HOAleader.com - Tip of the Week - February 19, 2016
Published: Fri, 02/19/16
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Marty McFly Was Right: Hoverboards Are Coming to Your HOA
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In this week’s tip, we take you Back to the Future.
An HOAleader.com reader asks: “How, if at all, are other communities with HOAs and private roads regulating hoverboards? We’ve been seeing them all over since Christmas in the unseasonably mild New York winter weather. I’ve heard they’re dangerous and possibly illegal.”
Wait. What’s a hoverboard? Think of the movies featuring Michael J. Fox as Marty McFly that captured audiences’ attention in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Back then, hoverboards were like skateboards sans wheels. But they weren’t real.
Today’s are real, though most aren’t called hoverboards. Companies marketing the devices call them things like sport scooters, balance boards, and self-balancing scooters. They’re much like skateboards, though they’re motorized so you don’t have to propel them with your own leg power.
The problem? They may be illegal on some cities’ public streets, though we haven’t heard of a single enforcement action.
More troubling is that there have been reports of the devices catching fire, risking harm to owners. In Louisiana, a family reportedly lost their home to fire when one of the contraptions spontaneously burst into flames while the battery was being charged. Some airlines have banned them on planes, and Amazon won’t sell them on its site unless they’re certified as safe. The suspected cause of the fires is the devices’ batteries, though the Consumer Product Safety Commission is still investigating. Last count showed 37 fires associated with hoverboards.
It’s early days when it comes to HOAs having to deal with hoverboards. “We haven’t yet seen this issue, but I’m sure it’s coming in the next six months,” reports Joe Winkler, vice president of marketing at Keystone Pacific Property Management in Irvine, Calif., which manages associations ranging from two to 4,000 units—about 65,000 units in total in Southern California.
“I don’t know if the problems are isolated, and I haven’t seen any documentation as to whether this is a safety issue or not,” says Winkler. “I’ve seen isolated reports, but the government hasn’t stepped in to say there’s a recall or that they’re dangerous. Reports are very anecdotal and you can prove anything anecdotally. Barring something like the government acting, I’d take a wait-and-see approach. I think it’s too early to address.”
Maybe not, says Lisa Magill, of counsel at Kaye, Bender & Rembaum in Pompano Beach, Fla., who advises Florida community associations. Find out why in our new article: http://www.hoaleader.com/members/1327.cfm
Best regards,
Matt Humphrey
President
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Recent articles posted at HOAleader.com:
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Hoverboards Are All the Rage! What Your HOA Should Know
An HOAleader.com reader asks: "How, if at all, are other communities with HOAs and private roads regulating hoverboards? We've been seeing them all over since Christmas in the unseasonably mild New York winter weather. I've heard they're dangerous and possibly illegal."
Here we'll talk about the risks of hoverboards and whether HOAs should address them.
Click here to read full article:
http://www.hoaleader.com/members/Hoverboards-Are-All-Rage-What-Your-HOA-Should-Know.cfm
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Apps May Help You Oversee Your HOA. But are There Privacy Concerns?
An HOA manager and a board member have created new apps that help users navigate HOA management and living. But do they raise privacy concerns?
Click here to read full article:
http://www.hoaleader.com/members/Apps-May-Help-You-Oversee-Your-HOA-But-are-There-Privacy-Concerns.cfm
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Manager Steals from HOA Clients (Allegedly); How to Avoid the Same Fate
In this week's tip, we put you on notice against a rare but devastating type of HOA manager--the one stealing from its clients.
In the most recent case, an Aurora, Colo., HOA manager surrendered his license after the state's oversight body received numerous complaints he was siphoning off money from his clients' accounts. The Colorado Division of Real Estate announced in December 2015 that PMG Enterprises Inc.'s owner and designated manager, David W. Martin, voluntarily surrendered his and the company's license after complaints that he was diverting HOA funds for his personal benefit, according to the Denver Business Journal.
Click here to read full article:
http://www.hoaleader.com/public/Manager-Steals-from-HOA-Clients-Allegedly-How-Avoid-Same-Fate.cfm
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Now's the Time to Tighten Your Financial Controls
Here's a twist in the too-common story of theft from an HOA: This time it was allegedly the manager.
A Colorado HOA manager surrendered his license after the state's oversight body received numerous complaints he was siphoning off money from his clients' accounts.
Click here to read full article:
http://www.hoaleader.com/members/Nows-Time-Tighten-Your-Financial-Controls.cfm
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HOA Board Member is a Felon and Ineligible to Serve. What Now?
An HOAleader.com reader asks: "We've discovered that the president has a felony conviction on his record. In Texas, the code governing qualifications seems clear that : '(b) If a board is presented with written, documented evidence from a database or other record maintained by a governmental law enforcement authority that a board member has been convicted of a felony or crime involving moral turpitude, the board member is immediately ineligible to serve on the board of the property owners' association, automatically considered removed from the board, and prohibited from future service on the board.'
Click here to read full article:
http://www.hoaleader.com/members/HOA-Board-Member-Felon-Ineligible-Serve-What-Now.cfm
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