As of January 1, 2022, the Illinois legislature has updated a key section of the Illinois Condominium Property Act (“ILCPA”). The update permits an association to impose a residency requirement for those serving on an association’s board of managers. For existing condominiums, the residency requirement must:
- Be implemented via an amendment to the association’s declaration or bylaws.
- Apply to only a limited number of board members (i.e., the association cannot require all board members to be permanent residents of the association). The law states that no more than a majority of the board can be required to occupy their unit as their primary residence.
While this new law will help those associations who dislike having investor owners who reside elsewhere make up the majority of the board, it could have other implications (such as making it more difficult to recruit members for board service, which has proven a very real issue for many associations).
Finally, this requirement applies only to the ILCPA, which governs condominium associations. HOA’s and townhome associations that are not governed by the ILCPA cannot impose the residency restriction at this time.
If your board is considering this requirement, be sure to contact us to discuss the amendment process and for more information on pricing.