Couple in nasty battle with South Natomas homeowners association - Real Estate - The Sacramento Bee
"The Campbells say the dispute began when they raised questions about the association's finances and complained about a lack of handicapped access to the neighborhood swimming pool. In return, they say, they were threatened with fines, disciplined, and denied homeowner privileges. The dispute has escalated to the point that the Campbells say they have gone to the FBI with allegations about the association's finances, while the association's lawyers have told the Campbells they don't even own their home."
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I was interviewed for this story and had this to say:
"Despite the prevalence of HOAs, there is no government entity that regularly oversees how they operate, McKenzie said. There are many devoted board members and many conscientious association lawyers, he said. But when things turn sour, associations and their lawyers wield outsized power, while homeowners have little recourse. Litigation is often the homeowners' only option, but few have the funds to hire lawyers, McKenzie said. He likened it to a criminal justice system with prosecutors but no defense lawyers. "Because they only represent one side, they become extremely adversarial," McKenzie said of HOA attorneys. "They are pro-association and anti-owner. They want total obedience. The owners are the enemy. They see them as troublemakers."
2 comments:
It is extremely noteworthy that both of the Campbells were on the H.O.A. corporation's board of directors.
The Campbells said their troubles
started more than two years ago.
Allen Campbell, who served on the
homeowners board at the time, said
he became concerned about the
association's finances and asked to see
its bank accounts but was never given
access.
. . .
Campbell said he resigned in protest
from the board in May 2011 because of
what he called a lack of accountability.
Cynthia Campbell was elected to the
board later that year. She, too, said
she tried to see the bank accounts, but
received only partly redacted financial
records after she was promised the same
access that some other board members
and property managers already had.
. . .
Cynthia Campbell said she resigned from
the board in October 2012 after other board
members demanded she leave "because of
Allen" and his continued complaints.
So much for the usual worthless drivel from the Communisty Associations Institute that problems like this would be avoided if only home owners would just Get Involved ™.
Does HOA Syndrome exist ? Dr. Garry Solomon believes so and so do many others as this case seems to involve.
In today’s culture of CID housing, STRESSING THEM seems to have become a new powerful weapon of association governance when economics and other tactics fail. In order for associations to retain / demand total obedience and control over those who purchased into the industry’s housing product.
Finally what most consumers and many State legislators don’t understand or refuse to acknowledge, is that first and foremost CIDs today are created to satiate the economic desires of municipalities. In order to force the privatization of housing upon developers and consumers and not as most often advertised to make better community or even to protect property values. In fact history over the last fifty years has proven those claims to be marketing hype to encourage acceptance/sales by masquerading what’s really the goal and who really it’s intended to benefit.
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