Ava
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Post by Ava on Aug 25, 2014 21:35:05 GMT -5
I've have ongoing problems with my condo association for years. During 2013 a couple of people got voted in the board, did nothing, we had no services such as snow removal, maintenance, etc. The monthly dues sunk in a black hole, never to be seen again. They finally got thrown out in December. Now we have a new board. We had a meeting where I voted to choose a firm to manage the affairs of the HOA. The majority of owners voted to self- manage. I've had water problems in my unit forever. These are not condos in a building, these are townhouses. On top of my roof there's a gutter that serves four units. That gutter gets clogged and water gets into my home. The president that got elected last December is personally working in the garden since March. He has a crew of assorted, random people who work with him. According to him, he has spent 25k in the garden so far. He told me there's no money to fix my problem, and I have to foot part of the bill. I agreed, just to have this ongoing issue solved once and for all. Since June until now he's sent three different people to have a look in my house. None of them has fixed anything. They look, prod, touch, come for a day or two, do a little bit of painting and then leave. One of them broke a lighting fixture and another one broke my garage door. None of them climbed to the roof to fix the problem. After each of these people disappear the HOA president comes to me saying the latest constructor was a crook and he already paid them but they just took the money and ran. I finally got so tired of this that I sent him an email yesterday telling him I cannot wait anymore, and asking who authorized him to spend (supposedly, I've never seen any financial records) so much money in the garden when there are ongoing water issues.
He answered me today with a long email, very insulting, full of accusations (I didn't vote for him and he resents it) and honestly, hate. He ended his email saying that he'll eventually fix my issues because he wants to help me but that he has no obligation to do so. But he also stated my water issue is now extremely low in the priority list. He said since I'm "becoming a problem" the HOA is not obligated to deal with me at all. I am, and I have always been, current with my dues. He's from an ethnicity that considers women second-rate, and I'm a woman living alone. I have the feeling he wouldn't act like this if there was a man around. He has even told me that contractors "don't respect women because they see them as stupid". I know some of you will tell me to get a lawyer, but the money I have saved with a lot of sacrifice is earmarked for other things. I'm not rich, I don't have a ton of money laying around to spend on lawyers. Suing the association will probably cost me thousands. The email was so insulting I had to sit down and breathe and try to relax for a while. What to do?
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Bonny
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Post by Bonny on Aug 25, 2014 21:51:52 GMT -5
Is gutter cleaning/exterior maintenance part of your HOA dues? If so the HOA DOES have a duty to repair damage (or make a claim under its insurance policy) for damage done because of maintenance failures. Have you attended any of the HOA meetings? Have you put your concerns in writing to the Board (not just the president)? You'll want to consult with a lawyer who specializes in HOAs but one option is to give the board X number of days to make the repairs or you will have them done and then sue them in small claims court. Self managed HOAs for anything but a few units are a problem. My condo (when my mom owned it) used to be self managed and there were lots of problems including a so-called "site manager" who defrauded the HOA with fake claims et cetera. That could be going on in your situation. Good luck, I don't envy you.
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Ava
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Post by Ava on Aug 25, 2014 21:54:28 GMT -5
Is gutter cleaning/exterior maintenance part of your HOA dues? If so the HOA DOES have a duty to repair damage (or make a claim under its insurance policy) for damage done because of maintenance failures. Have you attended any of the HOA meetings? Have you put your concerns in writing to the Board (not just the president)? You'll want to consult with a lawyer who specializes in HOAs but one option is to give the board X number of days to make the repairs or you will have them done and then sue them in small claims court. Self managed HOAs for anything but a few units are a problem. My condo (when my mom owned it) used to be self managed and there were lots of problems including a so-called "site manager" who defrauded the HOA with fake claims et cetera. That could be going on in your situation. Good luck, I don't envy you. Yes, all exterior maintenance and cleaning is (supposedly) included in the dues. I say supposedly because nobody in charge has ever done any roof maintenance since I'm here. I have attended meetings even though people get very emotional and end up yelling and insulting each other, it's really a very draining experience. I've expressed my concerns about the water damage for years, both verbally and in writing.
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Bonny
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Post by Bonny on Aug 25, 2014 21:58:27 GMT -5
Then you're going to need to follow through with an attorney to walk you through the process because it's not going to get better and your property will continue to get damaged.
Are there others in the same situation as you?
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Ava
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Post by Ava on Aug 25, 2014 22:04:15 GMT -5
I haven't talked to any of the other unit owners who have a gutter in their roof. It's slowly becoming a "Sleeping with the enemy" sort of situation, in which there's a lot of hostility if you are not liked or dare to disagree with the president in any way, shape or form. Going to the other unit owners will be a declaration of war. I still don't know if they would side with me or not. I don't have any sort of relationship with any of them other than saying "Hi".
I'm really torn. It's a delicate situation because I live around these people. I'm a woman and I live alone, and I know I'm perceived as an easy target.
I'll be moving next year; either to Florida or any other southern state since I'm done with the cold and the snow. I'm just waiting to finish my MBA in May 2015. Since the condo is severely underwater I'm going to rent it out, so even from afar I still have to deal with the HOA.
I'm so, so tired of this.
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cronewitch
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I identify as a post-menopausal childless cat lady and I vote.
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Post by cronewitch on Aug 26, 2014 0:08:47 GMT -5
Can you find a man? Coworker or paid employee to be your spokes person. I suggest a man well over 6ft tall who looks strong. Introduce him as your friend who knows about construction so you want him to help speak for you. Even if you know everything the one idiot might see talking to a man as more worth his time and a big strong man may intimidate him just a little. Maybe you can hire an actor to be your friend, make sure he drives a large truck and wears boots.
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CCL
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HOA Drama
Aug 26, 2014 0:35:02 GMT -5
via mobile
Post by CCL on Aug 26, 2014 0:35:02 GMT -5
Once a month or so our county has a "talk to an attorney for free night." Maybe there's something like that in your area? I agree you might need an attorney. Sorry you have to deal with this. The guy sounds like a real jerk.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Aug 26, 2014 5:34:04 GMT -5
I agree with the others - I think you're going to need an attorney. obviously I need to thank my HOA board more often - while there's some things that aren't so great (wanting to expand pool hours or get lights put in that gets voted down), it's nothing compared to some of the stories you guys tell.
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happyhoix
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Post by happyhoix on Aug 26, 2014 8:42:48 GMT -5
You said the gutter is over four units, I would at least talk to the other three owners of those units to see if they are having water problems as well.
Then I think you have to talk to a lawyer to see what the HOA is obligated to cover. It may be possible to hire someone to do the repair and then send the HOA the bill.
I wouldn't worry about making the guy angry. He's already angry. I would absolutely talk to the different owners to see what they think about the level of service they get from the HOA and if they think the $25K on the garden was a good investment. Maybe the guy isn't as popular and powerful as you think, he's just intimidating you to get you to think so.
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Bonny
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Post by Bonny on Aug 26, 2014 9:37:01 GMT -5
Can you find a man? Coworker or paid employee to be your spokes person. I suggest a man well over 6ft tall who looks strong. Introduce him as your friend who knows about construction so you want him to help speak for you. Even if you know everything the one idiot might see talking to a man as more worth his time and a big strong man may intimidate him just a little. Maybe you can hire an actor to be your friend, make sure he drives a large truck and wears boots. Because I live 500 miles away from my rentals, I've hired a licensed contractor as a consultant to review damage to and from my unit before. He has a background in "Expert Testimony" writes well and takes good photographs. This is the type of person you need to hire to make an assessment and to make your "demand" against the HOA. A letter with your attorney's letterhead is also useful.
But as I said, you must be prepared to follow through. People WILL think you a just a complainer until they realize you're serious.
The contractor will help you focus on the important stuff. One problem that a lot of women have (including me) is that we spend a lot time on esthetics vs structural and costly systemic problems. Having an outside expert helps you focus on what's truly important vs what "looks bad".
Good luck.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Aug 26, 2014 9:41:49 GMT -5
Can you find a man? Coworker or paid employee to be your spokes person. I suggest a man well over 6ft tall who looks strong. Introduce him as your friend who knows about construction so you want him to help speak for you. Even if you know everything the one idiot might see talking to a man as more worth his time and a big strong man may intimidate him just a little. Maybe you can hire an actor to be your friend, make sure he drives a large truck and wears boots. This. If you can't afford an attorney this is the way to go. Seriously.
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HoneyBBQ
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Post by HoneyBBQ on Aug 26, 2014 10:17:39 GMT -5
Get the work done yourself, then file a small claims suit against the HOA.
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Bonny
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Post by Bonny on Aug 26, 2014 11:19:33 GMT -5
Get the work done yourself, then file a small claims suit against the HOA. She's going to need to make a written "demand" and give them an opportunity to repair.
Courts don't like "self-help" in these situations.
Also almost every HOA requires HOA approval for exterior owner repairs. Depending on the type of work she may also need local permits. She needs to do this right or she risks getting sued herself.
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gacpa
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Post by gacpa on Aug 26, 2014 12:14:13 GMT -5
I am sorry you are dealing with this. In the big picture of home ownership, I see the need for HOA's. In reality, they are always a pain in the rear.
I hate confrontation, and I sense you do also. Try your best not to get emotional (easy to say, hard to do for me), and try to do all you can to get the HOA to do their job. I can't believe some of the people who are elected as HOA presidents, treasurers, etc. They scare me. Does this man honestly think it is OK to address you in that manner? How very unprofessional. Try to be a better person, and I can tell you are. Don't stoop to his level of behavior.
I think Bonny's advice about getting a licensed contractor is a good idea. This way you will know exactly what you are dealing with in terms of damage and the cost to repair. Getting an attorney may also be a good investment in your home. The goal is to get the problem fixed ASAP. Hopefully, you will not be damaged emotionally in the process. I am old enough now that if I have to spend a little money to do things right, and deal with people ON MY TERMS to make them do what is right, then it is money well spent. You don't need all the emotional upset, though I completely understand your reluctance to pay to make them do what they are supposed to do as an HOA.
My best wishes to you and keep us posted. I will be rooting for you.
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Plain Old Petunia
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bloom where you are planted
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Post by Plain Old Petunia on Aug 26, 2014 12:28:45 GMT -5
I haven't talked to any of the other unit owners who have a gutter in their roof. It's slowly becoming a "Sleeping with the enemy" sort of situation, in which there's a lot of hostility if you are not liked or dare to disagree with the president in any way, shape or form. Going to the other unit owners will be a declaration of war. I still don't know if they would side with me or not. I don't have any sort of relationship with any of them other than saying "Hi". I'm really torn. It's a delicate situation because I live around these people. I'm a woman and I live alone, and I know I'm perceived as an easy target. I'll be moving next year; either to Florida or any other southern state since I'm done with the cold and the snow. I'm just waiting to finish my MBA in May 2015. Since the condo is severely underwater I'm going to rent it out, so even from afar I still have to deal with the HOA. I'm so, so tired of this. It's not a popularity contest, and it's not about taking sides. If owners of other units with a gutter on their roof are having water problems, they want them fixed. Don't let this asshat intimidate you. You have every right to question why 25k was spent on a garden when maintenance issues are being neglected. You are probably right that he has a problem with independent women, but so what, that is his problem. Your problem is this water issue. I think you should go to the next board meeting and bring this up. Bring along print outs of your emails. His threat that your water issue is now a low priority because you dared to question him is simply not acceptable. You need to get this fixed before renting out your unit, or you might be the one getting sued. (Depends on your state's laws).
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HoneyBBQ
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Post by HoneyBBQ on Aug 26, 2014 13:44:41 GMT -5
Get the work done yourself, then file a small claims suit against the HOA. She's going to need to make a written "demand" and give them an opportunity to repair.
Courts don't like "self-help" in these situations.
Also almost every HOA requires HOA approval for exterior owner repairs. Depending on the type of work she may also need local permits. She needs to do this right or she risks getting sued herself.
It seems to me she has given plenty of written demand letters from her story? Water in her house can cause mold and thousands of dollars of repair not to mention health problems I'm not willing to risk. She's given them enough time IMO. I'd tell them I'm hiring my own to fix it and filing suit in a week and see if that gets them moving.
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Iggy aka IG
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Post by Iggy aka IG on Aug 26, 2014 13:53:47 GMT -5
Once a month or so our county has a "talk to an attorney for free night." Maybe there's something like that in your area? I agree you might need an attorney. Sorry you have to deal with this. The guy sounds like a real jerk. Once a week a law firm about 30 miles away has someone come down on Tuesday mornings. They ask for a $15 donation if you are able. I've utilized their services twice in the past 5 years, and they seem knowledgeable. If anything, they might give you info you hadn't thought of or steer you in the right direction. Luck to you.
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tskeeter
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Post by tskeeter on Aug 26, 2014 17:23:16 GMT -5
I've have ongoing problems with my condo association for years. During 2013 a couple of people got voted in the board, did nothing, we had no services such as snow removal, maintenance, etc. The monthly dues sunk in a black hole, never to be seen again. They finally got thrown out in December. Now we have a new board. We had a meeting where I voted to choose a firm to manage the affairs of the HOA. The majority of owners voted to self- manage. I've had water problems in my unit forever. These are not condos in a building, these are townhouses. On top of my roof there's a gutter that serves four units. That gutter gets clogged and water gets into my home. The president that got elected last December is personally working in the garden since March. He has a crew of assorted, random people who work with him. According to him, he has spent 25k in the garden so far. He told me there's no money to fix my problem, and I have to foot part of the bill. I agreed, just to have this ongoing issue solved once and for all. Since June until now he's sent three different people to have a look in my house. None of them has fixed anything. They look, prod, touch, come for a day or two, do a little bit of painting and then leave. One of them broke a lighting fixture and another one broke my garage door. None of them climbed to the roof to fix the problem. After each of these people disappear the HOA president comes to me saying the latest constructor was a crook and he already paid them but they just took the money and ran. I finally got so tired of this that I sent him an email yesterday telling him I cannot wait anymore, and asking who authorized him to spend (supposedly, I've never seen any financial records) so much money in the garden when there are ongoing water issues. He answered me today with a long email, very insulting, full of accusations (I didn't vote for him and he resents it) and honestly, hate. He ended his email saying that he'll eventually fix my issues because he wants to help me but that he has no obligation to do so. But he also stated my water issue is now extremely low in the priority list. He said since I'm "becoming a problem" the HOA is not obligated to deal with me at all. I am, and I have always been, current with my dues. He's from an ethnicity that considers women second-rate, and I'm a woman living alone. I have the feeling he wouldn't act like this if there was a man around. He has even told me that contractors "don't respect women because they see them as stupid". I know some of you will tell me to get a lawyer, but the money I have saved with a lot of sacrifice is earmarked for other things. I'm not rich, I don't have a ton of money laying around to spend on lawyers. Suing the association will probably cost me thousands. The email was so insulting I had to sit down and breathe and try to relax for a while. What to do? Ava, does your state have a department that can act as your advocate? NV has an ombudsman for common interest communities that is part of the real estate division of the State. They would probably get involved with a situation like yours. By the way, that the HOA has not budgeted for or does not have the cash to address the water problems you are experiencing is not justification for not making the appropriate repairs and properly maintaining common area elements of the HOA, or telling you that you need to foot the bill. If a common area element needs maintenance, or if failure to perform proper maintenance on common area elements has caused damage to your unit, it is up to the HOA to take care of it. If necessary, I would expect the HOA to borrow the money or impose a special assessment on all of the HOA members to get the money to correct the situation. One of the things you might do to combat the "we don't have the money" argument would be to get copies of the HOA finanical reports. (In most states, as an HOA member you are entitled to financial information that is not specific to a given HOA member just by asking and paying a reasonable copying fee. This information would include budgets, balance sheets, reports showing revenues and expenditures, and the like.) Most HOA's practice fund accounting and operate with two funds. And operating fund, to pay for the day to day stuff, and a reserve fund, which is money set aside to pay for the replacement of common area elements which would probably include things such as roofs, gutters, painting, replacement of landscaping, and the like. It is possible that the money in the operating fund pocket has been spent while the reserve fund pocket is bulging with money. Maybe the operating fund can borrow money from the reserve fund if the Board has spent all of the operating funds on a garden, rather than addressing longer term maintenance issues. And yes, given the situation, it is probably well worth the cost to hire an attorney to write a letter to the Board of your HOA and to consult with the attorney on how to deal with the HOA. It might cost you $1,000, but that money will probably be a lot less than the cost to repair long term structural and cosmetic damage to your unit. Overall, it sounds like your HOA Board may be failing to meet their duty to the HOA members. In this case, it is possible that individual Board members could become personally liable for failing to properly execute their duties (an attorney could tell you if that is true). The possibility of personal liability could encourage Board members to step up to the plate and take care of the HOA obligations rather than focusing on planting flowers.
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gacpa
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Post by gacpa on Aug 26, 2014 18:35:59 GMT -5
Very, very well said, TSkeeter.
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Ava
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Post by Ava on Aug 26, 2014 20:33:14 GMT -5
You said the gutter is over four units, I would at least talk to the other three owners of those units to see if they are having water problems as well.
Then I think you have to talk to a lawyer to see what the HOA is obligated to cover. It may be possible to hire someone to do the repair and then send the HOA the bill.
I wouldn't worry about making the guy angry. He's already angry. I would absolutely talk to the different owners to see what they think about the level of service they get from the HOA and if they think the $25K on the garden was a good investment. Maybe the guy isn't as popular and powerful as you think, he's just intimidating you to get you to think so. The gutter serves four units; there's one every four units, but the gutter is on top of my roof. I see some of the units that have a gutter on top with damage in their window pattern.
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Ava
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Post by Ava on Aug 26, 2014 20:34:10 GMT -5
Get the work done yourself, then file a small claims suit against the HOA. Not a bad idea.
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Ava
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Post by Ava on Aug 26, 2014 20:48:24 GMT -5
I calmed down and came over during my lunch hour. I went to the President's home and told him I needed to have a calm, polite conversation with him. He apologized for the email; told me he's very stressed and lost his temper.
We were able to have a normal conversation and he's hired another person to take care of the damage. Since his e-mail was really insulting, harassing and horrible, I guess he's afraid I'll do something against him. So he said I don't have to pay anything for the repairs. I am so not getting emotionally involved over this. Tomorrow the new person he hired comes over, thank my lucky stars Mom is still here because I don't have anyone else to be here for him and I cannot miss work.
One of the people he pays to work in the garden lives across the street from our condos. I parked in front of his house to ring the President's bell and this guy came over and started screaming and yelling at me to move my car out of his way. He's a buddy of the condo President and he was very high on drugs.
This was a working class neighborhood six years ago when I moved in. But it's going really downhill really fast. There's a lot of drug activity in our street and I don't like the characters that work around the condo all the time (hired by the President).
I don't feel safe here anymore. My plan was to finish the MBA in December, give my notice at work, rent the condo, spent the Summer (December to March is Summer in Argentina) with my family and then come back to the States but go to Texas or Florida. But I failed Statistics, had to take it again in July and now cannot finish until May. Thanks for all the good wishes and I hope by next May or June I can start a thread saying the condo is rented and that I got a job in Florida.
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gacpa
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Post by gacpa on Aug 26, 2014 23:54:26 GMT -5
The fact you are able to keep calm is a huge advantage for you in your personal and professional life at work. Good job on how you are handling this situation. I bet you would be a good negotiator, able to keep your cool when everyone else is throwing a fit. It has taken me years upon years to learn this skill.
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Ava
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Post by Ava on Aug 27, 2014 0:00:13 GMT -5
The fact you are able to keep calm is a huge advantage for you in your personal and professional life at work. Good job on how you are handling this situation. I bet you would be a good negotiator, able to keep your cool when everyone else is throwing a fit. It has taken me years upon years to learn this skill. Thanks, gacpa. It has taken me years, too!
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gacpa
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Post by gacpa on Aug 27, 2014 8:06:34 GMT -5
Stay safe!
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Wisconsin Beth
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No, we don't walk away. But when we're holding on to something precious, we run.
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Post by Wisconsin Beth on Aug 27, 2014 8:09:30 GMT -5
I've have ongoing problems with my condo association for years. During 2013 a couple of people got voted in the board, did nothing, we had no services such as snow removal, maintenance, etc. The monthly dues sunk in a black hole, never to be seen again. They finally got thrown out in December. Now we have a new board. We had a meeting where I voted to choose a firm to manage the affairs of the HOA. The majority of owners voted to self- manage. I've had water problems in my unit forever. These are not condos in a building, these are townhouses. On top of my roof there's a gutter that serves four units. That gutter gets clogged and water gets into my home. The president that got elected last December is personally working in the garden since March. He has a crew of assorted, random people who work with him. According to him, he has spent 25k in the garden so far. He told me there's no money to fix my problem, and I have to foot part of the bill. I agreed, just to have this ongoing issue solved once and for all. Since June until now he's sent three different people to have a look in my house. None of them has fixed anything. They look, prod, touch, come for a day or two, do a little bit of painting and then leave. One of them broke a lighting fixture and another one broke my garage door. None of them climbed to the roof to fix the problem. After each of these people disappear the HOA president comes to me saying the latest constructor was a crook and he already paid them but they just took the money and ran. I finally got so tired of this that I sent him an email yesterday telling him I cannot wait anymore, and asking who authorized him to spend (supposedly, I've never seen any financial records) so much money in the garden when there are ongoing water issues. He answered me today with a long email, very insulting, full of accusations (I didn't vote for him and he resents it) and honestly, hate. He ended his email saying that he'll eventually fix my issues because he wants to help me but that he has no obligation to do so. But he also stated my water issue is now extremely low in the priority list. He said since I'm "becoming a problem" the HOA is not obligated to deal with me at all. I am, and I have always been, current with my dues. He's from an ethnicity that considers women second-rate, and I'm a woman living alone. I have the feeling he wouldn't act like this if there was a man around. He has even told me that contractors "don't respect women because they see them as stupid". I know some of you will tell me to get a lawyer, but the money I have saved with a lot of sacrifice is earmarked for other things. I'm not rich, I don't have a ton of money laying around to spend on lawyers. Suing the association will probably cost me thousands. The email was so insulting I had to sit down and breathe and try to relax for a while. What to do? Ava, does your state have a department that can act as your advocate? NV has an ombudsman for common interest communities that is part of the real estate division of the State. They would probably get involved with a situation like yours. By the way, that the HOA has not budgeted for or does not have the cash to address the water problems you are experiencing is not justification for not making the appropriate repairs and properly maintaining common area elements of the HOA, or telling you that you need to foot the bill. If a common area element needs maintenance, or if failure to perform proper maintenance on common area elements has caused damage to your unit, it is up to the HOA to take care of it. If necessary, I would expect the HOA to borrow the money or impose a special assessment on all of the HOA members to get the money to correct the situation. One of the things you might do to combat the "we don't have the money" argument would be to get copies of the HOA finanical reports. (In most states, as an HOA member you are entitled to financial information that is not specific to a given HOA member just by asking and paying a reasonable copying fee. This information would include budgets, balance sheets, reports showing revenues and expenditures, and the like.) Most HOA's practice fund accounting and operate with two funds. And operating fund, to pay for the day to day stuff, and a reserve fund, which is money set aside to pay for the replacement of common area elements which would probably include things such as roofs, gutters, painting, replacement of landscaping, and the like. It is possible that the money in the operating fund pocket has been spent while the reserve fund pocket is bulging with money. Maybe the operating fund can borrow money from the reserve fund if the Board has spent all of the operating funds on a garden, rather than addressing longer term maintenance issues. And yes, given the situation, it is probably well worth the cost to hire an attorney to write a letter to the Board of your HOA and to consult with the attorney on how to deal with the HOA. It might cost you $1,000, but that money will probably be a lot less than the cost to repair long term structural and cosmetic damage to your unit. Overall, it sounds like your HOA Board may be failing to meet their duty to the HOA members. In this case, it is possible that individual Board members could become personally liable for failing to properly execute their duties (an attorney could tell you if that is true). The possibility of personal liability could encourage Board members to step up to the plate and take care of the HOA obligations rather than focusing on planting flowers. I'm guessing the reserve fund is where the garden money came from.
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tskeeter
Junior Associate
Joined: Mar 20, 2011 19:37:45 GMT -5
Posts: 6,831
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Post by tskeeter on Aug 27, 2014 13:32:04 GMT -5
I've have ongoing problems with my condo association for years. During 2013 a couple of people got voted in the board, did nothing, we had no services such as snow removal, maintenance, etc. The monthly dues sunk in a black hole, never to be seen again. They finally got thrown out in December. Now we have a new board. We had a meeting where I voted to choose a firm to manage the affairs of the HOA. The majority of owners voted to self- manage. I've had water problems in my unit forever. These are not condos in a building, these are townhouses. On top of my roof there's a gutter that serves four units. That gutter gets clogged and water gets into my home. The president that got elected last December is personally working in the garden since March. He has a crew of assorted, random people who work with him. According to him, he has spent 25k in the garden so far. He told me there's no money to fix my problem, and I have to foot part of the bill. I agreed, just to have this ongoing issue solved once and for all. Since June until now he's sent three different people to have a look in my house. None of them has fixed anything. They look, prod, touch, come for a day or two, do a little bit of painting and then leave. One of them broke a lighting fixture and another one broke my garage door. None of them climbed to the roof to fix the problem. After each of these people disappear the HOA president comes to me saying the latest constructor was a crook and he already paid them but they just took the money and ran. I finally got so tired of this that I sent him an email yesterday telling him I cannot wait anymore, and asking who authorized him to spend (supposedly, I've never seen any financial records) so much money in the garden when there are ongoing water issues. He answered me today with a long email, very insulting, full of accusations (I didn't vote for him and he resents it) and honestly, hate. He ended his email saying that he'll eventually fix my issues because he wants to help me but that he has no obligation to do so. But he also stated my water issue is now extremely low in the priority list. He said since I'm "becoming a problem" the HOA is not obligated to deal with me at all. I am, and I have always been, current with my dues. He's from an ethnicity that considers women second-rate, and I'm a woman living alone. I have the feeling he wouldn't act like this if there was a man around. He has even told me that contractors "don't respect women because they see them as stupid". I know some of you will tell me to get a lawyer, but the money I have saved with a lot of sacrifice is earmarked for other things. I'm not rich, I don't have a ton of money laying around to spend on lawyers. Suing the association will probably cost me thousands. The email was so insulting I had to sit down and breathe and try to relax for a while. What to do? As we deal with issues with our HOA's, there is a critical element that all of us need to keep in mind. In most cases, the people who make your HOA run, the Board of Directors, CC&R Compliance Committee, and others (about 25 people in our HOA), do not get paid for the time and effort they devote to HOA activities. They are volunteers. And, in all probability, in addition to their time, they spend some of their own money for things that benefit the members of the HOA (I estimate that my membership on our HOA Board, landscape maintenance committee, and social committee costs me about $1,000 a year.) And, on top of it, these people are your neighbors. Yes, they are going to make mistakes and sometimes do things you don't agree with. And get stressed out and react poorly because they are trying to deal with situations they are not comfortable with. I think each of us has a couple of choices. Be a little accepting of the situation and cut your HOA leaders some slack, if that is appropriate. Or, get involved in your HOA, learn how it works and how things get done, and improve how your HOA operates. By the way, it might be nice if you took the time to thank your HOA Board members for what they do to make your HOA a decent place to live. It takes a lot of effort for these people to make sure your parking area or streets are plowed in the winter time, that grass is mowed, buildings are painted, that your neighbor doesn't store his three trucks in his back yard, and the like. These folks almost never hear anything from the members of their HOA except complaints and criticism of their efforts. Be different. Let them know you appreciate the three days of their time they spent looking for, evaluating, and hiring a contractor to mow the grass.
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raeoflyte
Senior Associate
Joined: Feb 3, 2011 15:43:53 GMT -5
Posts: 15,014
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Post by raeoflyte on Aug 27, 2014 19:39:06 GMT -5
I've have ongoing problems with my condo association for years. During 2013 a couple of people got voted in the board, did nothing, we had no services such as snow removal, maintenance, etc. The monthly dues sunk in a black hole, never to be seen again. They finally got thrown out in December. Now we have a new board. We had a meeting where I voted to choose a firm to manage the affairs of the HOA. The majority of owners voted to self- manage. I've had water problems in my unit forever. These are not condos in a building, these are townhouses. On top of my roof there's a gutter that serves four units. That gutter gets clogged and water gets into my home. The president that got elected last December is personally working in the garden since March. He has a crew of assorted, random people who work with him. According to him, he has spent 25k in the garden so far. He told me there's no money to fix my problem, and I have to foot part of the bill. I agreed, just to have this ongoing issue solved once and for all. Since June until now he's sent three different people to have a look in my house. None of them has fixed anything. They look, prod, touch, come for a day or two, do a little bit of painting and then leave. One of them broke a lighting fixture and another one broke my garage door. None of them climbed to the roof to fix the problem. After each of these people disappear the HOA president comes to me saying the latest constructor was a crook and he already paid them but they just took the money and ran. I finally got so tired of this that I sent him an email yesterday telling him I cannot wait anymore, and asking who authorized him to spend (supposedly, I've never seen any financial records) so much money in the garden when there are ongoing water issues. He answered me today with a long email, very insulting, full of accusations (I didn't vote for him and he resents it) and honestly, hate. He ended his email saying that he'll eventually fix my issues because he wants to help me but that he has no obligation to do so. But he also stated my water issue is now extremely low in the priority list. He said since I'm "becoming a problem" the HOA is not obligated to deal with me at all. I am, and I have always been, current with my dues. He's from an ethnicity that considers women second-rate, and I'm a woman living alone. I have the feeling he wouldn't act like this if there was a man around. He has even told me that contractors "don't respect women because they see them as stupid". I know some of you will tell me to get a lawyer, but the money I have saved with a lot of sacrifice is earmarked for other things. I'm not rich, I don't have a ton of money laying around to spend on lawyers. Suing the association will probably cost me thousands. The email was so insulting I had to sit down and breathe and try to relax for a while. What to do? As we deal with issues with our HOA's, there is a critical element that all of us need to keep in mind. In most cases, the people who make your HOA run, the Board of Directors, CC&R Compliance Committee, and others (about 25 people in our HOA), do not get paid for the time and effort they devote to HOA activities. They are volunteers. And, in all probability, in addition to their time, they spend some of their own money for things that benefit the members of the HOA (I estimate that my membership on our HOA Board, landscape maintenance committee, and social committee costs me about $1,000 a year.) And, on top of it, these people are your neighbors. Yes, they are going to make mistakes and sometimes do things you don't agree with. And get stressed out and react poorly because they are trying to deal with situations they are not comfortable with. I think each of us has a couple of choices. Be a little accepting of the situation and cut your HOA leaders some slack, if that is appropriate. Or, get involved in your HOA, learn how it works and how things get done, and improve how your HOA operates. By the way, it might be nice if you took the time to thank your HOA Board members for what they do to make your HOA a decent place to live. It takes a lot of effort for these people to make sure your parking area or streets are plowed in the winter time, that grass is mowed, buildings are painted, that your neighbor doesn't store his three trucks in his back yard, and the like. These folks almost never hear anything from the members of their HOA except complaints and criticism of their efforts. Be different. Let them know you appreciate the three days of their time they spent looking for, evaluating, and hiring a contractor to mow the grass. Volunteering doesn't give people a pass to be a jerk which this hoa president was being. Sent from my ADR6410LVW using proboards
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Ava
Senior Member
Joined: Jan 30, 2011 12:23:55 GMT -5
Posts: 4,256
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Post by Ava on Aug 27, 2014 22:01:25 GMT -5
There has always been money drains in this HOA. They don't keep proper records, and they take money out of it. For instance, the current president works in the yard and has his buddies working with him. The HOA does not pay a gardening company, instead all these people, including the president, draw daily wages.
There's money involved; the monthly dues we pay. This is a very humble place; most people around here are struggling financially. When they fight to become president or board members, they are actually fighting to get access to the bank account, plain and simple. I am not going to get involved in this HOA; there's always been fraud through the years and there's no chance in hell I'm going to get associated with that. The meetings are horrible; they are fighting to get the money and they are really nasty.
By the way, I've told the president many times that the garden looks beautiful. Last week I told him the garden looks great but we have water issues that are a priority.
The new contractor came by today, assessed the issues. He seemed to be trustworthy. He said he'll be working in my unit Tuesday and Wednesday next week and fix everything. He also said the president has made him the permanent contractor for the HOA. I'm hoping I'll have my home fixed next week!
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gacpa
Familiar Member
Joined: Nov 19, 2013 16:08:06 GMT -5
Posts: 738
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Post by gacpa on Aug 27, 2014 22:11:09 GMT -5
That sounds great, Ava. Please let us know how next week goes.
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