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Posted By SheliaH on 06/18/2024 6:46 AM
If your documents and state law give homeowners the right to request and review certain records, you have to comply. Homeowners are business partners with each other in that they all co-own the common areas of the association and elect the board members who manage those assets. Therefore, they have a right to request and review things like monthly income/expense reports, reserve studies and vendor contracts.
Nuisance policies usually address issues like noise and trashy yards and if you donât do set up the policy correctly, someone might complain the policy is aimed at them. Additionally, âconstant requestsâ is subjective, along with âreasonableâ vs âunreasonableâ, so what you need to do is sit down with this resident to see whatâs behind the requests.
It could be this homeowner is on some sort of a fishing expedition, but your first job is to take a look at the frequency of the requests and what he/she has asked for, and look for patterns. Is this homeowner calling every day for this or this document? Is he/she requesting records from, say, 10 years ago, meaning you need time to go to wherever those records are kept to pull them? Is the homeowner asking for the same thing over and over again? Is he/she asking for records the association isnât required to provide, such as the account information of another homeowner?
Once you determine what those patterns are, send the homeowner a letter when the next request comes in. Fulfill the request, but also note that he/she has made a number of requests for X documents lately (e.g. income/expense reports) and are wondering if the homeowner has some underlying concerns that could be resolved by a discussion.
Follow up with a phone call by a board member who might have a good relationship with the homeowner. Another board member should sit in as a witness. If the homeowner is agreeable, schedule the meeting. It doesnât have to be with the entire board, but if the homeowner requests that, do it (at least there will be more witnesses and less chance of drama). If the meeting goes well, follow up with another letter summarizing what was discussed, you appreciate the opportunity to clear up the misunderstanding, etc.
Going forward, a formal document policy would be useful, as it can address things like listing what documents homeowners are entitled to, how to make requests, photocopying costs, if appropriate, and so on. That can also include a timeline as to when the homeowner can expect the documents, if he/she must go to the property managerâs office, prohibition against marking up original documents, and more.
To do this properly, a talk with your association attorney and master insurance company will be critical because there are requirements as to what type of documents should be kept permanently. Thatâs another issue associations get in trouble with because they toss the wrong thing at the wrong time (maybe THATâs part of the problem here).
Great reply.