Please Help with FL HOA

My husband and I are moving our family from New York to Florida this July. It was pretty clear from the onset of our search for a rental that we'd likely be dealing with an HOA as almost every place we found had one. We have chosen and been approved by the OWNER to lease a townhouse in a community. The landlord has given us the lease and the HOA application and we are to send it back ASAP to start the process. Here are my questions that I hope you can answer.
-neither of us has any kind of criminal record, have never been evicted or run out on a lease, etc but we both have fairly bad credit, mostly because we have no credit (after getting into trouble with credit cards years ago we haven't used any in many years and our credit reports are basically blank except for student loans). There is no place on the application to include a guarantor, but my father is willing to provide his information if necessary. Should we include a cover letter with his contact information and state the fact up front that we are aware of our less than stellar credit? I am sure the background check will be thorough with the $100 per person application fee.
- we have been living in a house on the campus of a military school for the past 6 years and don't have current rental history because of that. Should we explain this in a cover letter as well?
-should I provide a cover letter introducing ourselves and talk about how much we are looking forward to living in this community? Would that help at all?

TIA for your advice!

First, before you get all worried about the HOA and your credit, make sure that that information is even the business of the HOA. In many cases, your obligation ends at your landlord.

Who is the application to, and what is it for? If it is a rental application, for the purpose of renting a home, that individual can ask for your SS number as part of his credit check.

Is the HOA really involved in any of this? I am thoroughly confused.

I would not put my SS# on the HOa form. If asked, I would ask what law requires it to be collected? If it is a HOA rule then still do NOT do it. The owner may have a right to have the SS# for their credit check. The HOA does not as it is NOT their contract.

Even as a HOa member, they have no reason to have my SS#. They may try to claim some kind of credit reporting crap but NO the HOA does NOT need a SS# of its own members.

My HOA doesn't screen renters (or buyers) so I'm only guessing, but my take would be be that the HOA would be more concerned about criminal records than credit. Since the HOA doesn't charge the renter directly for anything, I wouldn't think they'd need any credit info. Unless the HOA has a documented privacy policy, I wouldn't give them my SSN. Even if they did, I'd be wary.

Although most available rentals are in HOAs, that doesn't mean that all require an invasive screening for renters.

I can't imagine a valid reason why the HOA would need your bank information. I'd run away from this one fast. At the very least, ask for their privacy policy which should document what they are using the information for and how they protect it.

Some quotes from the following article:
http://www.floridahoalawyerblog.com/2012/10/community-associations-rights.html

"If the community's declaration of covenants or declaration of condominium does not contain a provision authorizing the association to reject potential purchasers or tenants, the board should refrain from disapproving any tenant or purchaser except in the event of exigent circumstances (the applicability of which should first be analyzed and determined by association counsel)."

"However, an association's board is not necessarily free to approve or disapprove prospective purchasers and tenants merely because the authority to do so appears in the association's governing documents. As I indicated, the requirement to obtain an association's approval prior to selling or leasing a home or unit is deemed to be a restraint on the alienation of such real property, and as such, that restraint may only be imposed to the extent that it is reasonable."

"Other grounds that might be argued to be reasonable in connection with the disapproval of an applicant seeking to reside in a community may include the following: (1) the applicant has been convicted by a court of a felony involving violence to persons or property, or a felony demonstrating dishonesty or moral turpitude, and has not had their civil rights restored; (2) the application for approval, on its face, or the conduct of the applicant, indicates an intent to act in a manner inconsistent with the association's governing documents; (3) the applicant has a history of disruptive behavior or disregard for the rights and property of others as evidenced by his conduct in other residences, social organizations or associations; and (4) the applicant has failed to provide the information required to process the application in a timely manner, or has materially misrepresented any fact or information provided in the application or screening process."

Nothing about credit-worthiness. IMHO, SS# is off limits - leave it blank.

CarrieF,

You wrote that you have “been approved by the OWNER” and that “The landlord has given us the lease”, and also a HOA application to fill out.

So is it correct to assume that the questions you are asking, pertain only to filling out the “HOA Application”?

I agree, do not supply your Social Security Number. Just put a line thru that space indicating that you choose not to give out that information. And do the same for any other information that you do not want to supply.

You also asked about supplying additional information in a Cover Letter.

If it were me, I think I would just fill out, and supply the requested information as briefly as I could. And not give information not asked for, in a Cover Letter. Save that for later, if needed.

Then wait to hear back from the Association.

When you hear back, depending, if you feel the need to supply additional information, then IMO, that would be the appropriate time to do so.

My opinion is that the HOA, even if it is legal to do so, is over-reaching by demanding your financial information. I would look for another place to rent. There is an overabundance of rentals down here and in less restrictive HOAs.

Years ago, a board I was not on created a rental amendment to our docs. All potential renters must go through a background check. The HOA does it through our property management company. We do not care about a credit check but its provided for the homeowner. This would indicate whether the tenant can pay rent, have their been evictions etc.

You wont be a member of the HOA but you will be required to follow all the rules as though you are a homeowner, and your rental application should have included those rules. It does not make sense to rent in a development if you dont know you their rules beforehand. The poster who said there are many rentals in Florida is correct; if something about this does not seem right, move on and find something else. If you have paid for the background check, ask for a copy and see if the next HOA will accept it.

I would not write anything, don't tell them anything. If they want to know something they can ask. Some HOA's use the application process as a revenue source so do not assume because its $100 that it will include every detail of your life. They may be using $25 for the background check and the rest is profit.

If I were to rent I would prefer a tough set of rules to assure me that my fellow tenants are not criminals, can pay there bills on time, etc. versus left any riff raff in that can put money down.

Melissa,

Your postings appear to be talking about renting in a Homeowners Association – different from renting in a Condominium Association.

Not sure, but the original poster CarrieF wrote that “We have chosen and been approved by the Owner to lease a townhouse”

My assumption is, the townhouse is in a Condominium Association.

Based on a quick internet search, it seems that in Florida in particular, it is “relatively” common for Condominium Associations, and perhaps even for some Homeowners Associations, to require a separate application and fees for Rentals, and to screen new tenants by performing background checks, based on a Condominium Declaration that contains “specific words” which extend the “right of first refusal” to rentals.

Puppies and rainbows... Raindrops on my nose and eyelashes... So sorry I did not publish those things in my posts... I kind of have this thing for REALITY! Which is not pretty and full of sunshine and pretty shiny things. It is what it is. The OP regardless if renting a condo, townhouse, apartment, or shed in the backyard of Jesus's house is still NOT needing to provide a Social Security number for a background check. Think that is crossing a line. Don't do it and if it's required... don't do it. Walk away. If they already have concerns about being turned down, then there is a reason for that fear. Follow it and trust it. Sometimes it is best to walk away from something that brings you fear and anxiety thinking about it. I did not hear from the OP any excitement but more concern. That is a red flag and something NOT to be ignored...

The association may contract for a background check as part of the rental application process that also contains the financials for the homeowner. AnnH5 is correct about the possibility of renting from someone in foreclosure, however, I would say that its not common for people to still pay their dues while they are in foreclosure. Most HOA's will not allow a homeowner in arrears to rent. But anything is possible, and you can check on the county clerk's websites. In Florida, everything is public record. Of course there is the possibility that the HOA foreclosed on their lien and owns the house (until the bank finishes the mortgage foreclosure) in which case the HOA should tell you this and they might be interested in your financials as the landlords. But this is not a common occurrence. Condo associations and HOAs can both create rules regarding rental and purchase applications and in some, they are very strict. I have a friend that lives in an HOA across town, she got married and the HOA will not let her new husband move into her house that she owns because he had a DUI 15 years ago. They made him go through the homeowner background check and denied him.

Allison,
During the market crash, some owners figured out that if they continued to pay their HOA fees but didn't pay their mortgage, they could retain ownership of the property for years. Those owners were crafty enough to realize that the HOA can foreclose on a property much faster than a bank. In Florida, we have bank foreclosures that go on for years. In my own neighborhood, there are owners who are approaching that Golden Year 5 for their bank foreclosure case.

So what I have witnessed are owners who pay their HOA fees but rent out the property and collect the rent but they don't pay their mortgage. The renters eventually get served with a court notice regarding the foreclosure.

Florida is the only state that I know of that the renter can pay the back dues of the owner to keep it out of foreclosure. Most HOA's it's ONLY the members who are responsible for paying dues NEVER the renter. However, in Florida a renter can prevent the foreclosure by the HOA if the owner is behind in dues. Which is up for debate if this is a good idea or not.

I had to foreclose on an owner who was having the renter pay off their 2nd mortgage in a "rent to own" scam. The owner tried to make the renter pay their back dues to avoid the foreclosure. Which is illegal. The renter had to move out and then sued the owner for the money they had paid extra to buy the home. The renter won. We also won because we took the house in the foreclosure. The renter was never responsible for paying the HOA dues and thus had to move out.

Talk about timing! Hopefully you can open this link. There is a nice example of a owner who admits to renting out the home for the past 5 years but not making a mortgage payment.

http://www.tampabay.com/news/business/realestate/bankruptcy-judges-get-tough-on-debtors-who-dont-surrender-property/2231593

After they renegotiated their mortgage, did they start paying their assessments? If not, why haven't you already filed a lien and started to foreclose yourself? The bank obviously wasn't going to foreclose after they agreed to renegotiate the mortgage. Has it really been 10 years that they have not paid their assessments? And you haven't done everything you could to rectify that situation? I'd be more angry at my board for failing to carry out its fiduciary duty more than I'd be angry at the leeches in the house gaming the system. There have surely been options available to you over the last 10 years. I think you should direct your anger in a more appropriate direction.

http://www.hoatalk.com/Home/tabid/36/Default.aspx Hello

Late last year,around December me and my wife decide to move our family from New York to south Florida by February,2018 to secure a Condominiums apartment.It was pretty clear from the onset of our search for a rental that we'd likely be dealing with an HOA as almost every place we found had one.we finally found a very comfortable and conducive place for us and our little kids.They approved us and presented us with the HOA applications which should be sent back ASAP to begin the process,but then we have credit cards fraud some months ago,also our credit scores are 503 and 555,credit reports reads few collections.we stopped using CC for several months now because of the debts.we had an encounter with a our loan officer who introduced us to his secret hacker,if only we can pay for his services,we needed this ASAP because we love the condo.we both agreed to hire him because our LO gave us his word of sincerity,the hacker with the email(Freedom_hacking(@)HoTmail.COm)cleared our CC debts and collections in the first 3 days and Raised our scores to 805 which was also worked on for another 3 days.He is extremely knowledgeable about credit problems and hacking in general.we are so grateful to you for putting smile on our faces,he can render help if you contact him without doubting his ability.

Under the Help button on top, "Contact HOATalk support". I've already done this one.