Quote:
Posted By SheliaH on 01/06/2020 10:47 AM
You said your CCRs require the board to announce the upcoming yearâs fee before Jan. 1, so if they did that on Dec. 29, it would appear they are in compliance (thatâs three days before Jan. 1). That said, I agree the homeowners should have received more advanced notice. Our documents require homeowners be notified of the upcoming yearâs budget and assessment on or before Dec. 1, and the board can raise it up to 5% over the current year (anything higher requires a homeowner vote).
Although your state now has a law requiring that fee increases have to be voted upon by the board in front of the members, but you may want to check the effective date and who it applies to. Sometimes these changes apply to ALL HOAs, while others are applicable to HOAs established on or after a specific date, so you need to check that as well to see if it even applies to your community.
Is it possible your board DID vote on the assessment a month or two ago, sent out an announcement, but you missed it (maybe it got lost in the mail?) Have you asked the board why they waited until near the end of 2019 to say anything? If so, what was the response? If you didnât ask them, why not? As Augustine noted, the state will ask if you made an effort to resolve the problem before filing a complaint.
No one likes fee increases, but sometimes they are necessary (I guarantee you wouldnât like a special assessment because current assessments werenât enough to fund reserves and pay routine expenses). Take a look at the board meeting minutes for the past year and note the discussions. While youâre at it, get a copy of the new budget and compare it with last yearâs â what line items have increased and why? Yes, youâll have to ask the board about that too. If you come up with an alternative, let them know.
(Which is why more advance notice was necessary â that would give homeowners more time to review the budget and ask questions, and the board would have time to address them before the budget and new assessment took effect).
Finally, if your board ignores the CCRs and has âtotal controlâ of the elections, thatâs because the rest of the homeowners (you and your neighbors) allow it. Thatâs the only reason bad boards get away with being bad, and I have never understood how 3, 5, 7 or however many board members are able to intimidate an entire neighborhood. Itâs a little more understandable in a tiny community (although still unacceptable).
If you want change, it can happen, but itâll take some work. Start talking to your neighbors and attend the board meetings, and demand answers to your questions. You may not always agree, but there should be some sort of logical thinking behind the decision. If youâre still unhappy with the board, all of you will have to vote these folks out or recall them (check the documents to see how thatâs done) and put in people who will do what you want (one of them may have to be YOU).
Shelia
The OP said his docs say NLT (No Later Than) one month before 01/01. Same as my docs say.
His BOD presented the dues increase on 12/29/2019 which is later than one month before 01/01.
I say all well and good but their new budget (including the dues increase) does not take effect until 01/01/2021. Yes 2021, not 2020 as they missed the 2020 window. Now the question is how far (time and money) is the OP willing to go to pursue this?
As far as ignoring the CCR's (which it appears they do), the answer answer is replacing them.