Tag Archives: Homeowner’s Associations

Don’t Be Too Quick To Praise Colorado HOA Law

Colorado legislators are very much like those in other states: “Pass a law to make the voters shut up and go away.”

And the new Homeowners Association laws in Colorado just aggravate the problem. All HOA officers and managers must now be state licensed. Hmmm, who provides the testing and licensing? Well, the largest organized crime syndicate in the country, of course!  I don’t need to provide you with their three initials.

No more HOA mandates for Kentucky bluegrass. That’s not a bad change, although most Colorado homeowners don’t use it anyway.

The new law requires all HOAs to pay a small registration fee to the State HOA office. This one is more than laughable. Over the past three years only about half of Colorado HOAs have even bothered to register. They just mock this idiot who was appointed to the office. Oh, and there’s no penalty for not registering. Legislators are idiots, too.

The head of the new HOA office is supposed to recommend to Legislators how much power over HOAs his office should have.  This is more than pathetic. I met this guy once. A man without a clue. A body in search of a brain. Mark my words, he’s married to the HOA industry and will never propose anything, aside from going outside for a smoke.

Anyone who knows anything about the Colorado HOA Ombudsman’s office just mocks it. An e-coli bacterium has more influence and power.

At least the e-coli bacterium can interrupt functions of the colon.

Colorado’s HOA Ombudsman doesn’t have a colon.

Just a salary.

http://tinyurl.com/nebdnaz

 

 

 

 

Oh What A Tangled Web We Embezzlers Weave

Texas Senator

Texas SenatorYes, folks, it’s another million dollar embezzlement from trusting homeowners in California. At least the Feds are finally taking action. A Federal Grand Jury has indicted Chris Barna for stealing $950,000 from Homeowners Associations that once trusted him. Although he hasn’t been convicted yet, I have no problem calling him a dirtbag. Prosecutors say he misappropriated 342 checks, spent the money on nice things for himself, and manipulated the records for M&C Association Management.

He’s currently free on $200,000 bond, which is a crime all by itself. But heck, California is so broke they can’t pay to feed one extra prisoner.  And with state finances in such bad shape, does anyone really think Barna will get any kind of prison term?  Ah yes, it’ll be a federal prison, not a California prison. But then again, aren’t the Feds about to “go over the financial cliff” in the current parlance?

Mark my words, Barna will get to keep the 950,000 bucks, he’ll get little or no prison time, the court will order restitution, and Barna won’t pay back a dime. The homeowners will be on the hook, though. Each homeowner who lives in a Barna-swindled association will be hit with a special assessment to make up the stolen money. Ain’t California great?

Oh, and I almost forgot. The owner of Barna’s company is Associa. Who or what is Associa? Well, Associa is owned by Texas Senator John Carona. Ask anyone from Texas.

Or better yet, let me link you to Jan Bergemann’s website where he discusses Associa in detail. And God bless you, Jan Bergemann!

Read the original article here …

Kansas City Embezzler

Here’s an HOA embezzler who made a pretty good score for himself. 53 year old Dale Palmer was in a position of trust with dozens of Homeowners Associations in Missouri.  He operated a firm called “Homeowner Association Services (HOAS), and his take was $750,000. Nice work if you can get it.

Palmer has been preparing false business statements for his 3 member homeowner associations for the past couple of years.  His excuse to police was that he was very poor at managing money for HOAs, and he just could keep all that cash straight.

I imagine if you’re swimming in a backyard swimming poll filled with $750,000 cash, it would be kind of hard to keep track of things, too.

Swim on, Slime Bag.  You hurt a whole lot of elderly homeowners who trusted you!

Ward Lucas
Author of
Neighbors At War: The Creepy Case Against Your Homeowners Association

Homeowner Association Beaten by a Pig!

Wilbur the Pig’s family had to spend thousands of dollars defending their pet pig. So did the Harris County, Texas HOA, which did everything it could to have Wilbur thrown to the wolves. Wilbur is a Vietnamese pot-bellied pig, an extremely intelligent species which has been bred as housepets. Tens of thousands of pig owners say they make marvelous companions.

But The Thicket at Cypresswood Community Improvement Association thought otherwise. Just the thought that the Alex Sardo family was keeping a non-traditional pet in their home threw the HOA into histrionics. Threats to sue, threats to poison, threats of vandalism, threats to seize the Sardo home and sell it at auction.

Wilbur finally got his day in court, and for once a District Court Judge was not friendly to an HOA. He ruled that the evidence was clear that this breed of pig is definitely considered a household pet. But Judge Mike Engelhart went further. He warned that Homeowners Associations have a responsibility not to infringe too much on homeowners’ use of their land. He said it’s time to set a precedent: that Homeowners Associations cannot micromanage their residents behavior.

There was obvious pissing and moaning on the HOA side of the room. There’s no word on whether the Sardo family will be awarded legal fees. It will be a tragedy if they don’t get back every dime in this stupid dispute. It would also be true justice if a special assessment had to be levied against the whole neighborhood to pay for the wasted legal expenses.

Sadly, this won’t be the end of the story. Beware the “neighborhood nazi.” The Sardo family is going to be made just as miserable as this HOA dares.

One of the Heroes in the Fight

CalHomeLaw.org is one of the heroes in the heroes in fight against abuse by Homeowners Associations. It costs a few bucks to join, but the average member will be paid back many times in advice and information. It’s designed for California residents but every homeowner in the country can profit from their wisdom and research.

Anyway, in their 2/25/12 email, CalHomeLaw notes how debt collectors cut their own throats in a meeting of the California Legislature. The Radcliffs were an elderly disabled couple in Calaveras County. For some reason, the couple overlooked a $120 annual assessment. The debt collector, Coast Assessment Collection, claimed the couple had been legally served with papers. During questioning, the company admitted that it had stapled the notice of foreclosure to a tree on the far side of the Radcliff’s property.

Angry senators then introduced SB137, a bill to clean up predatory collection practices. The new law demands that notices of foreclosure be physically put into the hands of those targeted for foreclosure. You can’t mail it, you can’t toss it on the porch, it has to be in the homeowner’s hands.

Also, the HOA initiating the foreclosure has to follow a number of other new procedures to make sure that homes aren’t whipped away from the owners. Dispute resolution is mandated.

Still, CalHomeLaw notes that many HOA debt collectors continue the old practices and haven’t improved their behavior.

Ah. Almost forgot to tell you. (dang my fading memory!) Most of the HOA debt collectors are law firms or subdivisions of law firms. (How could I forget that?)

CalHomeLaw.org has the whole sordid story posted.

Ward Lucas
Author of
Neighbors At War: The Creepy Case Against Your Homeowners Association