Very little about this business surprises me anymore. But surprised I was!!
It’s very well known that Homeowner's Associations are struggling. You don’t need to be a rocket scientist to figure that out, it’s all over the news and obvious in some neighborhoods. This whole foreclosure and short sale circus has really taken a toll on their budgets and in many cases there is no recovering those lost funds. (Ok, I know there probably isn’t one of you that’s not thinking “well payback’s a ..#&%*!, those weren’t weeds they were wildflowers”) And believe me, I’m right there with you! HOA management is not at the top of my Christmas card list. But, and this is a BIG but, no matter how nice your property may be, its value is fundamentally dependent on the condition of your community… the HOAs job.
HOAs have been frantically scrambling to reclaim dues that owners of short sales and foreclosures have been unable to pay, for years in some cases. When these homes are sold, the HOA submits an invoice theoretically directed at the Seller. Sometimes that seller is the owner who clearly has no disposable cash, sometimes a bank and your guess is as good as mine when it comes to banks paying… well, anything. How many buyers are aware that those delinquent HOA dues, certainly not their responsibility, could come down on their head like a ton of bricks? In the case that prompted this blog, over $3,500 worth. Odly, this isn’t the surprise I was talking about.
As I’m sure you can guess, this was not anywhere near OK with the buyer. But the HOA wasn’t budging. It was paid in full or the property wasn’t closing. So here’s the thing… there really are some surprises left in this business. After a few unproductive phone calls and one desperate e-mail, the manager of the HOA called me back! Well, that was surprising! Surprise turned to genuine shock when she then agreed to bring our plea to the board, and I nearly fell out of my chair when she called back the next morning with a completely reasonable mediation, an amount acceptable to both the HOA and the buyer.
This world is full of surprises, some good, some very bad. But today I can honestly say that I LOVE surprises!
Good points, and I do feel that Mgmt Companies are realizing a bite of the apple is better than nothing at all. All businesses are looking at negotiating with their debters as well, and that something is better than nothing. Be it an unpaid landscape bill, auto repair, etc. The economy situation has brought this on. Bill
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