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Posted By JohnC46 on 08/21/2020 10:10 AM
Chris
First, Welcome.
What type sub-division are you, ala private homes, duplexes, condo building, etc? How many members do you have? Will you be 100% owner occupied upon turnover? What amenities do you have? What are your present dues? Are your streets public or private? Is your association part of a larger association?
Your answers can change/vary replies to your questions.
There is an HOA (Corporation) even when under developer control of which I assume you are presently paying dues to. At present the Declarant controls the HOA but he will turn control over to the owners at transition time.
As far as road sign are concerned, you are assuming some are needed. Do not be so sure of this. That said, in most cases the Declarant will/should have already installed them if required.
The HOA is responsible for retention pond maintenance. It was deeded to the HOA from the get go.
When a turnover happens there are several things to be sure of:
1. If not private streets, that the municipality has accepted the streets which would include mandated (if any) proper signage. Ours are public streets and other than street signs, we only have one sign that says No Exit. Again, do not be sure road signs are required.
2. The HOA does not owe the Declarant any money. When under Declarant control if an item(s) cost more then the existing dues can cover, the Declarant can loan the HOA money and you all might have to pay it back.
3. That a Reserve study has taken place and there is an appropriate amount of money in the Reserves as per the study.
4. That the dues structure covers Operating Expenses and adequate Reserve funding.
In our case our dues, at take over, covered the Operating expenses including adding some to the Reserves. After two years under owner control, it became obvious our Dues could not contribute enough money to the Reserves for what would be needed. We had to implement a 40% dues increase. From $600 per year to $840 per year which is $70 per month, payable monthly. We are 112 standalone patio homes, no amenities (nada, none), and public streets but a Dead End neighborhood so little to no traffic.
People out here will be willing to answer any of your questions but in order to give the best answers more information might well be needed from you.
Hope this helps.
Thank you John and thank you for all of the great info! Here are my answers:
We are in single family homes (156 total)
most owner occupied with some rentals
the last home was recently sold
Amenities include a small pool
Current dues are $450
Roads are public (no final paving)
Not part of a larger association
You are correct about the HOA and developer. He currently makes all decisions but has instituted a ātransition teamā to serve as his boots on the ground. This was developed at the beginning of this year and I joined a month or so ago.
I asked about the road signs because we recently received the financials from our property management company and saw a charge for almost $7000 and found out thatās what it was for. At that point there was no transition committee to make the decision to add them but I suppose there could have been a homeowner complaint which triggered the purchase (just a guess).
Iām surprised about the retention pond because we are not even sure it is in working order. It looks like a dumping area for the builder. It might be a builder issue versus a developer issue though. I also wondered because the developer has paid to have it maintained once before. Since the subdivision isnāt built out, I figured they may be required to give us everything in working order. - just an assumption.
Again, thanks for all the great info!