Owners rent units, shun involvement

Q. We are a “seasonable” condominium mainly of Canadians, Europeans and South Americans. Many owners rent their units so that at times we have only 40 percent of the units occupied by owners. To properly conduct business of the association and elections, our mailings will not generate return proxies and ballots. Our owners do not become involved as the seasonable owners use the units as vacation homes. Our Canadian owners say that they have a web page and vote on the web. Is there any reason that we cannot vote by computer?

Condo Line

Allowing foreclosure a big mistake

I normally suggest that you contact an attorney, but it appears that it is too late for the foreclosure. Here is a fact of which you may not be aware: you are still obligated for the mortgage, regardless of foreclosure or sale of the home by the HOA. Foreclosure does not eliminate the first mortgage and you cannot sell the obligation to others. The new group that has made an offer will not eliminate your obligation to the note (mortgage) and other debts. My only suggestion is that you try to pay your obligations, including the HOA fees and legal costs, or move out and hope that the bank will forgive the mortgage debt. Also, you may be obligated to the IRS for any forgiveness of debt. That possibility will require that you talk to a tax attorney or a CPA. Thinking that you can just walk away from your debts is a misconception, as they will still be outstanding for years. The bottom line is that you have made a miserable choice and will live with it for years to come. Q. I believe you were a speaker at the last Communities of Excellence awards ceremony in St. Petersburg (www.communitiesofexcellence.net) and you asked a question that I would like to share with my committee. You asked, “In a disaster what is the responsibility of the manager, the board and the owners?” Can you expand on this?
Condo Line

HOA board spends without approval

You are feeling the pain of a board that has little oversight by the members. My guess is that very few members attend the meetings and really understand who the best candidates are. The problem is that the board sees this lack of supervision and submissive attitude by the members and does what it pleases. Unfortunately, there is no outside help such as a state agency. You must start a grassroots campaign to elect better directors. It is good that you fear the unaccounted expenses and want to see if you can stop these actions by the board.Q. Our HOA documents state that each home is to be maintained in a quality condition by each owner. We received a letter that strongly intimated we had to use a specific brand of paint. Three years past, we used a better quality paint than was recommended at that time and many owners who used the recommended paint have had failure of the paint. Now comes the board again forcing all homes to repaint using a recommended contractor and specific brand of paint. We would like a legal opinion as to whether the HOA board has the authority to order us to use the contractor and brand of paint.
Condo Line

Opposing inspector is a losing cause

Q. The county fire marshal [inspector] has required that a non-commercial household electric stove in our community clubhouse must have an exhaust hood with venting to the outside. Every unit in our condominium has similar stoves with no venting. My review of Florida’s fire code says that community rooms with less than a 50-person occupancy can be exempted. I am reluctant to approach the fire marshal’s office for the fear of undesirable consequences. Is there an appeal procedure specific in the code? What has been your experience in regard to this problem?
Condo Line

Every year, board shirks an audit

Q. Every year the board meets with the owners and recommends to them that no audit be taken on the condominium books, in order to save money. Is there a state law that the board must have the books audited periodically? I have another concern in that our directors have little business experience making good decisions for the association.
Condo Line

Candidate information sheets voluntary

Q. We recently held an election for the board of directors. There were five candidates for four positions. Two of the candidates submitted information sheets that were included in the meeting package. Three others never submitted an information sheet. The candidates elected were the three that did not submit information sheets and one that did. After the election, I asked the president to see the three information sheets because they were not included in the mailing. The president said that information was not mandatory and they never received them from the three candidates. I question the ethics and legality of the election of the two candidates who did not submit the information sheets regardless of their qualifications and platform for the office. Can owners request another election?
Condo Line

Board callous to mother’s plight

There is no simple answer to a board that does not respond to a request involving a disabled or injured person. I have learned that you never suggest that a disabled or injured person get a wheelchair. In many situations, such an event may mean that once in the wheelchair, they will never walk again because they lose the strength and capability.
Condo Line

How management companies stack up

I call the type of management that you describe as “horizontal.” The other that you are familiar with I call “vertical” management. Horizontal management by definition is directly joined by companies that provide necessary services to the association along with management. Normally these service companies, which are called insularity companies because they only serve clients of the management company, have the same ownership in conjunction with the management company. Such management companies can provide services at a reduced cost, like a loss-leader, because they will make their profit from the services by the insularity companies. It also makes decisions by the board to engage necessary services simpler because management provides such needs from their own companies. When you seek bids for management, you will find that its presentation will emphasize their low cost. Thus, horizontal management will make the workload for the board simpler.
Condo Line

In the event of neighbor conflicts

Since the manager and board members are rarely witness to neighborly disturbances, they become a third party. As such, they are limited to enforce or take sides in the dispute and they have no powers to resolve it. Also, there could be a liability exposure if they intervene and someone is injured or property is damaged. You may think that the board and manager are on duty 24 hours a day. If board members serve at will without any compensation, there is no requirement that they be available at odd hours. As to the manager, while compensated, most will not respond after hours except for emergencies.As to your example of a drunk, say he was swinging a knife and making threatening gestures. If you called the board or manager, what could they do? Don’t you think calling police would result in faster action? The board and manager have limited enforcement powers.