Home Owners Associations, the Good, Bad, and Just Useful View of Typical HOA meeting Florida condominium legal expert Peter Du...
Home Owners Associations, the Good, Bad, and Just Useful
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View of Typical HOA meeting |
Florida condominium legal expert Peter Dunbar in his book The Condominium Concept: points to the language in a 1981 Florida court decision (Hidden Harbour Estates, Inc. v. Basso):
"The overriding principle in the condominium concept is the promotion of the health, happiness, and peace of mind of the majority of unit owners. In accomplishing this goal, there will be compromises of individual rights. It is the association and the board of administration which continually face the responsibility of maintaing the delicate balance between individual rights of units owners and preserving the common scheme for the benefit of all the owners."
Sometimes it is a pleasant reminder that taxes can serve good purposes when government agencies provide very useful information for the public. I congratulate the Florida Division of Condominiums, Time Shares & Mobile Homes within the Florida the Dept of Business and Professional Regulation. They produced a clear, readable, and easily understood short publication that uses layman's language to discuss vital legal and regulatory matters of home owner's associations. It is is linked below.
http://www.myfloridalicense.com/dbpr/lsc/documents/CondominiumLiving07152011.pdf
Once under contract to buy a condominium or town home, a buyer is entitled to receive all relevant documents relating to the governance and finances of the homeowners association (HOA). Under Florida real estate law, you have three days after you receipt of the documents to review them and make certain you are satisfied with them. After all, you will be obligated to abide by the docs as well as the rules and regulations set down by the Board! You will also be financially obligated to pay your share of the upkeep and any assessments that may be necessary. Governance documents filed at the time of incorporation of the association (typically 40-50 years ago in Pinellas County) have often been modified by amendments etc. Be certain that you receive all the relevant documents! Your real estate agent should assist you in this. In some cases, you may even want to consult a real estate lawyer about certain aspects.
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| Typical agenda for an HOA meeting |
Many prospective condominium buyers have never owned a residence under the purview of an HOA before. I strongly recommend they read "How to Successfully Live under a Homeowner's Association", a brief article published by U. S. News and World Report's Money and Personal Finance section (2015 Here is the link to that good piece of practical advice:
http://money.usnews.com/money/personal-finance/articles/2015/04/27/how-to-successfully-live-under-a-homeowners-association
Finally, I urge all owners to consider serving on an HOA board after you have lived in the community for a year or two. In some ways, HOA boards are an example of democracy at its most elemental and local level! A few years service not only allows you to engage with your neighbors but to develop a more thorough understanding of the financial and management aspects of the property in which you own an interest. Everybody has heard jokes about condo boards and dictatorial board members as "condo commando's"! In my experience such boards are the rare exception not the rule.
There are potential downsides to board service. Occasionally one hears stories where homeowners insult or even maliciously libel board members because they enacted some rule or fee they did not like. More often board members have reason to feel that their service--by law not compensated--is not sufficiently appreciated by their neighbors. I've attended more than one regularly scheduled monthly Board meeting in our 104 town home community with no non-Board residents present though legally it must be open to all homeowners.
Of course, lengthy discussions at many meetings concern rather mundane matters that aren't of much popular interest. Those that cost money and might raise monthly fees or especially involve a special assessment usually do garner a lot of attention! The Board on which I serve as Treasurer recently formulated a plan for a major re-roofing project for all our buildings. The projected expenditures amount to the majority of our reserves plus a relatively modest assessment in addition. After a legally mandated 30-day prior notice, this plan was approved by a favorable vote of more than 3/4 of the homeowners. I was pleasantly surprised that about half the residents attended the legally mandated special assessment meeting. They obviously wanted to hear hear the arguments, ask questions, and vote in person.
After the vote was concluded, the audience applauded the Board members for our hard work, dedication, and good project plan. That gesture from our neighbors felt very rewarding to all of us!
