Special Assessment- FL.

Started by LindaW • 7 replies • 2611 views

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LindaW (Florida)
Posts: 17

Posted:

Our HOA has had no budget for reserves since it's beginning- 2001. Now we are starting to feel it. Our new board wants to put out a special assessment of $500. to supplement our savings to paint our 51 townhomes. Without it our homes will start to show wear and may possibly leak this hurrican season. I have scoured the Statues (520) and our covenents. It says we can levy the assessment. Do we need approval of our community by 2/3 to do what we are mandated to do in the statues? Any help would be aprreciated.

PatrickH (California)
Posts: 204

Posted:

Hi Linda,

Usually, a special assessment requires a vote of approval by the members, sometimes 51%, sometimes 66%, sometimes 75% approval. The information about how a special assessment is approved and adopted should be in your governing documents.

If you don't have any specific voting and approval guidelines, the Board should go to the owners and explain what the special assessment is for and ask for a vote of approval to see what the response is. That way, the owners know what is going on and hopefully feel that the special assessment is needed and justified.

LindaW (Florida)
Posts: 17

Posted:

Are rules different or a condominum? Our treasurer keeps saying that we can do it without the approval of the community- they do it at her condominium ? Thanks for your response.

LindaC3 (Florida)
Posts: 526

Posted:

LindaW--- Florida State Statute 720 is for homeowners associations ONLY
Chapter 718 is for Condos ONLY.......... You may find the answer you are seeking in those documents...Linda C

JoeW1 (New York)
Posts: 728

Posted:

LindaW - reserve funds are not used for painting or routine maintenance. reserve funds are used to replace the elements at the end or near the end of their useful life cycle. your board should have a working capital, and deferred maintenance account as well as a reserve account.

PatrickH (California)
Posts: 204

Posted:

Linda,

Yes, the rules can be different for every HOA. That's why you need to read through your governing documents to see which rules apply to your HOA. While the governing documents are generally similar from HOA to HOA, each one will have their own unique regulations. Your HOA may have five Board members, the HOA across the street may have only three, those details are in each HOAs documents.

Read through your documents yourself, don't just take your Treasurer's word for it because they do it in another association. The rules for the other association don't apply to you.

LindaW (Florida)
Posts: 17

Posted:

Thanks everyone for your help. Our CC&R say 2/3 vote for capital improvements. I guess that answers my questions. Thanks for the input and support. By the time I learn all this it will time for someone else to take over!

GlenL (Ohio)
Posts: 5,491

Posted:

Posted By LindaW on 02/21/2007 2:57 PM

Thanks everyone for your help. Our CC&R say 2/3 vote for capital improvements. I guess that answers my questions. Thanks for the input and support. By the time I learn all this it will time for someone else to take over!

Linda, just for clarification do your CC&R's require 2/3 vote to implement a special assessment for capital improvements or to have capital improvements. In our community the BOD can spend up to $2,000 dollars on a capital improvement without a homeowner vote; a capital improvement being defined as a new amenity. We do not have a play area, if the BOD wanted to build one and it cost over the $2,000 they would have to put it to a vote.

Your CC&R's should spell out how to implement a special assessment and you should check out the Fl. statutes LindaC posted to make sure there isn't a change. Joe is right the things you describe wanting to do should come out of your operating budget and it appears that you're severely under funded. Check out the posts titled: Deficit Spending & annual Budget

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