Although homeowner associations are created as nonprofit corporations, this does not mean the associations do not engage in financial transactions or require the services of a certified public accountant (CPA). For example, it is common for an association’s governing documents to require a financial audit or review on an annual basis, and associations are required to file tax returns every year. Further examples of situations in which it may be beneficial to consult a CPA include:
Association Taxation and Reserves
The Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) excludes from an association’s taxable income those amounts which are properly kept and used for capital contributions. In several significant Revenue Rulings, the IRS considered special assessments for major repairs and replacements to be capital contributions in addition to capital contributions to reserve funds from annual assessments.
Community Associations and the IRS
We often get asked whether community associations can or do qualify as 501(c) organizations under the Internal Revenue Code. Sometimes the question arises because the association derives too much income from sources other than assessments to file IRS Form 1120-H, and it is looking at way to...
Understanding Homeowner Association Insurance
MASTER POLICY
State laws pertaining to condominiums and most project legal documents creating condominiums require the association to carry a master insurance policy covering the entire project including the individual units. This is the only approach to insurance that makes any sense in a high rise project, and in most lateral projects it also makes sense because of the interrelationship of individual condominium units and the project’s common areas. In planned unit developments, the advisability of having a master policy depends to some extent on the type of construction. With attached townhouses or row houses, it is possible that a master policy is preferable to individual policies covering each dwelling.