Who is responsible for paying to installing a cluster mailbox?

We are a Delaware community of about 250 mostly vacation townhomes built in the 60's. We currently have one cluster mailbox in the community for the handful of year-round residents. I don't know when it was installed or who paid for it. The cluster mailbox is full and a homeowner is demanding the HOA pay for an additional mailbox to be installed. Our governing documents do not say anything about mailboxes. In the absence of specific rule from the USPS or a federal or local law, I think the homeowners who require mail service should pay to install the box rather than using HOA funds to benefit just a few owners. Does such a law exist? Does anyone have experience with a similar situation? Thanks!

A HOA is ONLY funded by it's members FOR it's members. Mailbox clusters are HOA property. Or common property/use. Your HOA has to buy it. Now the USPS may offer a resource to purchase a cluster mailbox. I would contact them for advice and approval. There are certain standards mailboxes must meet. So I would consult them for the best resource for this information.

I find it interesting that you have 250 homes and not 250 mailboxes. In theory, you need to allow for the possibility of your entire complex to consist of year-round residents. However, if it's always been obvious that no where near 250 mailboxes are needed, then I suppose I understand how you arrived at the present situation. After all, why buy, install, maintain mailboxes that will never be utilized? So the present situation makes sense too.

All that said, I agree with other posters so far that cluster box units (CBUs) would be a common expense, paid for out of HOA funds intended for the benefit of all homeowners. So I would disagree with the thought that just because someone new requires use of a mailbox that exceeds your current capacity by 1, that they would be solely responsible for purchase and installation of the next CBU (at a cost of likely thousands of dollars). Why would all the current CBU-users benefit from use of the already-installed CBU and this individual be responsible for purchasing another unit all by themself? If anything, all CBU-users should contribute equally to purchasing a 2nd until if that is deemed necessary.

Perhaps instead of installing an additional CBU, there are add-on kits or something where you can add ony a few more mailboxes that can be added to your existing CBU at a much-reduced cost. Something to look into for your HOA.

I have never encountered a HOA where the mailboxes or mailbox clusters are owned and maintained by the USPS. In every instance where there are mailboxes or clusters they are owned and maintained by the HOA, but under federal regulations. In the OP's case I would look at your reserve study. IF, the HOA is responsible, there would be a line item for their expense.

Max is right as are other who say the HOA is responsible. The HOA installed the original and is should have been placed on the reserve study so it could repaired/replaced or in your case, Karen, expanded some day. Check your reserve study.

There are many common area items that I don't use here, the billiards table, for example, but I still chip in with my dues to replace/repair it some day. The HOA needs handle the CBU.

Pretty sure there is no law, Karen. We just replaced one of our clusters--about 100 mailboxes, but I don't know the process our Property mgr. went through.

Karen

I say the developer should have installed a mailbox per home, but it is a little late for that. How did/do the 12 mail boxes get assigned? Could the assignment be changed so that 12 go to those that maintain the place as their full time address? It would be easy enough to have someone prove it is their full time residence.

Otherwise, simply ignore the requestor.

It sounds as though the HOA would be responsible for covering this common expense since it is a common element. If owners were expected to have their own mailboxes, that would be a different story, but since it's a cluster mailbox, the association should cover the costs.