Proxies and no communication

Gotta be lovin' all of that transparency, huh?

Here's what jumped out at me:

Homeowner rights are usually spelled out in the CC&Rs, aka Declaration, and not in the bylaws which describe how the association is to be run.

Amendments to CC&Rs require a homeowner vote. At a minimum, a majority (over 50%) must approve the changes - usually it requires a super-majority of 67% or 75%. These changes can't be made by the board. Based on the numbers you mentioned, you probably would not have had enough votes to amend your CC&Rs, assuming the non-residents would either have been opposed or would not have voted at all.

CC&Rs typically have to be recorded with the county in order to be in effect. You could check on your county recorder's website to see if there are new documents available. If the website doesn't have a search function, you may have to contact them directly. But these documents are public records, so you're entitled to see them.

Changes to how an election is run, the schedule for the annual meeting, and other governance things are in the bylaws. The board may or may not have been able to change these without a vote - I've seen it both ways in different states. Usually state law specifies the notice period for the annual election. (Are you in condos or in a single family HOA? It may make a difference.)

What you can do:

For any HOA/COA problem, your options will always be limited to either fixing things, living with them, or moving. Everyone will have a different idea of what's workable based on their individual circumstances.

Some concrete suggestions:

1. Write a letter to the association (via snail mail, certified return receipt requested) and list the records you want to see. You should cite the relevant state statutes about records homeowners are entitled to see. In some states HOAs/COAs are required to make the records available within a certain time period after the request has been received, which is why you want the signed receipt. Paper records also create an audit trail should one be necessary.

2. Lawyer up. This is the most expensive option. If your letter doesn't produce any results, then having an attorney write one for you may get some action. Usually, though, this option is more appropriate for serious wrongdoing. In addition, some states provide for things like mediation or dispute resolution for the less serious issues - this is definitely preferable to a full-on lawsuit.

3. If this still doesn't work, the next step in escalating is getting together with like-minded neighbors and get yourselves elected to the board. Time-consuming, hard work, and it may be harder to do with so many absentee owners.

Good luck.

If this were me, I would forget the attorney letter.

I would find a real estate office and work with them to get the addresses of all the owners in the complex and hit them where it hurts the most, their wallet. Stop paying assessments, every late one of you. Power is in the numbers.

If your Association is incorporated (most are, but check to be sure) and the board has properly filed their annual report, you can find out who the officers are on the State corporation website.

For NC, see: https://www.sosnc.gov/search/index/csl

The HOA should be providing a list when asked. A work around to get a list of property owners, you may be able to do a property records search from your county or city website. Note: every county/city might not have this info available online. If this is the case, a visit to the county clerk should produce the same results.

I think that the court issue would be that they failed to pay assessments.

Why they failed is often ignored by the courts.

Best outcome might be:

1) members are ordered to pay back assessments
2) Board must make documents available for review
3) each side pays own attorney fees and court costs.

Always a fan of trust but verify.

My suggestion was to withhold dues, as a group, not as an individual.

People on this forum harp on owners having signed or agreed to the governing docs when they purchased. This applies to the same owners who later become board members. They also agreed to the contract and part of it was providing access to certain documents and records to owners upon proper request.

Trust and verify left the building a long time ago. Power is in numbers, not one individual.

If you used an attorney, the very first step the attorney would take is to send a letter citing the covenants and state statutes that say the HOA must provide certain records. Then the letter should request the records. Such a letter is called a demand letter. The courts expect such communications to happen before filing suit. The HOA's attorney will know that, if the HOA does not comply with the reasonable requests of the letter, then your group may take the HOA to court.

If you are incapable of looking up the statutes and reading what your covenants say about records requests, then google for any free legal clinics that your area's court system may offer.

If you list exactly what records you want, I can probably draft a letter that you can start with.

No they are not condos, this is bare land that we develop. It was established in 2000.