2 Questions

Started by ClaudeV • 17 replies • 2187 views

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ClaudeV (Florida)
Posts: 86

Posted:

#1.- We have ONE "rebel" member that has flat refused to comply with the CC&R's by failing to request written approval by the ARC and/or the BOD to build structures on his property. ALL the structures except his "shed" meet neighborhood and HOA "standards. He just REFUSES to file the paperwork. An assessment for these infractions seems severe, but what are we to do, if anything? MY fear is that it sets a "precedence", otherwise, the changes look just fine. I am on the ARC so I know that no paperwork was ever filed for his deck, fence, carport, shed and gazebo.

#2.- A past concern was posted, (?), by me about "investors" purchasing property in our developement for the sole purpose of being "rental properties". After considering the total "investment" these people would have tied up in the properties AND the fact it IS "legal" by law and the CC&R's....any "renter's" would be paying a HIGH RENT. This would generally mean a better "quality" of renter. We all adopted a "wait & see" policy and stopped visualizing the "worst".
NOW word has it that the "investors" are applying for "Section 8" status for these homes! (Which have yet to be constructed.) We are concerned AGAIN and I would like to know what investigative means I could employ to find out if this Section 8 application is, in fact, true?

Thank You all for your past contributions and HAPPY NEW YEAR to everyone!

KarinG (South Carolina)
Posts: 1

Posted:

In response to the member who has not filed paperwork for his exterior modifications--In our community our management company sends him letter giving him 10 days to supply the needed paperwork or he will be sent a letter to appear before the BOD's. If we do not receive the needed paperwork & he does not appear then we do fine him for each day he is not in compliance. We also have on our ARC form that any project started without approval will be fined 50.00 and then 5.00 per day until submitted. What he has done today may look ok but what happens when he decides to paint something a neon pink.

BarbaraK (Florida)
Posts: 36

Posted:

In response to the failure to obtain approval before building structures in an HOA. It really doesn't matter if they meet neighborhod standards if they're done without approval. First of all, your documents should tell you what the penalty is for not getting approval. In South Florida, no contractor will start work of that nature without making sure that there is approval from the ARC. In our documents, the Board can stop the construction of anything that is being done without approval. Your CC&R's should be clear about what to do... Good luck with a Rebel like that... If in doubt, get the opinion of an attorney.

LisaS (Illinois)
Posts: 341

Posted:

You need to pursue enforcement as prescribed in your documents. regardless of whether 'most' of the improvements done by your rebel are OK. His actions (and your ARC/Board's) set a VERY bad precedent. What if everyone did that? Your neighborhood could go downhill quickly.

As well, if the shed is not accepatble, send him a letter, ask for him to make it acceptable or to remove it.

Lisa

CaryL (Arizona)
Posts: 19

Posted:

What a coincidence! We had this same discussion at or BOD meeting last night. The main thing is to look at your CC&R's to see if approval is needed. Then, check to see what remedies for curing this violation are available to you. Our CC&R's state that if it's an architectural violation, we have the ability, after notice and right to be heard, to enter the violator's property, restore whatever is in violation to it's original condition, and then place a lien against the property. Since most of the units have refinanced, almost all of the new deeds have what's called a Planned Unit Development (PUD) Rider, which stipulates that the owner will comply with ALL of the CC&R's. Furthermore, we have indeminity insurance for the BOD, which would kick in if any homeowner decided to sue us for enforcing the CC&R's. Plus, we have the right to notify the homeowner's mortgage company of the violation.

So, first step is to research your CC&R's, then go online to your Recorder's office and see if this person has a PUD Rider. Try and maintain an open line of written correspondence (Certified Mail is the best). If your CC&R's provide any sort of remedy such as I've just stated, use it. HOWEVER: One proviso....please remember to consult your attorney and keep him/her in the loop on this.

LisaS (Illinois)
Posts: 341

Posted:

CaryL...what state are you located in? We can pursue legal action to have the homeowner comply. But we could be arrested for proceeding onto their property in Illinois.

Lisa

ClaudeV (Florida)
Posts: 86

Posted:

Update: Sorry folks, it's been a while since I've been on the boards.

Our "resident rebel" sent a note to the BOD, hand written, stating that since the community area immediately adjacent to HIS property is being maintained in a manner HE is satisfied with, he will no longer pay his monthly maintenance fees. (This involves a grassy bank on our retention pond that he built a bulkhead up to and now access is restricted so NOTHING can be done to the overgrowth problem. And he blames the BOD?!..Incredible!)
Anyway, he sent ANOTHER note to the BOD, our newly elected BOD, and threatened to sue the HOA if they didn't take action to clean up the area behind his home...(which HE restricted access to.) The BOD President quit on the spot! He is afraid of some personal liability if the "rebel" sues so he just quit to distance himself from the issue. He was only President for 3 months or so.

Interestingly enough, this "rebel" is the SAME one that has been a real trouble maker since day one! His goal is to DESTROY the HOA. I looked up the public records online and GUESS WHAT? He did the SAME THING at his LAST HOA he lived in! They sued him, won, got a judgement for $900. and the guy just ignored them AND the judgement. They cannot force collection and apparently HE doesn't mind it being on the record or his credit history either.

This guy and his wife are REAL CHARACTERS indeed!

HOW do you deal with someone like this? (PLEASE...keep suggestions LEGAL...we've ALL already thought of the illegal ones! LOL)

ClaudeV (Florida)
Posts: 86

Posted:

Posted By ClaudeV on 10/16/2006 4:57 PM

Update: Sorry folks, it's been a while since I've been on the boards.

Our "resident rebel" sent a note to the BOD, hand written, stating that since the community area immediately adjacent to HIS property is NOT being maintained in a manner HE is satisfied with, he will no longer pay his monthly maintenance fees. (This involves a grassy bank on our retention pond that he built a bulkhead up to and now access is restricted so NOTHING can be done to the overgrowth problem. And he blames the BOD?!..Incredible!)
Anyway, he sent ANOTHER note to the BOD, our newly elected BOD, and threatened to sue the HOA if they didn't take action to clean up the area behind his home...(which HE restricted access to.) The BOD President quit on the spot! He is afraid of some personal liability if the "rebel" sues so he just quit to distance himself from the issue. He was only President for 3 months or so.

Interestingly enough, this "rebel" is the SAME one that has been a real trouble maker since day one! His goal is to DESTROY the HOA. I looked up the public records online and GUESS WHAT? He did the SAME THING at his LAST HOA he lived in! They sued him, won, got a judgement for $900. and the guy just ignored them AND the judgement. They cannot force collection and apparently HE doesn't mind it being on the record or his credit history either.

This guy and his wife are REAL CHARACTERS indeed!

HOW do you deal with someone like this? (PLEASE...keep suggestions LEGAL...we've ALL already thought of the illegal ones! LOL)

Edited to say "he is NOT satisfied with..."

RogerB (Colorado)
Posts: 5,067

Posted:

Claude, is the bulk head 1) totally on his property and 2) was it approved by the ARC? If the answer to 1 & 2 are yes then the Board is responsible for maintaining the common area next to his property. If it was not approved then demand he remove or modify it. If it is in the common area restricting access then remove the portion in the common area.

Meanwhile, he is responsible for paying his assessments no matter what is done. If he doesn't you should have and follow your established Rule and Regulation on Delinquent Assessments. See the example I have previously provided several times.

JosephW (Michigan)
Posts: 882

Posted:

First make sure your Directors & Officers insurance is in place and that you haven't walked into any of the exclusions.

Second, it's time to get an outside party involved immediately, starting with an attorney for the association. Have the violations confirmed, and let the attorney write the next letter. This may end up in alternative dispute resolution or mediation, but let the attorney help you get all of your ducks in a row and advise you. Unless the board intends to contnue being intimidated, or uses one of your unmentioned enforcements, your next action will probably be legal, so don't let it drag on and on.

Joe

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GlenL (Ohio)
Posts: 5,491

Posted:

If he didn't get HOA approval to build, he probably didn't get a building permit from your locality either. Bureaucrats live to rectify these type of problems especially when they can pad their coffers with fines.

As for the retention pond, our county now has a department that oversees such items. And if the bulkhead interferes with runoff to a stream or river; even if it is miles away or is part of a wetland, then the Army Corps of Engineers may be interested. That’s the federal government and they have absolutely no sense of humor in these matters. All it takes is a couple of phone calls or
a visit to their respective web sites to file a complaint.

Now obviously these are steps to undertake when all options have failed, which it sounds like they have. Remember as a homeowner you pay taxes to fund these departments and they are there for a reason.

In Ohio a homeowner cannot withhold payment because they are not satisfied with the services of a HOA and that owner can be foreclosed on. It takes a while but it can be done and believe me lenders do not look at foreclosures favorably.

Studies show that 5 out of 4 people have problems with fractions

ClaudeV (Florida)
Posts: 86

Posted:

Thanks for the input folks!
I'm meeting with other members on the BOD today to ask about the records on file as far as ARC permitting etc. I'm on the ARC but not the chair person. (I wasn't on it when all this stuff was built!)
(Sorry, this turned out to be long.)

As for his bulkhead, there are 4 houses along that side of our retention pond. ALL of them have had bulkheads built up to within 2 or 3 feet of the waterline. They wanted "more usable backyards" and built nice decks out to the edges of the bulkheads as well.
No building permits are needed from the county for these structures, just a sign off by the ARC. At the time they were built, we had, basically, a "one man show" for Board President, ARC approvals etc. That person was our developer and I suppose HE didn't see a problem with the bulkhead requests.
The overgrowth is IN THE POND proper. It is cattails, lilypads and an EXTREMELY THICK GRASS carpet growing above the surface of the water but is rooted in the bottom of the pond shoreline. It extends out about 10 to 14 feet front the waterline all the way around the pond. You can almost walk on it! The old BOD President had it dug out everywhere, EXCEPT behind the inaccessable parts, last year. It all grew back within 6 months or so. I consider it a "natural state" and part of the eco system but the four across the pond consider it an "obstruction" to their view and a snake breeding ground. (HELLO!!! You live on a pond in the COUNTRY! Snakes are "natural"!)
-----> (Just explaining, whining now)---> We have determined that the ONLY feasible way to remove this over growth is manually by a crew in chest waders! It is IMPOSSIBLE to get any kind of mechanized equipment into the small area between the bulkheads and waterline.
We have made every effort to find commercial pond maintenance companies to take this over. The only one that will is an outfit called Lake Doctors. They ARE good...and EXSPENSIVE! They will ONLY take an annual contract and it is just over $4,000. a year. That's a $4. to $5. raise in monthly dues for all members to cover that cost. WE WANT to address the issue, but there just ISN'T ANY MONEY! We operate on a "zero balance" system.
Additionally, that outfit won't "dig out" the growth, it will only treat it with approved chemicals which will take a long, long time to rid the pond of the growth. We have already added carp for the algae, which isn't too bad at the moment. We have a bubbler fountain as well.
Personally, I think the developer handed us a white elephant and now it's "our pet" and we're having to deal with it because he didn't! BTW: I live on this pond too! I, nor any of MY four neighbors, have bulkheads or intend to build one on our side of the pond. The pond is teeming with fish and turtles. Our side of the community is adjacent to a 25,000 acre+ game preserve and the abundance of wildlife is wonderful. I guess one man's beautiful country setting is another man's eyesore!
We have to be "careful" what we do to this pond since it is under the jurisdiction of the S.W.I.M. water authority/St Johns Water Management Authority. It's required by law for us to have this "retention pond" in the community. (Actually, we have TWO, one is much smaller and virtually a mud hole elsewhere in the community. Trust me, the folks living with THAT one aren't "happy campers" either!)
Things like this frustrate me to no end. The only good thing about it is that I'm not on the BOD so, while I try to be helpful, I don't have bricks thrown at me. :-)

BrianB (California)
Posts: 2,820

Posted:

no solutions, sorry...

you do know that the bubbler fountain is adding to your algae growth? it oxygenates the water, allowing more algae to grow than could otherwise be supported. Not saying it's a bad thing, just mentioning it... It's all part of the circle of life.

Add bubbler to aerate the water, reduce smell, and it increases the algae. Increased algae decreases visibility, reduces fish population. Increases duck population, which increases ammonia, which increases algae again, to a point.

Cattails, reeds, saw grass, etc. are a natural part of the story. if you want them dead, you need to increase the level of water in those areas, decrease the available oxygen to the roots, and they will die back. Of course, that makes your pond bigger, and these plants will simply move further back to the "new" edges. Basically, your pond is filling up with siltation and bio matter, and being taken over by "land" plants. You can dredge, or you can say "hey, it's what happens. Ponds fill. end of story."

I don't have advice, just sympathy. I lived right on a pond in a similar community, and while I trimmed tree limbs and such to increase the view, i never fought nature herself. we loved it when deer came to drink, but our neighbor hated it because it made his dogs go crazy. I didn't mind the raccoons, but others did (perhaps because i kept my garbage cans tightly closed). Snakes were okay with me, AT THE POND, but others wanted to hunt them down and kill them because "they could come up to the yard and attack the grandkids"... I loved the ducks because they ate bugs in my yards, but i hated the rabbits because they ate my vegetable gardens... while others loved the rabbits in their yards in the morning.

I think you said it best... "Why did you move to the country if you didn't want country life?"

ClaudeV (Florida)
Posts: 86

Posted:

Brian,
Actually, the bubbler decreased the surface algae almost 100%. I have noticed some underwater plants becoming more dense tho.

My main point to these other people is this:
It's a "retention pond". It's required to be here for excess rain runoff. It is not intended to be a recreational body of water. Fish just HAPPEN to be in it because of natural infiltration and placement by some residents, me included when I didn't feel like cleaning fish that day when we came home from the river! LOL

The 4 ARE using aquadic roundup. It kills the stuff just fine!
NOW instead of a green over growth, we have a HUGE BROWN overgrowth. (Which would YOU rather see?..Hummm?) Snakes? Its' a ecosystem, you'll never get rid of the water creatures, snakes included.

There is no swimming nor boating allowed in the ponds. Too much liability for the HOA. Fishing is permitted but catch & release is encouraged as the fish are contaminated with yard chemical runoff and have sores etc. A few are ticked becaus ethey can't have paddle boats for their grand kids...oh well...complain of the snakes and then complain because you can't let your grand kids go play amongst them!

Bottomline: I'm recommending, as a member/ARC member, that we just END the arguments, hire a management company AND a lake care company...that will result in monthly fees having to be raised approximately $10.- $15. per month per unit.
This situation has GOT to end. Soon, NO ONE will want to serve on the BOD and shortly thereafter the HOA will disband and then the whole community will go down the toilet and become just "another trailer park"...and it is nothing like one now....BUT..it's coming if things don't CHANGE SOON!

LindaC3 (Florida)
Posts: 526

Posted:

Claude-- Now that I know you live in Fla.PLEASE contact your local building dept and verify that he has indeed filed for a permit for any of these buildings etc......With the adoption of the FBC it seems all these things require a permit and inspection by the B.D.I do many plans for clients for sheds,gazebos,pole barns,etc all which have to be permitted,some have to have an Engineer seal on the drawing to certify they meet the wind speed criteria etc....They can become projectiles in the event of a hurricane and the owner possibly could be held liable for damages to properties if he doesn't have proof they were indeed constructed to CODE and inspected...The old saying- better to be safe than sorry.If you find he HAS NOT filed for a permit for any of these structures you might just drop a short sweet note informing him of the Florida law with regards to obtaining a permit for construction and advise that he will have 30 days? to rectify the situation or the proper authority will be notified. Some building depts allow for you to apply for what they call AN AFTER THE FACT permit- Double permit fees ,but you still must supply the appropiate drawings to recieve the permit.Hope this helps LindaC

JohnM3 (Florida)
Posts: 288

Posted:

hey Barbara not true about contractors or city officals its a never ending problem in Miramar lorida. I go thru heck with the police to ticket cars parked on sidewalks, roofs getting replaced w/out permits etc.
You do realize you can longer fine members compliments of the jerk from dade introduceing the change to the state law sect 720?
That is without hiring a arbitrator at $250 dollars a hour, plus the lawyer at $200 per hour, plus the property manager at 25 per hour...............................

JohnM3 (Florida)
Posts: 288

Posted:

RE the "Bubblers" as you call them do work. We have 3 lakes 2 with bubblers 1 with-out. Understand in Florida we have canals everywhere its rain run off and so forth. Many developers create lakes cause they need the dirt to use for foundations. Once again they compress the lake bottom stuff inside metal forms to 10 psi to support houses. So they mine right behind the houses and create Lakes which are really overly widened canals. They are all linked together and are pumped in and out of each other by THE Corp Of Engineers and the South Florida water Mamagement Area. But most of the time they sit dead still. So we had a huge algea growth in our middle size lake that SFWM pit a device on to slow down the action of there pumps.(The govt every time they do something they screw it up)

We added the aerators which blow air across the bottom of the lake and the excess pressure goes up in the air and it has a 175 watt colored light on it for night time visual effect. we have the lights on electric eyes and the pump is on a timer that shuts off at midnight and comes on at 0600. I absolutely love them we are gonna add a small version on our tineist lake which is really a retention pond about 30 yards long by 25 yards wide. Our other 2 lakes are the big one behind my house is 3 blocks wide at 1 end by 6 blocks long in length its shaped like a slice of pizza. The second small lake is 4 blocks square and was the algea award winner now its a ok.
We also pump water from the 2 big lakes for our common grounds and any home owners facing the 3 lakes.

But they are a no brainer absolutely worth the original $2000 plus 150 bucks every time they come out to repair the light, they also replace the filters when they replace the bulbs about twice to 6 times a year we have had ours for 4 years so far.

ClaudeV (Florida)
Posts: 86

Posted:

Our bubbler isn't lit. It runs 12 on and 12 off on a timer. We've had it for about 2 or 3 years now and it certainly seems to help a lot.

We "were" going to try and get a high spraying fountain for the pond but we decided against that. The spray on windy days would probably reach folk's back decks...and then THAT would be a complaint! LOL

Our retention pond was dug before the first home was put in this community. (Actually the entire property used to be a rental trailer park. The owner left it to the son whom we purchased from.) The rentals were cleared out completely and lots re-platted for outright sale. Only double wides and site built are allowed with a minimum sq footage requirement. Water/sewer is from the original community well and septic farm owned by the developer.

The pond was 20 feet deep when it was originally dug out and is approximately 150 yards on each side...3 sides...a triangle shaped pond. Homes on two sides and a private game preserve on the far side. We love this place! Quiet, nicely developed and good neighbors for the most part. :-)

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