Monthly Archives: March 2012

Gated HOA Gated Community Streets Responsibility

By Robert Lee Long Citizens say streets in Cross Creek, a private gated community in Hernando, are in need of repair and one of the ways to upgrade their condition is to make them public. One way to achieve improvements and upgrades is to turn the streets over to the city. At issue, however, is the fact that plats of the subdivision will have to be changed, and if the streets are taken into the city, they will have to be accessible to the public. Leigh Pegram, president of the Cross Creek Homeowners Association, said the group is exploring their … Click Here For Entire Entry

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Who Pays For HOA BulkHeads

By Gretchen Wenner One of Oxnard’s premier neighborhoods, where boats nose up to million-dollar homes and the ocean beckons just beyond the harbor, has a problem borne of its marine environment: Sea walls are getting old. The reinforced concrete walls that protect Mandalay Bay’s 743 homes were built in the late 1960s and early 1970s. They had a projected life span of roughly 40 years — time that’s about up. A group of homeowners is advocating pre-emptive repairs that would cost a fraction of the estimated $118 million needed for total replacement. A recent evaluation found some stretches are at … Click Here For Entire Entry

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Homeowner Association Attorney Ethics

By Jan Bergemann In a perfect community association world the association attorney would make sure that the interests of all members of the community are represented when acting on behalf of the association. The actions of the attorney would benefit all members of the community – since all are paying the legal bills equally. Board members and owners should be able to rely on an attorney, who acts as the professional the association hired to represent its legal interest. But since we are not in a perfect community association world, we see lots of problems caused by association attorneys who … Click Here For Entire Entry

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HOAs Adjust To Texas Law Changes

By MATTHEW WATKINS Want to go green by harvesting rainwater and installing solar panels at your house? Your homeowners association can no longer stop you, even if it considers the projects eyesores. Religious symbols under a certain height and flagpoles with United States, Texas or military flags are now also fair game. And if your homeowners association wants to foreclose on your home for missed dues and unpaid fines, there are new hurdles it must clear. That is because of a series of new laws passed during the 2011 legislative session that have shaken up how the state’s numerous and … Click Here For Entire Entry

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13 Helps Condo Owner Get Action From HOA

By Loni Blandford Water can cause quite a lot of damage when it leaks, especially if you are living in an apartment. So when it happened at one Valley condo, the owners turned to their Homeowner’s Association. But when they couldn’t get an answer, they turned to Action News. “Apparently, there was a leak upstairs,” explained Darlene Castello. Water started leaking into the Las Vegas condo owned by Darlene’s parents. It damaged the walls and even the carpet. So Darlene called the Homeowner’s Association for help. “I started calling daily. Leaving message after message after message,” said Darlene. Darlene says … Click Here For Entire Entry

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Texas Homeowner Association Laws

By Bill Oliver With more than 60 homeowners associations (HOA), the city of College Station TX is devoting staff time to staying on top of new state laws. Barbara Moore of College Station’s neighborhood services office says additional requirements for HOA’s will affect how she does her job. Before new laws took affect January 1st, Moore says they worked with recruiting and training new HOA officers. Now, she will be assisting HOA’s with complying with new open meetings and records requirements among other things. Moore says a recent meeting with 80 HOA representatives and members of a HOA trade association … Click Here For Entire Entry

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Tomball TX Police Connects Homeowner Associations

By Catherine Dominguez Despite a small turnout, area residents along with the Tomball Police Department are moving forward with an initial email list to get local homeowners association leaders connected. Administrative Sergeant Rebecca Carlisle with the Tomball Police Dept. met with residents March 8 to provide them with information about what they can do to increase security in their communities and discourage crime. Carlisle said it was important for local communities to establish an electronic system to communicate with each other, including using social media like Facebook and Twitter along with an email blast list. She also said it was … Click Here For Entire Entry

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Legislator ‘oops’ on HOA Legislation HB-2160

by Kathleen Stinson Arizona House Bill 2160, authored by Scottsdale Republican state Rep. John Kavanagh and approved by the state House earlier this week, sets new standards for condominium and HOA board elections. It will now go before a Senate committee. Kavanagh said his bill guarantees secret ballots, prohibits an HOA from including endorsements in official board mailings, prohibits counting ballots before the close of an election, allows for a representative from each candidate to observe the counting, and provides that any identifying information be placed on the outer envelope and not on the ballot itself. Kavanagh said his bill … Click Here For Entire Entry

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Associa Announces Opening of Texas HOA Collections Service

There was a recent news article that announced that – HOA Collection Services (HCS), an Associa company, launches this week in Texas and California, providing collection services to community associations. “When community association Boards find collections services necessary, it is paramount to provide efficient, respectful service at a competitive cost,” said Paul Reyes, president of HCS. Associa is the largest Homeowner Association and Property Owner Association companies in the United States and is moving into Canada and Mexico. It is a diversified company with branches in every aspect of HOAs, including homeowner association management, insurance, and now collections. Associa also … Click Here For Entire Entry

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