Update - Small Claims in Texas

In a previous thread, I mentioned that our POA would be taking some of our delinquent members to Small Claims court. Here is an update for those interested.

1st case - member owed over $1400.00 in dues and assessments; lost home to bank foreclosure; we filed claim and were awarded a judgement for full amount plus court costs; we filed the abstract judgement, (which automatically liens all of their property in the county filed); they paid the full amount and it is over!!!
2nd case - member owed over $2200.00 in dues and assessments; lost empty lot to bank foreclosure; we filed claim with a court date set; former member contacted us to set up a payment plan for back dues. Received first payment! This person lives in a different State.
3rd case - member owed over $1700.00 in dues and assessments; lost empty lot to bank foreclosure; we filed claim and was awarded a default judgement for full amount plus court costs; we filed the abstract judgement and will soon follow with a writ of execution and wage garnishment. This person lives in a different State. We are very hopeful with this one as the State he lives in makes it fairly easy for us to collect.

So it seems that Small Claims court has had some success for us. We did learm a few things though. We currently don't charge a specific fee when we begin the collection process. We have been just passing our costs to the member, but we have found that there are a few more costs for us to incurr after a judgement that we only will get if we file another claim. Next time we will charge for these at the beginning of the collection process and just have one upfront fee.

We did this without an Attorney. I did the research, (the bylaws, cc&r's, state laws), and googled how to file small claims in Texas. There were several details involved.

Mary:
I think the point is she did it without creating a lien on the property; but just by collecting a debt which is what small claims court does.
Jeanne

Our judgement didn't create the lien. We received a judgement, had to wait 10 days then get an abstract judgement and file it with the county. The abstract is what liens ALL property owned by the defendant in the county it is filed in. (if we knew of property in other counties, it is my understanding that we could file the abstract in as many counties as they owned property.)

There are still a few step left to take on the one with a default judgement but if we see any money, it will be worth it.

It is worth it just to let other members know that we will take action if they don't pay.

Tom,
I will be glad to explain the steps I have taken. The most important first steps involve going over your Associations CC&R's & Bylaws and the Texas laws, (especially property code chapter 209 texas residential property owner protection act), and verify that you have everything in place to take the action necessary. If you don't have everything in place, and your CC&R's allow for it, you can adopt the necessary policies.
Send me your email and I will get in touch.
Lynette

Hello Lynette,
I'm not sure what our CC&R's would need to include in order to proceed. Foreclosures and liens are discussed and permitted within our governing documents, but I am not finding anything that mentions small claims court. Are you saying we would need to incorporate that into our documents in order to pursue delinquent accounts in that manner?

Tom
[email protected]

Mike,

if the process is kept within small claims court you should not need an attorney. The ability to go to small claims court will depend on the dollar amount involved.

Here is a few links I discovered over an internet search that might be helpful:

Small Claims Court Procedures

VA Collecting the Judgment from lawyers.com

Hope this helps,

Tim