How do you know if you have neighbors that don't pay their HOA Fees? (arrears, percentage)
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This is one of my pet peeves from my current neighborhood and so now that we are deciding on our second home, this is something I am more interested in. Our current neighborhood listed those past-due on their fees in one newsletter by lot number and had quite a bit of success in reconciling those accounts. But, we never did again with the advice of the Attorneys we have on retainer. We have placed our largest offenders homes under liens but I wonder if there are HOA's out there that are more pro-active about recovering any lost fees? Does anyone have anything listed under their covenants mentioning that a list will be posted? I just feel that the embarrassment of having your neighbors notice that you don't pay your dues would motivate some to put forth more effort to keep them current. Plus, it would ensure that people in the community don't let those neighbors use the amenities in our community such as the pool, tennis courts, etc.
Does your community list who is past due in their newsletter, post it on the bulletin boards, etc.? If so, has any method actually reduced those not paying their dues?
It isn't mentioned specifically but the fact that liens were placed on certain homes was mentioned in the minutes of our last HOA meeting and the unit numbers were in there. It wasn't hard to draw the necessary conclusion there. In our case there aren't any community amenities covered by the fees so there wasn't any real penalty that could be levied in that way.
This is one of my pet peeves from my current neighborhood and so now that we are deciding on our second home, this is something I am more interested in. Our current neighborhood listed those past-due on their fees in one newsletter by lot number and had quite a bit of success in reconciling those accounts. But, we never did again with the advice of the Attorneys we have on retainer. We have placed our largest offenders homes under liens but I wonder if there are HOA's out there that are more pro-active about recovering any lost fees? Does anyone have anything listed under their covenants mentioning that a list will be posted? I just feel that the embarrassment of having your neighbors notice that you don't pay your dues would motivate some to put forth more effort to keep them current. Plus, it would ensure that people in the community don't let those neighbors use the amenities in our community such as the pool, tennis courts, etc.
Does your community list who is past due in their newsletter, post it on the bulletin boards, etc.? If so, has any method actually reduced those not paying their dues?
Your post prompted me to simply write my HOA manager to ask what you asked. Haven't heard from him yet (it is Sunday), but I would think that would be the easiest.
I though I did read something in the HOA website about delinquent HOA people....not sure...
We have a man in our local newspaper people ask questions and he answers. His name is Richard White and is a licensed assoc. mngr in Fl. Maybe you could ask him your question, or ask him to refer you to someone more local-I don't know where you are.
You can e-mail him @: CAM-question@cfl.rr.com
Or check your local paper real estate section for someone like him. Also see if your city hall clerk can direct you to someone local.
Good luck.
We too have residents in arears, but our attorney won't post until it's a matter of public record from the courts, which is after the fact, when the owners lose their home.
There is a difference between making records available and publishing a list of owners. If an individual wants specific information, he/she is entitled to see the appropriate records. However, for anyone to compile and publish a list is another matter. It is NOT illegal - but, it is considered a case of bad judgment and has the potential for a lawsuit. Unit/lot owners don't need to know specifics. They have entrusted the Board to act on their behalf to make sure unit owners are abiding by the collection rules. If the Board does their job in this regard, then there won't be a strain on the financial health of the association. You can certainly ask the Board or property management company about the current receivables status for the community. Once liens are filed due to a property owner owing excessive amounts, it becomes public record should you wish to examine the status of each property via some research.
Find a Board member willing to talk about the financial status and he/she shoud be able to provide information about what's going on. In our HOA collections have become a hot issue and we're actively taking measures to collect, including placing liens, pursuing garnishments, and have even enlisted an HOA-focused collection agency which will recover monies due at no cost to the HOA (fees are charged to the delinquent homeowner). I'm more than willing to talk to any community resident (or potential resident should they track me down) about our actions and provide details such as total outstanding amounts without ever identifying specific homeowners involved.
I am a boardmember with our current HOA. We don't even provide that information if someone asks. What we do provide is the amount of homes past due and the range of amounts. Nothing more.
But, what I want to know is if anyone has covenants that state that a list will be posted of those past due on their fees by x amount (ex. 2 quarters past due, 2 months, etc.). Having an Attorney on retainer in my current community is very expensive and putting liens on properties that we will most likely never see paid seems a bit pointless. I know that some liens transfer to the new owner with respect to HOA fees if they buy a foreclosure, etc. in some states, but that does not apply to where I live. I would rather a community not wait until a property owner was $11,000 in arrears to get payment and I feel that posting a list would add more pressure when the amounts are still small and recoverable.
But, since we didn't add that provision in our original covenants, we are pretty much out of luck. We are looking into actually adding that to the covenants but having an acceptable percentage of homeowners return their ballots can be a bit difficult regardless of the item we are voting on.
My HOA just sent a letter. They said for the people who were past due that they would get a letter from a lawyer. They said that they would be putting a lien on the property if they hadn`t recieved the money by the beginning of Nov. They only mentioned how many properties that haven`t been paid.
Our neighborhood doesn't list who is delinquent, but is does have the power to place liens on properties. Also, we have a community pool & clubhouse that require key card access for use. No HOA fees, no access. I think we have a low delinquency rate.
It helps that our fees are very low. In addition to dues enforcement, the HOA board has an obligation to review its budget & spending to make sure that fees are not prohibitively high for the neighborhood.
But, what I want to know is if anyone has covenants that state that a list will be posted ...
I believe the general consensus is- no.
And since all liens are a matter of public record- there is really no need to.
My guess is, you feel that humiliation is a way to get people to pay. As much as I wish I could agree- the opposite is actually the result. Perhaps being a board member is not your cup of tea.(?) It requires a lot of tact and diplomacy.
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