San Francisco Condominium Elections

San Francisco is another city that has seen a major boom in condominium construction over the past 10 years. Styles can range from refurbished early 20th century Victorian-inspired low-rises to major modern condo towers in the downtown area. Condominiums in the state of California are run by Homeowners Associations and governed under the California Civil Code.

The Davis-Stirling Common Interest Development Act

This is the name of the portion of the California Civil code that governs condominiums, cooperative, and planned unit development communities in California.

In the result of election, the Board of Directors must appoint an independent third party to act as an inspector of the election. The inspector(s) is responsible for determining the number of homeowners are entitled to vote and the voting power of each, receive and tabulate the votes, among other things.

The act sets forth a very strict procedure in which the ballot is cast, involving a mail-in ballot method. Failure to follow election procedure as adopted by the association will invalidate the ballot and the homeowner’s vote. The reason why voting is done in advance and by mail is to eliminate the need of proxy votes.

You can read the full act here. Section §1363.03 deals specifically with elections. You can also read this article on Homeowners Associations Election Law, from the California Association of Homeowners Associations. It provides a good understanding of all of the election procedures.

To read about how online elections can help Homeowners Association in the state of California, we invite you to read his article on ElectionBuddy and HOAs.