HOAleader.com - Tip of the Week - October 14, 2016
Published: Fri, 10/14/16
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About That HOA Owner Who’s Always Calling the Coppers
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In this week’s tip, we raise a blast from the past: Gladys Kravitz!
Actually, we’re discussing police activity at HOAs. The topic comes up as a result of a question from a reader, who seems to live in an HOA that has restricted owners from calling the police.
As is often the case with real-life questions, this question is a smidge vague on some necessary points. But our experts agree that the reader seems to be asking if a board can limit the instances in which owners can contact the police—either because the reader wants to impose the limit or because the reader’s HOA has imposed a limit the reader is chafing at.
Our experts universally agree: HOAs shouldn’t get into dictating when and how often owners call the police.
“My gut feeling is don’t go there,” advises Alessandra Stivelman, a partner who specializes in community association law at Eisinger Brown Lewis Frankel & Chaiet in Hollywood, Fla. “I wouldn’t recommend an association impose rules and regulations on when owners can call the police. Rules and regulations have to be reasonable, and I don’t think it’s reasonable for the association to decide when something requires law enforcement. That also opens them up to liability. And are we really going to fine people when they call the police and we don’t think they should?
“Some associations have more involvement with law enforcement than others,” adds Stivelman. “There are a lot of situations where police can be called to properties, and the association has to let them in. What can they say, ‘The owner already called the police three times this month; we’re not going to let you in’? They can’t do that.”
Kevin M. Hirzel, a partner at Cummings, McClorey, Davis & Acho in Livonia, Mich., who specializes in representing community associations, agrees. “I don’t think they could limit this and have it be reasonable,” he says. “I also think there are potential liability issues with it. If a guy’s running through your condo common area with a gun, you’re not going to call the condo or property manager to stop that.”
Not only would such a restriction be unreasonable, but it would also be very unwise. “It’s very dangerous to mix up the HOA’s authority with the police department’s authority,” contends 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. “The HOA has authority granted to it by its bylaws. I’ve never seen that authority extended into the realm of what the police would take care of. The HOA doesn’t want to dictate what warrants a call to the police. That’s the police department’s job to determine what it’s going to come out and investigate.”
Maybe you have a Gladys Kravitz in your HOA, and it’s getting tiresome to have her call the cops so frequently for what seem like minor instances. Is it OK to restrict police calls then?
Find out, and get tips on what to do when the police won’t police, in our new article: http://www.hoaleader.com/members/2443.cfm
Best regards,
Matt Humphrey
President
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Recent articles posted at HOAleader.com:
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About That HOA Owner Who's Always Calling the Coppers
In this week's tip, we raise a blast from the past: Gladys Kravitz! Actually, we're discussing police activity at HOAs. The topic comes up as a result of a question from a reader, who seems to live in an HOA that has restricted owners from calling the police.
Click here to read full article: http://www.hoaleader.com/public/About-That-HOA-Owner-Whos-Always-Calling-Coppers.cfm
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HOA Owners Are Calling the Police! Is That a Problem?
An HOAleader.com reader writes, "Do property owners in private communities with HOAs have any restrictions on what they can report to the local police for investigation? If so, how are these restrictions set--e.g., by law (which law?), by the HOA's governing documents, or by private agreements between the police and certain individuals involved in the HOA?
Click here to read full article: http://www.hoaleader.com/members/HOA-Owners-Are-Calling-Police-That-Problem.cfm
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Cash-Strapped? Maybe Your HOA Qualifies for Grants, Other Funding
A Las Vegas HOA has used city grants to improve its community. Here we explain what this HOA did and discuss how you can figure out if your area offers similar funding options.
Click here to read full article: http://www.hoaleader.com/members/Cash-Strapped-Maybe-Your-HOA-Qualifies-for-Grants-Other-Funding.cfm
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It's Not Just Homeowners at Risk for Cybertheft; Your HOA Is, Too
In this week's tip, we give you fair warning that you should prepare for the worst when it comes to cybertheft. The biggest risk for associations is likely to be an inadvertent breach of cybersecurity, contends Stephen Marcus, a partner at Marcus, Errico, Emmer, Brooks in Braintree, which represents about 4,000 associations, mostly condos, in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Rhode Island.
Click here to read full article: http://www.hoaleader.com/public/Its-Not-Just-Homeowners-at-Risk-for-Cybertheft-Your-HOA-Is-Too.cfm
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How to Protect Your HOA from Cybertheft
Just what you need--to have your HOA fall victim to cybertheft. Maybe it's your owners' confidential information that's stolen. Worse, it could be their bank account information or the HOA's. Either way, this is a situation you definitely don't want to be forced to learn about after it happens to you.
Click here to read full article: http://www.hoaleader.com/members/How-Protect-Your-HOA-from-Cybertheft.cfm
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