The Boulder Weekly is not really known as a bastion of fine journalism. An example is linked below where the reporter could really have done some better research.
The story is about Knollwood Village Homeowners Association, a tiny HOA just a five minute walk from the University of Washington Campus. The CC&Rs say renting a home in the HOA is limited to a single married couple only and immediate family members.
Well, since this year’s Supreme Court ruling the definition of ‘marriage’ no longer exists. The definition of ‘family’ no longer exists. Whether right or wrong that’s the functional result of the ruling. So a marriage or a family is anything a person, or his partner, or his or her multiple partners are say it is.
Yes, this HOA restriction against unmarried people living in Knollwood is illegal. No, the HOA can’t do anything about it. The City of Boulder is giving the complaint about three minutes worth of lip service. But anti-discrimination laws are the same under Boulder ordinances as they are in federal law and federal court decisions.
This one is huge, and it’s developing right now in Colorado.
A Homeowners Association in Vail is being sued because one of the supervisors in the management company was a jerk who was mistreating female Mexican workers. The Feds are now suing both the management company and the condo association.
I’ve owned two ski condos in that same area and I never had a clue who the management company was. I did get dinged a couple of times when I tried to change the locks on my doors. The management company bored through the locks, changed the door handle and charged me for their work. Yes, I was p.o.’d about that and it was one of the reasons I finally dumped the condos when the market improved.
But what if a federal EEOC sexual harassment lawsuit/judgment happened while I was still an owner? I could have been hit with a 10 to 50 thousand dollar special assessment for something I had zero knowledge about. Most Vail condos are owned by average people in Denver who just want to ski a week or two a year and rent them out the rest of the year to make the mortgage payments.
Incredible that completely innocent homeowners or condo owners could be financially ruined by this kind of thing.
You’re supposed to do your due-diligence before buying that first home. Sure, the place looks great. Yes, it’s a sexy North Miami Beach high rise condo.
But, good grief, take a look at what’s happening around you. One family in the building can’t access their six-story balcony because it’s hazardous. Walking onto the balcony could mean sudden death. There are dozens of others inaccessible balconies. The building is full of mold. There are allegations of the embezzlement of more than a million dollars worth of dues paid by homeowners to the management company for parking fees.
Big cracks are appearing in the Jade Winds high rise. The condo association has filed for bankruptcy. It’s not an uncommon phenomenon in North Miami Beach and around the country, for that matter.
This continues to be a national scandal, the biggest one that state and federal legislators are NOT looking at. “Please go away from my office. Please don’t talk about HOAs. It’s too confusing and my mental capacities are not functioning at full speed right now.”
I love the readers of this blog, I just want to protect them from financial disaster.
Something about the condo purchasing information in this newspaper column tells me she’s had some first-hand experience. She knows enough to wave the warning flag and sound the alarm, but not enough to know those items are the lesser of the worries in a condo purchase.
I’ve written her a paragraph about my perspective on condo living. If you feel so inclined to help add to her HOA education write her at: Heloise@Heloise.com
Perhaps it will be a newspaper columnist who impacts the most people in the shortest time period? I don’t know. What I do know is the vast knowledge about HOA and COAs among our readers must be shared far and wide.
Just today, I called an Attorney General’s office for some information as I was investigating another HOA nightmare. She asked me, “What makes you inquire about HOAs?” I proceeded to give her the shortest version I could of the past eight years of my HOA exploration and experience. She said, “You sure called me at the right time!” Our conversation continued with her telling me she is looking to buy her first home. All of her friends have purchased condos!!! She thanked me several times for the information I gave her. I hung up feeling like I had just saved a life! I feel 99.9% sure no real estate agent will get her signature on a contract for an HOA property. And I know she will do the research and read the things I suggested so her level of knowledge will most likely be greater than the Realtor trying to sell her a property.
