- This topic has 28 replies, 13 voices, and was last updated 8 years, 10 months ago by
svelte.
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April 6, 2016 at 8:58 AM #21931April 6, 2016 at 8:59 AM #796473
spdrun
ParticipantIf it’s a single-family, that’s what one gets for buying in an HOA-infected area. Pay it, sell the place, move to a non-infected area.
April 6, 2016 at 9:00 AM #796474The-Shoveler
ParticipantThis is a Condo
April 6, 2016 at 9:11 AM #796475sdsurfer
ParticipantThe answer to whether or not they can is probably in the HOA docs you should have received when you bought the place. I’m sure most people do not read those though. Most HOA’s you vote for the board then they vote on your behalf. Good luck!
April 6, 2016 at 9:30 AM #796476The-Shoveler
ParticipantThanks sdsurfer This is a fairly large complex so we are talking take the money and move to brazil type money.
Not saying that is what is happening but this is millions of dollars.
I will go through the Doc’s again.
April 6, 2016 at 9:45 AM #796478NotCranky
ParticipantHappens all the time. My in-laws just had it for new roofs, another friend a large assessment to redo plumbing in the entire building.
I am sure you will find that it is allowable. 4k isn’t that much towards construction projects per unit.
Did they say what it is for?
Condos are not necessarily for the budget conscious.
April 6, 2016 at 9:56 AM #796481The-Shoveler
Participantroofs and some structural repairs.
Just seems like the $400+ dollars dues a month should cover that type maintenance stuff gee whiz.
April 6, 2016 at 10:08 AM #796482NotCranky
ParticipantSorry, it would be a big disappointment to find that out.
I don’t know the audit rules but something is required as part of an HOA and maybe “special audits” can be demanded too. My MIL has been president of a HOA in a pretty high end detached home community and also on the Architectural review board. She says this stuff can get pretty heated at times. Don’t be shy about making them show you what’s going on , somebody has to do it, or maybe they will go to Brazil with your money.
April 6, 2016 at 10:15 AM #796483The-Shoveler
ParticipantThanks Blogstar,
Yep will do that.
April 6, 2016 at 10:22 AM #796484SK in CV
Participant[quote=Blogstar]Sorry, it would be a big disappointment to find that out.
I don’t know the audit rules but something is required as part of an HOA and maybe “special audits” can be demanded too. My MIL has been president of a HOA in a pretty high end detached home community and also on the Architectural review board. She says this stuff can get pretty heated at times. Don’t be shy about making them show you what’s going on , somebody has to do it, or maybe they will go to Brazil with your money.[/quote]
There probably isn’t even any reason for a special audit. Most HOA’s have annual audits, and though the quality of the auditing work is problematic at best, that doesn’t mean the numbers are necessarily unreliable. They also often include a reserve study. The reserve study will indicate how much should be in reserves. Some associations are fully funded to those recommended reserves. Some aren’t. Additionally, shit happens. We know that. It happens all the time. Just because a roof should last 20 years (or 40, or whatever), sometimes that doesn’t happen. It doesn’t mean the audit was bad. It doesn’t mean the reserve study was bad.
April 6, 2016 at 11:17 AM #796486ucodegen
Participant[quote=Blogstar]Sorry, it would be a big disappointment to find that out.
I don’t know the audit rules but something is required as part of an HOA and maybe “special audits” can be demanded too. My MIL has been president of a HOA in a pretty high end detached home community and also on the Architectural review board. She says this stuff can get pretty heated at times. Don’t be shy about making them show you what’s going on , somebody has to do it, or maybe they will go to Brazil with your money.[/quote]
Take a look at the Davis Stirling act.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Davis%E2%80%93Stirling_Common_Interest_Development_Act
http://www.davis-stirling.com/MainIndex/DavisStirlingAct/tabid/427/Default.aspx
Under assessments: if the assessment is more than 5% of the annual budget, it must be approved by the membership.
Looks like the $4000 had to be approved by membership – unless meets the grounds for emergency assessments.
Your HOA should also be sending you an annual budget report:
http://www.davis-stirling.com/MainIndex/Disclosurechecklist/tabid/456/Default.aspx#axzz3OtyTLrVrStatute: -linked pages
http://www.davis-stirling.com/MainIndex/Statutes/DAVIS-STIRLINGACT/tabid/3667/Default.aspxStatute: PDF
http://epsten.com/wp-content/uploads/2015-Davis-Stirling-Booklet-Final-Website-Version.pdf
http://static1.squarespace.com/static/5268479fe4b0d94adb89065f/t/534447aee4b0d6c12fe5ffdc/1396983726531/Angius+and+Terry+2014+Davis+Stirling+Book+FINAL.pdfApril 6, 2016 at 11:32 AM #796488FlyerInHi
GuestIf your condo is old, or near the coast where moisture is an issue, $4000 is about right.
April 6, 2016 at 11:44 AM #796489The-Shoveler
ParticipantThanks ucodegen
The roofs are old so I am thinking that should have been in the budget as it was (400+ per month),
There was nothing that looked like a real emergency situation that would cost that much.
Got to go through all of this but there was no meeting no nothing just a notice we had to pay this by July etc…
Seems kind of arbitrary and made up.
April 6, 2016 at 12:27 PM #796493ucodegen
Participant[quote=The-Shoveler]Thanks ucodegen
The roofs are old so I am thinking that should have been in the budget as it was (400+ per month),
There was nothing that looked like a real emergency situation that would cost that much.
Got to go through all of this but there was no meeting no nothing just a notice we had to pay this by July etc…
Seems kind of arbitrary and made up.[/quote]
There should be some sort of accounting for it and what it is to be used for. There should also be yearly budget reports sent to all the residents – per California code (Davis Stirling Act placed it in California Civil Code) section 5300 and 4525(a)(4) – see also section 4530(a) involving required requests of the HOA for documents by any of the homeowners. 5300(a)(5) refs special assessments; should be on the annual budget that is sent out. Also check section 5605 – prerequisites to levying assessment increases and special assessments. 5605(b) shows vote is required on greater than 5% special assessment. 5605(c) indicates that a quorum is required on vote.–Just pointing out things to look at in Davis Stirling.
April 6, 2016 at 12:30 PM #796494Dukehorn
ParticipantIf you haven’t been going to the HOA meetings, I think you’d be hard-pressed to make the assumption that it was arbitrary and made up. How often are your HOA meetings and have you been attending? Go back to the minutes and see when and why the vote occurred.
I’m in a small complex and it turns out that our HOAs have not been keeping up with the budget for the past 8 years before I moved in. We voted out the old board and voted in folks with a finance background to try to get the budget back in line. Without raising monthly HOAs, our reserve is 25k in the hole per unit (and that’s without considering emergency/unexpected repairs).
Unless the HOA is building a spa with that money (which has happened at a friend’s complex), usually the assessments deal with practical issues that are not fully funded at the time.
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