Texas 2009 - 81st Regular

Texas House Bill HB4559 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	81R11139 PMO-D
2	2	By: Naishtat H.B. No. 4559
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to regulation of condominium conversions.
8	8	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
9	9	SECTION 1. Title 7, Property Code, is amended by adding
10	10	Chapter 83 to read as follows:
11	11	CHAPTER 83. CONDOMINIUM CONVERSIONS
12	12	Sec. 83.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
13	13	(1) "Approved structural engineer" means a licensed
14	14	professional engineer approved by the commission to provide
15	15	services under this chapter.
16	16	(2) "Commission" means the Texas Residential
17	17	Construction Commission.
18	18	(3) "Component parts" of a building include the
19	19	mechanical, electrical, plumbing, heating, ventilating, air
20	20	conditioning, and structural elements of the building.
21	21	(4) "Condominium" means a form of real property with
22	22	portions of the real property designated for separate ownership or
23	23	occupancy, and the remainder of the real property designated for
24	24	common ownership or occupancy solely by the owners of those
25	25	portions. Real property is a condominium only if one or more of the
26	26	common elements are directly owned in undivided interests by the
27	27	unit owners. Real property is not a condominium if all of the
28	28	common elements are owned by a legal entity separate from the unit
29	29	owners, such as a corporation, even if the separate legal entity is
30	30	owned by the unit owners.
31	31	(5) "Conversion" means the act of converting the form
32	32	of ownership of an improvement into a condominium.
33	33	(6) "Conversion building" means a multi-family
34	34	residential building that at any time before creation of the
35	35	condominium was occupied wholly or partially by persons other than
36	36	purchasers of the condominium and persons who occupy with the
37	37	consent of purchasers.
38	38	(7) "Developer" means a person who converts a
39	39	conversion building into a residential condominium.
40	40	(8) "Structural" means the load-bearing portion of a
41	41	building.
42	42	Sec. 83.002. RESERVE STUDY. (a) Before the conversion of a
43	43	proposed conversion building, a developer must obtain a study of
44	44	the building by an approved structural engineer. The study must
45	45	provide an evaluation of the building and must include:
46	46	(1) a determination of the age of each component part;
47	47	(2) the estimated remaining useful life of each
48	48	component part;
49	49	(3) the estimated maintenance, repair, and
50	50	replacement costs of each component part and other contingencies
51	51	for the next one-year period and the next five-year period
52	52	expressed as:
53	53	(A) a total amount; and
54	54	(B) a per-unit amount based on the proportional
55	55	share of each unit; and
56	56	(4) the structural and functional soundness of each
57	57	component part of the conversion building.
58	58	(b) The reserve study must also determine a monthly
59	59	assessment amount that is sufficient to fund the estimated costs of
60	60	maintenance, repair, and replacement of each component part and
61	61	other contingencies for a proposed conversion building for a
62	62	two-year period.
63	63	Sec. 83.003. STRUCTURAL INSPECTION. (a) A developer shall
64	64	obtain an inspection of a proposed conversion building, including
65	65	the foundation, by an approved structural engineer. The engineer
66	66	must certify the inspection as reasonable and accurate.
67	67	(b) An inspection of a proposed conversion building under
68	68	this section must comply with rules established by the commission
69	69	under Section 83.009.
70	70	Sec. 83.004. ENERGY AUDIT. (a) A developer shall obtain an
71	71	energy audit of a proposed conversion building conducted by a
72	72	building performance analyst approved by the commission to conduct
73	73	the energy audit under this section.
74	74	(b) An energy audit under this section must comply with
75	75	rules established by the commission under Section 83.009.
76	76	Sec. 83.005. CONVERSION RESERVE FUND. (a) A developer
77	77	shall establish a reserve fund for capital expenditures and
78	78	deferred maintenance of the proposed conversion building.
79	79	(b) The conversion reserve fund must be sufficient to pay
80	80	the estimated costs of maintenance, repair, and replacement of each
81	81	component part and other contingencies expressed as a total amount
82	82	for a two-year period as determined under Section 83.002(b).
83	83	Sec. 83.006. BUILDING REQUIREMENTS. (a) A conversion
84	84	building:
85	85	(1) may not be wood framed;
86	86	(2) must have an expected remaining useful life of
87	87	more than 35 years; and
88	88	(3) must pass all applicable building inspections.
89	89	(b) A developer before a conversion must:
90	90	(1) obtain all applicable building permits; and
91	91	(2) establish a reserve fund as provided by Section
92	92	83.005.
93	93	Sec. 83.007. EXCEPTION TO BUILDING REQUIREMENTS. (a) A
94	94	developer that obtains the approval of the appropriate political
95	95	subdivision of a plan to renovate or modify a proposed conversion
96	96	building to meet the requirements of Sections 83.006(a) and (b) may
97	97	offer for sale residential units in a building not in compliance
98	98	with Sections 83.006(a) and (b).
99	99	(b) A developer may not convert a proposed conversion
100	100	building described by Subsection (a) until the building complies
101	101	with Sections 83.006(a) and (b).
102	102	Sec. 83.008. MANDATORY DISCLOSURES WITH OFFER FOR SALE. A
103	103	developer may not offer for sale a unit of a condominium that is
104	104	converted under this chapter unless the developer provides to a
105	105	prospective buyer a copy of:
106	106	(1) the reserve study prepared under Section 83.002;
107	107	(2) the structural inspection prepared under Section
108	108	83.003; and
109	109	(3) the energy audit prepared under Section 83.004.
110	110	Sec. 83.009. RULES. The commission shall adopt rules to
111	111	implement this chapter.
112	112	SECTION 2. This Act applies only to a conversion building as
113	113	defined by Section 83.001, Property Code, as added by this Act,
114	114	whose ownership is converted into a condominium on or after the
115	115	effective date of this Act. A proposed conversion building whose
116	116	ownership is converted into a condominium before the effective date
117	117	of this Act is governed by the law as it existed immediately before
118	118	the effective date of this Act, and that law is continued in effect
119	119	for that purpose.
120	120	SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2009.