Florida Statutes 718.704 – Assignment and assumption of developer rights by bulk assignee; bulk buyer
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(1) A bulk assignee is deemed to have assumed and is liable for all duties and responsibilities of the developer under the declaration and this chapter upon its acquisition of title to units and continuously thereafter, except that it is not liable for:
(a) Warranties of the developer under s. 718.203(1) or s. 718.618, except as expressly provided by the bulk assignee in a prospectus or offering circular, or the contract for purchase and sale executed with a purchaser, or for design, construction, development, or repair work performed by or on behalf of the bulk assignee.
Terms Used In Florida Statutes 718.704
- Association: means , in addition to any entity responsible for the operation of common elements owned in undivided shares by unit owners, any entity which operates or maintains other real property in which unit owners have use rights, where membership in the entity is composed exclusively of unit owners or their elected or appointed representatives and is a required condition of unit ownership. See Florida Statutes 718.103
- board: means the board of directors or other representative body which is responsible for administration of the association. See Florida Statutes 718.103
- Bulk assignee: means a person who is not a bulk buyer and who:(a) Acquires more than seven condominium parcels in a single condominium as set forth in…. See Florida Statutes 718.703
- Bulk buyer: means a person who acquires more than seven condominium parcels in a single condominium as set forth in…. See Florida Statutes 718.703
- Buyer: means a person who purchases a condominium unit. See Florida Statutes 718.103
- Condominium: means that form of ownership of real property created pursuant to this chapter, which is comprised entirely of units that may be owned by one or more persons, and in which there is, appurtenant to each unit, an undivided share in common elements. See Florida Statutes 718.103
- Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
- Developer: means a person who creates a condominium or offers condominium parcels for sale or lease in the ordinary course of business, but does not include:
(a) An owner or lessee of a condominium or cooperative unit who has acquired the unit for his or her own occupancy;(b) A cooperative association that creates a condominium by conversion of an existing residential cooperative after control of the association has been transferred to the unit owners if, following the conversion, the unit owners are the same persons who were unit owners of the cooperative and no units are offered for sale or lease to the public as part of the plan of conversion;(c) A bulk assignee or bulk buyer as defined in…. See Florida Statutes 718.103- Mortgagee: The person to whom property is mortgaged and who has loaned the money.
- Obligation: An order placed, contract awarded, service received, or similar transaction during a given period that will require payments during the same or a future period.
- person: includes individuals, children, firms, associations, joint adventures, partnerships, estates, trusts, business trusts, syndicates, fiduciaries, corporations, and all other groups or combinations. See Florida Statutes 1.01
- Unit: means a part of the condominium property which is subject to exclusive ownership. See Florida Statutes 718.103
- writing: includes handwriting, printing, typewriting, and all other methods and means of forming letters and characters upon paper, stone, wood, or other materials. See Florida Statutes 1.01
(b) The obligation to:1. Fund converter reserves under s. 718.618 for a unit that was not acquired by the bulk assignee; or2. Provide implied warranties on any portion of the condominium property except as expressly provided by the bulk assignee in a prospectus or offering circular, or the contract for purchase and sale executed with a purchaser, or for design, construction, development, or repair work performed by or on behalf of the bulk assignee.(c) The requirement to provide the association with a cumulative audit of the association’s finances from the date of formation of the condominium association as required by s. 718.301(4)(c). However, the bulk assignee must provide an audit for the period during which the bulk assignee elects or appoints a majority of the members of the board of administration.(d) Any liability arising out of or in connection with actions taken by the board of administration or the developer-appointed directors before the bulk assignee elects or appoints a majority of the members of the board of administration.(e) Any liability for or arising out of the developer’s failure to fund previous assessments or to resolve budgetary deficits in relation to a developer’s right to guarantee assessments, except as otherwise provided in subsection (2).The bulk assignee is responsible only for delivering documents and materials in accordance with s. 718.705(3). A bulk assignee may expressly assume some or all of the developer obligations described in paragraphs (a)-(e).
(2) A bulk assignee assigned the developer right to guarantee the level of assessments and fund budgetary deficits pursuant to s. 718.116 assumes and is liable for all obligations of the developer with respect to such guarantee upon its acquisition of title to the units and continuously thereafter, including any applicable funding of reserves to the extent required by law, for as long as the guarantee remains in effect. A bulk assignee not receiving such assignment, or a bulk buyer, does not assume and is not liable for the obligations of the developer with respect to such guarantee, but is responsible for payment of assessments due on or after acquisition of the units in the same manner as all other owners of condominium parcels or as otherwise provided in s. 718.116.(3) A bulk buyer is liable for the duties and responsibilities of a developer under the declaration and this chapter only to the extent that such duties or responsibilities are expressly assumed in writing by the bulk buyer.(4) An acquirer of condominium parcels is not a bulk assignee or a bulk buyer if the transfer to such acquirer was made:(a) Before the effective date of this part;(b) With the intent to hinder, delay, or defraud any purchaser, unit owner, or the association; or(c) By a person who would be considered an insider under s. 726.102.(5) An assignment of developer rights to a bulk assignee may be made by a developer, a previous bulk assignee, a mortgagee or assignee who has acquired title to the units and received an assignment of rights, or a court acting on behalf of the developer or the previous bulk assignee if such developer rights are held by the predecessor in title to the bulk assignee. At any particular time, there may not be more than one bulk assignee within a condominium; however, there may be more than one bulk buyer. If more than one acquirer of condominium parcels in the same condominium receives an assignment of developer rights in addition to those rights described in s. 718.703(2), the bulk assignee is the acquirer whose instrument of assignment is recorded first in the public records of the county in which the condominium is located, and any subsequent purported bulk assignee may still qualify as a bulk buyer.