Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: right of first refusal

[evdavwes (evdavwes]

Westwood Cohousing ( http://www.westwoodcohousing.com/policies.html ) has a 
right of first refusal.  See text below.  Once the Sales Committee has been 
informed of a potential sale, they have 30 days to either approve the sale or 
find an alternative buyer who can match the terms of the proposed sale.  We 
have never used this clause.  We have had no problems with lenders, so far as I 
know.
There has been some discussion about having the Association purchase a house in 
such a situation.  It is not clear to me that this would be reasonable.
David Clements
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Item 7. LIMITATIONS ON SALE: Except as provided herein, no Owner may sell any 
Lot or part thereof or interest therein.


Any Owner intending to sell (other than as expressly permitted in the Bylaws) 
all or any part of a Lot or any interest therein (the “Selling Owner”) shall 
give notice (the “Notice”) together with the terms of the proposed transaction 
and name and address of the intended recipient. The giving of the Notice shall 
constitute a representation by the Selling Owner to the Sale Committee and any 
subsequent purchaser produced by the Sale Committee, as hereinafter provided, 
that the Selling Owner reasonably believes the proposal to be bona fide in all 
respects.


Within thirty days after receipt of the Notice, the Sale Committee shall either 
approve the proposed transaction in writing (the “Approval”) or shall furnish 
the Selling Owner with a signed offer (the “Offer”) from a purchaser approved 
(the “Approved Grantee”) by the Sale Committee, upon the same terms stated in 
the Notice, except that the Approved Grantee shall have not less than thirty 
(30) days subsequent to the date of the Offer within which to close the 
transaction. So long as the Offer is monetarily identical to what was contained 
in the Notice, the Selling Owner shall promptly accept the Offer. The Approval 
of the Sale Committee shall be in recordable form signed by any two members of 
the Association’s Board and shall be delivered to the purchaser. The failure of 
the Association to act within such thirty (30) day period shall be deemed to 
constitute approval of the proposal in the Notice, but shall not eliminate the 
Association’s obligation to provide the Approval in recordable form, as 
aforesaid. The Selling Owner shall be bound to consummate the transaction with 
the Approved Grantee per the Offer.


Notwithstanding the foregoing, the sale of a Lot as a result of foreclosure or 
sale under a power of sale in a Holder’s deed of trust shall not be subject to 
this Item 7 or affected in any manner. If, however, a Lot is purchased at such 
a sale, then the purchaser thereat shall be obligated thereafter to honor the 
foregoing limitations with respect to all future sales.


Any Owner may convey or transfer the Owner’s Lot by gift, will or intestacy 
without complying with the procedures set forth in this Item 7, but the 
recipient of such Lot shall be and remain subject to all of the terms and 
conditions hereof thereafter.