new lights connected to my electric with no permission

I found out our hoa said they had permission to install lights on the end units and I did not know anything till they were installing them and then I find out it is hooked up to my electric. My parents own the unit but they were not notified of the lights either. Does it matter if the lights came from a city grant for securing the area?

Mindy:

From your email it sounds like you are a Townhouse and you live in the end unit? If your CCR's say that the exterior is maintained by the HOA, then they could ask to install security lights on the building; but never using your electric! They would have to have a meter installed or have those security lights run off the HOA's meter.

Sorry it took me so long to get back to you all on this matter but I went out and flipped the breakers and turned everything off in my house and the lights they installed went out also. The reason I figured they were connected to my electricity was the new pipe down the wall where I plugged in my Christmas lights every year and when one unit moved out and had the electric shut off they did not have their lights working till the owner came by to clean up the unit. So they definately connected it to my juice. So what do you say, Legal or not ??? I do know we received a grant from the city for more lighting to help out on crime but does that matter?????

Mindy -

Do you pay for your electricity? In some condos the COA pays for all electricity in the association. If that is the case then your Board may feel that it doesn't really matter since they pay for it all anyway. But actually this sounds like it could have just been the work of a lazy or incompetent electrician.

If problems come up with those lights, it could cause your breakers to trip, which would cut off your power. I would think that those lights should have been on their own circuit anyway just for that reason alone. You might want to check with the city and make sure that the work was performed by a licensed electrician and that the city inspectors signed off on it.

Our HOA installed lights based on the approval of the budget...However; some believe that the HOA should have not installed the lights without a vote. Our HOA does not have any real property; however, an easement to the front corners of the entry way where the new lights were installed. What is the best way to resolve this issue?

Donna, your theory is a perfect example of a motto i use all the time.

"Never blame conspiracy where stupidity will explain it"

Just to pick nits, the actual statement (known as "Hanlons Razor") is

"Never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by ignorance."

However, in reading many of the posts on this site, I have a feeling that most of us (including myself all too often) tend to look at malice first.

John the answer to whether or not your BOD can make such improvements are in your governing documents; ours for instance allows the BOD to make capital improvements up to $2,000 without a H/O vote, at $2,000.01 they have to get it ratified by a homeowner vote. If they hold the easements then they were probably within their rights to add the lights as long as they did not tap into a H/O's private electric to do it.

The best way to resolve the issue is to find out whether or not they had the authority to install them in the first place, if they didn't the H/O's can prevent more from being installed. Forgive my insensitivity here but what do the H/O's that wanted to vote on them want to do, remove them?

Thanks to you all for your support I have drafted up a nice letter saying come unhook me now. the funny thing is that three feet away is a lamp at the corner of the common area, now I don't know much about wiring electricity but I bet they did this because they would need to dig up a sidewalk to do this. Also the motion lights go off when you walk up to the door instead of going on. Well it is entertainment to us who don't get out much. Anyhow thanks for all your help, I'll keep you informed if I have any problems.