HOAleader.com - Tip of the Week - October 5, 2013
Published: Sat, 10/05/13
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Justin Bieber and HOA Rules: Seriously, There's a Connection
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In this week's tip, we discuss why you should care about the
goings on of teen heartthrob Justin Bieber. For at least a few
minutes, at least.
You probably hate that you're reading a story about Justin Bieber
on an HOA website. So we'll keep his back story brief. He
reportedly lives in a Calabasas, Calif., HOA called The Oaks of
Calabasas.
In May, news reports surfaced about a high-speed chase in the
neighborhood as former NFL player Keyshawn Johnson--in his Toyota
Prius hybrid--tooled after Bieber (allegedly)--in his white
Ferrari--to try to catch the singer in the act of speeding in
the HOA too close to Johnson's kids. Johnson insists Bieber drove
up to his home, jumped out of the Ferrari, and scampered inside
before Johnson could confront the teen. Later, Bieber claimed
security footage proved it wasn't him behind the wheel.
The speeding was reportedly so frequent, and it was combined with
loud, noisy parties and cars parking on the street overnight,
that in June, fellow residents banded together and reportedly
threatened to withhold their roughly $1,000-per-month assessments
unless the board began to enforce its own rules against the celeb
and his guests.
The association appears to have taken action. In late June, the
HOA sent a letter reminding residents they're subject to fines
for violating HOA rules and instructing residents to call police
on speeders.
What can you learn from (allegedly) bad celebrity behavior? Here's
the first of five takeaways:
1. Owners can't withhold assessments in protest.
While the residents here certainly succeeded in getting the HOA to
do something about the escalating situation, their remedy wasn't
proper. "The owners should have told the board, 'Enforce the rules
or we're going to get rid of you,'" explains Jed Frankel, a partner
at Eisinger, Brown, Lewis, Frankel & Chaiet PA in Hollywood, Fla.,
who advises community associations. "That's their remedy. It's not
refusing to pay association fees. That's really a big danger for
boards because if people stop paying fees, the board's going to
have to begin foreclosing on them, which nobody wants."
Get the four other lessons of the Bieb in our new article:
http://www.hoaleader.com/members/509.cfm
Best regards,
Matt Humphrey
President
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Recent articles posted at HOAleader.com:
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Why You Should Enforce Your HOA's Rules Reason 225: Justin Bieber
What does this teen heartthrob have to do with HOAs? He is a high-profile
example of why it's critical for you and your board of directors to enforce
your HOA rules. Here's why.
Click here to read full article:
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Can You Let an HOA Owner's Debt Slide?
In this week's tip, we discuss whether it's ever OK for you to tell delinquent
owners not to worry about paying off their debt to your HOA.
Click here to read full article:
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Forgiving Debt, Part I: Is It Ever OK to Forgive an Owner's Debt to Your HOA?
Mike Hunter, one of HOAleader.com's expert contributors, recently
fielded a question from a local home owner about whether homeowner
associations can forgive home owners' debts and, if so, when that would ever
be appropriate. Here Hunter and others give us the skinny.
Click here to read full article:
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Whose HOA Audit Is this, Anyway?
In this week's tip, we answer a reader's question about whether its
developer and management company can be trusted in hiring and directing an
auditor.
Click here to read full article:
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Stop This Audit? Know Who Can Order an HOA Audit
An HOAleader.com reader asks, "I'm on the board of 65-unit building that has
transitioned from sponsor-controlled board to majority-owners board.
It's important to note that the sponsor was also the property management
company (the management company was horrible; hardly performed the
necessary maintenance). We selected a new management company July 1, 2013,
and are extremely excited about the change. The previous management
company is having the financials audited as our fiscal year ended in June.
Sounds good, right? The current board (specifically, the treasurer and
subcommittee members--all CPAs) were to be a part of the selection process,
review proposals, engagement letters, etc. We then found out the
management company chose an auditor without our knowledge and the audit is
currently going on." Here we discuss who can and should authorize an audit
and when.
Click here to read full article:
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