HOA says need to be tented for termites

First of all, please stop typing in all caps – it’s a form of shouting and hard on the eyes.

Next, check your documents to see how much leeway your board has on the budget and hiring vendors – you’ll likely find it doesn’t need homeowner approval to enter into contracts with any vendor (or terminate them).

What did the board say when you asked about the reserve “not really being a reserve?” I suspect they’re thinking pest control is more of a maintenance issue that should be covered under your operating budget, whereas replacing a roof is a reserve item. Reserves are used for major repair or replacements of community components – in this case that would be your roofing, sidewalks – things that you aren’t replacing year after year.

It could be the portion of the reserves originally designated for termite control will be used for something else in the reserve budget. You may want to take a close look at your budget and perhaps your documents (again) to see if there are any definitions on what is a reserve item, what reserves are to be used for, etc. If you’ve had a reserve study (and you should), the reserve study specialist may have noted pest control isn’t a true reserve item.

It would be a good idea for the board to get a second opinion (perhaps a third) from different vendors as to what to do about the unit with the current termite problem. The problem with those little buggers is that they could spread and that could be why the roofer recommended tenting (if the termites are all over the place, they’ll chow down on a new roof and you’re back to more expenses in getting rid of them and even more pest control). Perhaps the board wants to avoid any future problems with the other buildings so it wants to tent the buildings.

As you suspect, tenting isn’t cheap and somewhat inconvenient, but you don’t want to deplete reserves for one thing. What happens if you have problems with another building around the same time another reserve replacement becomes necessary, such as siding replacement? Do you want to be faced with a special assessment to pay for all of it – in addition to paying regular assessments that should be funding the reserves anyway?

Discuss this with your board and see what it says – the answer could be as simple as getting a second opinion and then presenting the findings to the community so they’ll know what their options are.