schedule of fines for CCR violations

Board member of a fairly new board 11 yrs after Developer finally turned over our neighborhood of 450 homes in Texas.
Our Neighborhood has had not repercussions concerning violations to our CCR's so needs a lot of clean up. Our CCR's allow us to create a list of fines per violations.
Below is what we are discussing. Any suggestions or comments would be appreciated. Our Lawyer will finalize and make official.

The payment of a fine does not grant a variance for the violation, not does it enable an owner to allow the violation to remain unabated. All violations must be corrected in a manner satisfactory to the Association. If there is a subsequent violation of the same rule, the fine amount may double with each subsequent violation.

Category 1: $25
• Holiday decorations displayed 30 days after a particular holiday.
• Yard waste, Trash and/or Trash cans left in the public view other than designated pick-up days per CCR’s.
• Yard Maintenance (flowerbeds, edging, trees, lawn, shrubs, etc.) Must be free of weeds and dead vegetation.
• Mildew on Property (siding, brick, windows, driveway, entry way)
• Blocking the sidewalk
• Other minor violations determined by the Board of Directors.

Category 2: $50
• Modification, addition or alteration made to property without prior written approval from Architectural Review Committee of the Association, when approval is required.
• Home repairs needed (rotting wood, sagging gutters, damaged garage doors, peeling/cracking front doors, missing or damaged fence slats, other repairs as determined by the Board of Directors.)
• Exterior painting needed
• Improper storage (boats, vehicles, trailers, etc.) (Must be stored out of public view)
• Oversized or commercial vehicles parked on the street
• Other major violations determined by the Board of Directors.

Category 3: $250
• Damaging common property. (Landscaping, irrigation, buildings, playground, tennis court, signage, etc.)
• Other severe violations endangering or damaging Parkway Lakes Village property as determined by the Board of Directors.

Stephan

Fine amounts look good. There are two other things to consider.

1. A procedure of notification. Like Warning Letter. Outlines offense and gives a period of time before fining commences. Notice Of Fine letter after warning not heeded.

2. Repeat of fine or escalation of unpaid fine. As an example. Fined once for leaving trash barrel out. If a second trash barrel offense will the fine be the same or doubled? Sometimes a fine is worth paying so if the offense is repeated, it has to hurt.

John & ND's additions look good. Some states have very strict guidelines about the process by which fines can be levied and carried out so make sure you know what they are in TX and write the procedure.

We and many HOAs have a "courtesy letter" sent to the alleged violator first before they are "invited" to a hearing to discuss the violation with the board. The letter either instructs them to correct ("cure") the violation immediately, or gives them time to cure it depending on its nature. We have found that the letter is enough to cure 80% of the violations. We also find that fining and then doubling, which we've only had to do maybe 3 times in 10 years, is very effective. We've never had to take further steps.

We do have a couple of violations with an immediate call to hearing: Dog deposits anywhere in our common areas; liquid coming off of balconies onto unit below, and they are $100 fines. We also have $100 fine for noise nuisances if a courtesy letter hasn't been effective.

"Oversized or commercial vehicles parked on the street." This has been a constant topic on this forum so you might want to define the meaning of "oversized."

Our HOA has a rule that winter holiday decor on our (high rise) balconies only can occur from Thanksgiving to Jan. 10. I'd be pretty sick of 'em if I were looking at them today.

I think you can make your #3 more specific and say that the Owner must pay for the expense to repair or replace the issue. We just had one for $1,100.

Your Cat #2: "Modification, addition or alteration made to property without prior written approval from Architectural Review Committee of the Association, when approval is required. " We fine $250 for this one and also say the Owner must pay to return the units to its original condition. But being in a high rise means this is really important. Still, $50 doesn't seem like enough of a deterrent.

Geno makes a good point, Stephen. We have the option to erase/expunge the violation after 6 months and also when ownership changes.

Remember renters are not owners or members of the HOA. So if they are in violation it is the owner who pays. I suggest instead that make sure that owners have that in their lease agreements with their tenants. The owner can pass the fine onto them or evict for violations to the rules. Those are typically NOT in an off the shelf drafted lease agreement. It usually has to be added by the owner to the lease.

Believe me, that caveat to the lease will protect ALL parties involved. The owners can evict, the HOA can punish, and the renter is held to the same standards.