Who is a Member of the HOA?

In determining who is a valid Member of the Association for the purpose of voting, we run into several categories of problems concerning the name/signature on the ballot/proxy vs. the Owner of Record on the county property records:

• One spouse signs, but the other is on the property record (last names the same).
• The last name on the property record is the maiden name or former married name of the signer (same person).
• The last name on the property record is the same as the signer but the first name is different:
o Many but not all of these are Asian families. The recorded owner and the head of household are almost certainly in the same family; it is possible for those of Asian origin that one first name is the given name and the other first name is an American nickname or use-name of the same person.
o In some cases (where the voter is present in person), the questions are asked,
 "Are you the homeowner?" If so, then "Are you [recorded name]?"
 If not, then "Are you related to the homeowner? If so, then "Has the homeowner given you permission to sign for them?"
• The last name on the property record is different from the last name of the signer – the recorded owner has been the same for many years and the signer is a recent change in the HOA Directory.
• The last name on the property record is different from the last name of the signer – the signer has been a resident for decades and has participated and voted in HOA matters for many years.

Our governing documents simply state that the Owner(s) of a lot is a Member and there is one vote per lot.

Does it matter who pays the mortgage or who pays the HOA dues?

I have strong opinions about this, and I think most are obvious, but I may be biased or missing something.

Who should be eligible to vote as a Member or not, in each case, please?

Michael,

Asian names always confuse me. The board may want to inform these particular members that who ever is going to cast a vote must be a property owner and the name written on the ballot much match the names on the deed. If the names do not match their vote will NOT be counted. As Gerald says, only the names of those persons who are on the deed are eligible to vote and only one vote per unit is allowed. It's up to the property owners to decide who will cast the vote.

Members also need to be made aware that if they record a deed changing the ownership of the property they must inform the HOA. Oftentimes a spouse will file a quit claim deed eliminating, or adding, a spouse to the deed.