Covenant Change on Roofing Responsibility

You could take care of the multicolor stuff by establishing design standards (the roof must be this color, you must use X materials, etc.) Design standards don't have to be set in stone - every few years, you'll want to review them, as tastes and materials change and the standards can reflect that while keeping the original look and design of the community.Well, the HOA can establish design standards regarding the color, style, etc. of the roofing and siding - homeowners would have to comply with those standards or risk paying more to correct it.

If the homeowners are going to be responsible for replacement, I don't think they'll go along with "you MUST replace this stuff, say, 10 years from now" When those 10 years are up, you'd get fussing and feuding over "it doesn't look that bad", "I can't afford it" and so on, as well as the disputes between duplex owners (we need to replace the roof - no we don't!. When the roofing does get replaced, you might have issues with with people hiring half baked contractors or just using cheap materials.

If you don't want the mosiac look and people not replacing the roofs at what you think is the appropriate time, it will probably be best for the HOA to maintain control. I realize people may balk at paying more money, but you should have had a reserve study done to see how much you need to be saving and plan your budget accordingly. So it's pay a little now or brace yourself for really high expenses later - which some people may not afford if they're on a fixed income. May as well tell people the assessments WILL go up - such is the nature of home ownership. If they didn't want to pay more, they should have moved into an apartment or rented a house (where the landlord would hike up the price anyway to account for inflation, changes in the building code, etc.)

Tim hit the nail ... the major issue I would see is if you need to have Mortgage holders approval. The Mortgage holders will prefer for the HOA to continue to have responsibility and hold owner's feet to the fire.

We spoke with our attorney a few months ago about similar concerns. He said his firm prepares amendments for associations to shift responsibility for various things onto the owners or from the owners onto the association, "all the time". I would echo what others have said, you might need the approval of the mortagees and maybe even 100% of the owners to approve such a change. Your lawyer should know.

My HOA is likewise responsible for re-painting the shells every so often (8 years now, used to be 6) and re-roofing all 100 homes according to our reserves schedule. We also arrange for property and casualty insurance on the homes with the idea that the HOA will commence repairs or rebuilding ASAP after a casualty loss. We charge back the premium to the owners on a pro-rata basis that goes by square footage.

A few of us have considered what it would take to get the HOA out of the insurance business and the roof business. This is complicated due to our 30 duplexes (60 units) and 40 free-standing single family homes. What if you're in a duplex and it needs a new roof but your cheapskate neighbor thinks it doesn't? What it you've got your side insured up the wazoo and your attached neighbor on a fixed income has decided to skimp on her insurance coverage?

A sticky situation to unwind.

At least it sounds like you're prepared through 2030. We're on a much shorter timeframe here since the board is "surprised" that the 20 years the roofs were estimated to last back in 2007 is now looking more like 15 years. We're looking at coming up short. A very feisty couple of months lay ahead of us as we try to get through a 15% increase in assessments for next year. The kicker is, even that's not going to be enough to avoid special assessments.

Sorry John, I can't help then.

I've never been involved in pushing something the Association is responsible for back onto individual members.