Can the covenant of quiet enjoyment be applied to residnets of a condominuim building?

The condo's CC&Rs may address the question of whether the owners' obligation to pay dues is suspending during periods that an owner is out of the unit for needed repairs, so that's the first place to check.

if the CC&Rs or other condo rules don't address this, silence can be presumed to indicate that there's no suspension of dues because of an owner's extended absence for repairs. If you took a 3 months vacation, you'd still owe dues, even if you didn't use any condo water or electricity or elevators or incur any other communal cost. Also, as a matter of fairness, it seems that since the HOA (i.e., you and your neighbors) or its insurance is paying for the repairs, which were not your fault or any other owner's, then your dues should help pay for the repairs, as your neighbors' dues have. Has the HOA also paid for alternative housing for you over the 3 months? Communal expenses are supposed to be shared among all the owners.

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To answer your first question, I believe the covenant does apply to your situation and it appears that you may have claims for breach of that covenant on a variety of potential theories, including negligence, nuisance and breach of contract.

I agree that you need to look at your CC&Rs to determine what your rights and the HOA obligations are. That will help you decide if its worth pursuing a claim.

It appears to me that you may have a claim for damages as the HOA's actions/inactions caused the water damage. The HOA, like you, should have insurance to cover the loss of use of your unit for the time in question. The loss can be measured by the reasonable rental value of the unit or the actual out of pocket cost that you have incurred for finding alternative housing. If you have already received compensation for your damages, then I think the HOA might be justified in saying that you have been made whole and contributing your dues puts you in the same position you would have been in if the damage had never occurred.

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Did the HOA pay for your temporary housing the three months you were gone? If not, you can submit your claim to them which should more than offset the HOA dues. I don't think the covenant applies here and believe, absent language in the CC&R's that you have to pay the dues.

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