Protective covenants changes

Started by HankV • 8 replies • 1494 views

💬 Join us to post & get advice from 50,000 HOA & Condo leaders.

⚡ Takes 30 seconds

Already a member? Log in

HankV (Florida)
Posts: 29

Posted:

We are a Michigan HOA. We received in the mail a package which contains the changes that the board wants to make with regards to the covenants.
My concern is that the board did not seek or ask for any input from the membership.
i am unable to find the name of the committee chair or any dates or times much less any minuets of any meetings that took place to go over the changes.
Does this violate open meeting act? If so what recourse?
The annual meeting is less then 6 weeks at which time the vote is taken to implement said changes.
My concern is that the membership was taken out of the process and will not have any opportunity to discuss or question the reason for some the changes
that they want to put in-place
The board likes to run meetings w/o any questions.
Open for feed back

RogerB (Colorado)
Posts: 5,067

Posted:

HankV, read your Covenants to determine how they may be amended. It probably requires approval of a certain percentage of every homeowner.

MelissaP1 (Alabama)
Posts: 13,836

Posted:

What are these changes and do you disagree with them? Seriously, forget the process of how they got there. Do you want to vote for them or not? That is the decision you should be concentrating on. Vote no if you don't want the changes. Simple as that.

Former HOA President

KevinK7 (Florida)
Posts: 1,343

Posted:

While the membership may not have been asked about the proposed changes, it is the membership that would be the ones to approve the final changes. I don't think this would violate an open meetings rule (did you attend any of the meetings?)

How different are these covenants from the ones that are already in existence?

GlenL (Ohio)
Posts: 5,491

Posted:

Hank since you say the HOA is in Michigan, you need to remember that not every state has the sometimes onerous HOA statutes that Florida & California "enjoy." So I doubt that any open meeting laws were violated and if your HOA is apathetic as most (present company excluded) then I doubt the Board even explored the possibility of forming a committee. As Melissa stated, read the changes and decide them on their merits not how they came into being.

Studies show that 5 out of 4 people have problems with fractions

JeanneK3 (Maryland)
Posts: 562

Posted:

Hank V:

I'd be very suspicious of revised bylaws that were done in complete secrecy. As others have said, you and your neighbors have the power to reject these bylaws. Your governing documents tell you how. Here's a link that can tell you what to watch out for in the draft bylaws. http://www.marylandhomeownersassociation.info/Site/Predatory_Bylaw_Alert.html

If there is anything you and your neighbors do not understand in the draft, ask your board/attorney to explain it to you. It this doesn't happen to your satisfaction, vote no and advise all your neighbors to vote no.

However, these changes could be to the advantage of the community so be open to this as well.

Jeanne

MelissaP1 (Alabama)
Posts: 13,836

Posted:

When we change our CC&R's the changes were quite benign but necessary. You may not understand that. It has to be in writing and defined even if it seems like common sense. By-laws are changed usually amongst the board or members and don't need filed anywhere. So I am assuming these changes are your CC&R's instead. Those are binding and connected to your deed.

We used to have 1 shared water meter for all 107 homes. If you did not pay, you got your water shut off. However, a few years later we changed over to separate water meters for each home. Which cost us over 20K and had to turn over our streets to be PUBLIC. This ALL had to be reflected in our CC&R's. People would assume there was one meter and the streets were private if we didn't. Plus we had to get rid of all the references to the builder/developer who was no longer part of our HOA for years. Those were no longer the conditions of the HOA.

It took us almost 3 years and the issue was discussed openly at EVERY meeting and opportunity. They were even posted at the bulletin board. We were able to modify the rules so we could go door to door to gather votes or collect them when we could. There was not an avenue we did not overturn to get people to cast their votes on the subject or talk about it. So that is why I don't get the hesitation on casting your vote as no matter how open or agreeable to discuss the issue with you, it's still something you feel is wrong enough to not vote?

Please if you don't like something go to a meeting and ask the questions. Your holding up everything when it could very well just be a procedural issue that has to be reflected in the paperwork. Public streets is an important thing for us to have stated in our CC&R's even though everyone knew they were.

Former HOA President

CarolR11 (Colorado)
Posts: 2,563

Posted:

Does Michigan have open meeting laws for HOAs? If so, what do they say?

Next are two separate topics. First, IF MI has open meeting legislation, homeowners should have been notified of the meetings when the Board discussed and decided on the amendments. Some Owners might have attended.

But, second, during such meetings, the Board per whatever MI law says, probably must permit owners to speak only during an Open Forum period. Unless invited by the Board at the meeting, Owners would not have been permitted to ask questions, insert their opinions, etc. about every sentence/article, etc. that is proposed for amendment.

As others have advised, read the proposed revisions carefully, talk about them with your neighbors and vote accordingly. What % of Owners must approve them?

You also might try contacting the board president in writing to request that the Board hold a Town Hall type of Meeting that owners can attend and ask questions. If the HOA attorney can be there, all the better. I actually think that the Board will get a better voter turnout if this is discussed openly unless a lot of your owners are absentee.

If your Board refuses to hold such a meeting, they run the risk of having spent perhaps a few thousand of everyone's dollars for nothing.

If you are an open-meeting state, there's really nothing you can do about the Board discussing and deciding on changes in secrecy. For you to vote against the changes solely for that reason does not make economic sense. Instead, vote them out at your next election or recall them. When directors are too afraid to meet in homeowners' presence there may be much to worry about.

JohnC46 (South Carolina)
Posts: 14,265

Posted:

Hank

Were the changes really done in secret as in hidden from you or maybe you were just unaware of what was going on?

The ultimate controllers of the changes are the owners voting for them.

Like some others, I say concentrate on what the changes are versus how they were made.

🎯 You've read this entire discussion

Join the conversation with 50,000 HOA & Condo Leaders:

✓ Ask follow-up questions
✓ Share your experience
✓ Get expert advice
✓ Access 350,000 discussions

Create Free Account →

⚡ Takes 30 seconds

Already a member? Log in here