HOAleader.com - Tip of the Week - October 12, 2018
Published: Fri, 10/12/18
=================================================================
How to Prevent Your Condo or HOA Volunteers from Landing Your Community on the News
=================================================================
In this week's tip, we discuss videos you've very likely seen that involve allegedly racial incidents at neighborhood pools.
A community in Summerville, S.C., recently made headlines when a white resident was captured in June on video allegedly assaulting an African-American teen who was at his own community pool, demanding he and his friends leave, and calling them “punks.”
In July, an African-American resident at Glenridge Homeowners Association in Winston-Salem, N.C., posted a video of herself being asked for ID by a white man before she could use the pool at the HOA in which she lived; she claimed that the resident asking for ID wasn't making the same request of white residents. The HOA reportedly removed the owner from the pool committee and apologized to residents, promising to improve its procedures.
Condos and HOAs are increasingly being dragged into today's hot-button issues, particularly with the issue of guests at their facilities. According to the Washington Post, at least six of videos that gained traction online involving allegedly racial incidents took place at neighborhood swimming pools in such places as Indianapolis, Winston-Salem, N.C., Pasadena, Calif.
Here are just two of seven tips to avoid that and handle the problem if you do end up in the news:
1. Consider taking enforcement away from volunteers.
Yes, it costs more money to hire people to enforce your HOA rules on guests, but that may be money well spent. “Some of my clients have wristbands; in others you have a card that scans to let you in the facility,” reports Barbara Holland, CPM, regional manager for FirstService Residential in Las Vegas.
“With one of my clients, we tried to have volunteer members to do it,” she adds. “But we ended up having to discontinue that, and this association decided to spend extra money to have a security company handle this issue. Homeowners were getting too much flack; some people can get pretty crazy. Security officers in uniform presented a little more of a formal process.”
2. Create a strict anti-discrimination policy.
That's the most important advice from James P. Arrigo, an attorney at Rathje & Woodward in Wheaton, Ill., who has counseled and represented HOA and condominium associations ranging from 6 to 1,600 units for more than 14 years.
This is especially important given new U.S. Housing and Urban Development rules requiring associations to act when neighbors are violating fair housing laws. “Now that we have HUD regulations on neighbor-to-neighbor discrimination, the housing provider could be charged with discrimination for allowing neighbor-to-neighbor discrimination,” explains Lisa Magill, of counsel at Kaye, Bender & Rembaum in Pompano Beach, Fla., who advises Florida community associations.
Read all 7 Tips for Handling Guests at Your HOA Pool Without Becoming a Headline in our new article:
https://www.hoaleader.com/members/3801.cfm
Best regards,
Matt Humphrey
President
=================================================================
Upcoming Event
How to Protect Yourself & Your HOA from the Neighborhood Sociopath
Thursday, October 25, 2018
2:00 p.m. Eastern
An Exclusive HOAleader.com Webinar
With Practical Tips for Condo and HOA Boards
Learn more or register now:
https://www.hoaleader.com/products/protect-hoa-neighborhood-sociopath-b.cfm
Members save $30!
=================================================================
Recent articles posted at HOAleader.com:
================================================================
7 Tips for Handling Guests at Your HOA Pool Without Becoming a Headline
Condos and HOAs are increasingly being dragged into today's hot-button issues, particularly with the issue of guests at their facilities. According to the Washington Post, at least six of videos that gained traction online involving allegedly racial incidents took place at neighborhood swimming pools in such places as Indianapolis, Winston-Salem, N.C., Pasadena, Calif. Here are seven tips to avoid that and handle the problem if you do end up in the news.
Click here to read full article:
https://www.hoaleader.com/members/7-Tips-for-Handling-Guests-at-Your-HOA-Pool-Without-Becoming-Headline.cfm
================================================================
More Tips on Political Signs in Condos and HOAs as Next Month's Election Nears
The midterm elections are Nov. 6. In this week's tip, we offer additional insights on how you might handle political signs that are popping up on your residents' lawns, windows, and other places.
Click here to read full article:
https://www.hoaleader.com/public/More-Tips-on-Political-Signs-in-Condos-HOAs-as-Next-Months-Election-Nears.cfm
================================================================
Midterm Elections Are Weeks Away: Best Practices for Political Signs at Your Condo/HOA
A California owner is in a dispute with his HOA over two signs he's put in his home's window protesting the current administration's immigration policies and welcoming neighbors of different backgrounds.
Click here to read full article:
https://www.hoaleader.com/members/Midterm-Elections-Are-Weeks-Away-Best-Practices-for-Political-Signs-at-Your-CondoHOA.cfm
================================================================
Handling Fellow Board Members' Requests with Kindness and Respect
An HOAleader.com reader asks, "My question is how to handle this with kindness and respect. I have a board member who's a friend and wants to 'finish' the home's windows. That's where you frame it out and put a frame around every window; most homes have this done in the front of the house. The rest of house is just window seal."
Click here to read full article:
https://www.hoaleader.com/members/Handling-Fellow-Board-Members-Requests-with-Kindness-Respect.cfm
================================================================
When You Want Nonmembers on Your Condo/HOA Committees
An HOAleader.com reader asks, "If the only statement about committees in our declarations and bylaws is, 'The board of directors or the president may appoint committees of members to assist in the conduct of the affairs of the association,' does that mean we can ONLY have homeowners in our architectural review committee? Or can we have others who aren't homeowners volunteers? I only want an advisory ARC. They won't be making any final rulings or decisions."
Click here to read full article:
https://www.hoaleader.com/members/When-You-Want-Nonmembers-on-Your-Condo-HOA-Committees.cfm
=================================================================
Get your own copy!
Subscribe to the HOAleader.com Tip of the Week at:
https://www.hoaleader.com/public/department49.cfm
=================================================================
Please feel free to forward the *entire text* of this email to others.
Copyright 2018, Plain-English Media, LLC
(866) 641-4548
https://www.hoaleader.com