Unit Owners

Residents of condominiums, co-ops or homeowner associations spread over many acres have been fighting for more than a decade for such municipal services as garbage pickups and road maintenance.Their argument has been that they pay the same level of property taxes as neighbors in one-family houses on separate lots, so why shouldn't they get the same services?The answer, according to Benjamin Lambert, a lawyer in Woodbridge, N.J., and president-elect of the New Jersey chapter of the Community Associations Institute (CAI)

WHEN YOU find construction defects in your new home, is it preferable to (a) sue the builder immediately or (b) get the defects corrected with no litigation expense under a binding, statutory set of deadlines that allow you to sue if you're not satisfied? Sounds like a no-brainer. The National Association of Home Builders hopes it is. It is about to begin a nationwide push to make the latter approach the law of the land, state by state. The 205,000-member trade group is holding out a new plan adopted by the Washington state Legislature as a model for cool-headed resolution of construction-defects disputes between homebuyers and builders.

Controversy at Loyola over sex coursePlease allow me to respond to Daniel Perrine's analysis of the current controversy at Loyola College (Other Voices, Feb. 24).While lamenting "the condemnation of others" as antithetical to nTC Christianity and the American university, Professor Perrine at the same time stridently condemns those with whom he disagrees.Using words like "religious fanaticism," "intolerant Puritanism" and the "Roman Catholic far right," he finally disposes of them with the pronouncement that "they do not belong here."

At a recent meeting of the Council of Unit Owners of Parr's Ridge Condominium, Sam Black, the consultant to developer Centennial Westminster, was presented a token of appreciation by the residents.Blackhas spent considerable time at Parr's Ridge making sure the residents are satisfied with their homes and the community in general.Last summer, Parr's Ridge received an award from Carroll County as the best landscaped residential community in 1991."Sam has beenvery amenable and accessible to us," said Diana Farris, an owner at Parr's Ridge and president of the condominium association.

It was late at night when the phone rang at Jan Horst's house. It was her mother, telling her that she was in great pain and that she needed her. "I just had to walk downstairs and take her to the hospital," said Jan, whose mother suffered a ruptured appendix. "She could have died. I was so thankful I was right there." Later came a case of pneumonia, when, again, Jan was right there to help her mother and be at her side. "There's no place like home, and I can manage her care," Jan said.

CHICAGO -- All is quiet on the home front until your dishwasher goes on the blink while you're away. An all-day rinse cycle spills onto your floor and into the common areas of your condominium building.Evidence that something is wrong meets you at the door as you insert the key. Your feet sink into a soggy hallway carpet, and hysterical cries drift up from your downstairs neighbors -- vows of revenge for the interior rain shower.As for your condominium unit, let's face it: You've got a mess on your hands.

When Jim and Ann Bailey moved almost four years ago as part of the Cleveland Browns' relocation to Baltimore, they knew they wanted a home with a water view.In Cleveland, they owned a duplex condominium overlooking Lake Erie. In Baltimore, they were hoping to get a similar unit, but not knowing the market here, they were unsure if they would be able to find something along the Inner Harbor.But in the end it was easier than they thought. With the condo market in the doldrums, the general counsel for the Ravens and his wife had their pick of a half-dozen properties and finally purchased in Canton Cove.