Anyone who rented or bought a unit at Icon Brickell’s Tower 1 since June 27, 2013 could soon collect up to $360 from the building’s condo association.
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Icon Brickell at 465 Brickell Avenue |
For instance, 22
listings for condos available for sale at Brickell Flatiron
show the application fee is $150. Nine listings at Icon Bay
Miami also show a $150 application fee. Quadro Miami, a
recently completed building near the Design District, is
charging $475 in application fees, according to 35 listings.
In a statement after publication, Aaron Resnick and Jordan
Shaw, attorneys for plaintiff Brittany Wiggins, said class
action lawsuits can deter this widespread practice by condo
associations. “These illegal fees are a profit center for
the condominium associations that charge them,” the
statement said. “It appears that associations are attempting
to fatten their coffers for as long as possible, with the
hopes that they will avoid detection or stay in the black
even after costly litigation.”
Shaw and Resnick said the Icon Brickell No. 1 association
agreed to set aside a total of $762,500 to pay class
members, attorney’s fees and a fee for Wiggins as the class
representative. In addition, the association will stop
charging fees over $100, they said.
Evelyn Greenstone Kammet, the lawyer for Icon Brickell No.
1, did not respond to messages seeking comment.
Shaw and Resnick are also representing plaintiffs in class
action lawsuits filed against condo associations for the SLS
Lux, Quantum on the Bay, and the Plaza on Brickell.
Wiggins sued the Icon Brickell condo association in 2017,
and her lawsuit was certified for class action status last
year. According to her complaint, Wiggins was charged $500
in move-in and move-out fees in addition to a $100
application fee by the association. The entire $600 was
non-refundable.
According to a website created to inform residents about the
proposed agreement, Icon Brickell is willing to settle the
case to avoid the costs of “lengthy and burdensome
litigation.” Individuals who qualify as class action members
are eligible to receive between $60 and $360 each, per the
proposed settlement.
In September, Resnick and Shaw successfully negotiated a
settlement in another class action lawsuit against The Plaza
851 Brickell Condominium Association, which was also accused
of charging inflated fees. That association agreed to pay up
to $300,000 in refunds.