Hoarding and Florida Law

 

At Condominium Associates, we are sensitive to the needs of all our community members. Hoarding disorder is a clinical issue that requires medical attention, so we must tread lightly around this subject. However, we also understand that severe hoarding can cause fire hazards and unwanted critters to lurk around the area. To protect the association, here is a list of legal obligations a community has to maintain a safe environment for all.

Florida Law is on Your Side

Rest assured, Florida law does provide you with some options. Above all else, you or the association will have an obligation to address the issue depending on the answers to these questions:

  • Is this person over the age of 60 and/or has a disability?

  • Is the unit unsafe or unfit for human occupancy?

  • Is he/she neglecting his/her health and hygiene, pets, and/or dependent children?

  • Is his/her failure to maintain the interior of the unit violate the condominium documents?

Reporting Neglect

You or the condominium association may be able to report the unit owner’s self-neglect to the Florida Department of Children and Families (DCF). Florida law generally requires the reporting of known or suspected self-neglect or neglect of vulnerable adults, which include those over the age of 60 and those with disabilities, or children. DCF’s Florida Abuse Hotline receives reports 24 hours a day at 1-800-96-ABUSE or report it online. 

 
 

Well-Being Checks

With the name and address of the unit owner, you or the condominium association can also request that a well-being check be performed by local law enforcement. You explain to the officer that there are concerns about the unit owner’s welfare and the habitability of his unit. 

Local law enforcement staff will then go out to the unit, knock on the door and, if no one answers, inspect what is visible from the outside. Depending on their observation, local law enforcement may pursue a warrant for entry and to evaluate the unit owner. Local law enforcement’s Special Victims Unit and/or DCF may get involved if the unit owner is:

  •  Over 60 years old 

  • Has a disability

  • Responsible for the dependent children that reside in the unit 

Maintaining Property Safety Standards

If the unit owner is failing to maintain the unit in a structurally safe and sanitary condition, local code enforcement staff may also be able to intervene. For example, Chapter 386 of the Florida Statutes, under Public Health, outlines maintenance obligations that, if unfulfilled, make a dwelling unsafe and unfit for human occupancy. If the unit is not in good working order or a sanitary condition, there may be a violation of the Statute. At this point, local ordinance on which code enforcement staff can take action.

Reach out to Nonprofits

You could also seek the help and guidance of a local nonprofit organization that specializes in hoarding. The Pinellas Community Foundation is a nonprofit organization that may be able to guide and assist you. 

How We Can Help

We will do our part and speak with our legal services provider to assess how to improve the condition of the unit. We can also help the unit owner through one or more of these channels. Contact us immediately if you have a concern.

Original article by Joe Adams, an attorney with Becker & Poliakoff, P.A., Fort Myers.

 
Estate Law, Maintenance, Safety ConcernsGuest Usersensitive issues, hoarding, Florida law