’s liability in this ease to the lesser of six months of unpaid assessments or one per cent of the original mortgage debt. The amendment to the statute does not apply to this lawsuit, which was filed before its effective date. There is nothing in the statute to indicate that it does not apply to a former unit owner who has taken back a first mortgage as part of a sale of a unit. The trial court expressed concern that a delinquent owner could set up a sham sale, foreclose, and then use the statute to wipe out a liability. Such an owner would remain liable for the assessments as a “grantor” within the meaning of section 718.116(l)(a); in addition, this type of conduct would run afoul of the unclean hands doctrine in a foreclosure case, since foreclosure is an equitable remedy. See Ocean View Towers, Inc. v. First Fidelity Sav. & Loan Ass’n, 521 So. 2d 325, 326 (Fla. 4th DCA 1988). Application of the statute does not amount to a constitutional violation. Under section 718.116(5)(a), an association’s lien for unpaid assessments is effective as to a first mortgagee “from and after recording of a claim of lien.” The hen in this case was recorded approximately three months after appellant obtained title.
The summary final judgment is reversed.
KLEIN and GROSS, JJ., and BROWNELL, SCOTT M., Associate Judge, concur.
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Citator
Cited By
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Carroll & Assocs., P.A. v. Galindo, 864 So. 2d 24 (Fla. 3d DCA 2003)…t four and one-half years). This is especially so since the Galindos, who caused the mortgage they now hold as assignees to go into default in the first instance, appear to have less than clean hands. See Limner v. Country Pines Condo. Ass’n, Inc., 709 So. 2d 154 (Fla. 4th DCA 1998)(confirming that the unclean hands doctrine applies to the equitable remedy of foreclosure); Knight Energy Servs., Inc. v. Amoco Oil Co., 660 So. 2d 786, 789 (Fla. 4th DCA 1995)(holding that a “foreclosure action is an equitable p…
Authorities Cited
- Ocean View Towers, Inc. v. First Fid. Sav. & Loan Ass'n, 521 So. 2d 325 (Fla. 4th DCA 1988)