Homeowners Balk at Phantom “Emergency” Assessments of $9000 to $49,000
It’s happening up and down California from Orange County to San Joaquin.
HOA boards are demanding – under threat of foreclosure by the HOA – that owners pay special assessments ranging from $9000 to $49,000 per unit to finance “emergency” repairs when it’s not clear that an “emergency” even exists.
Yorba Linda homeowners (Orange County) have until March 15 to pay an estimated $9000 consisting of a one-time special assessment on top of special fees for “emergency” repairs. In addition, the Linda Villages Condominium Association board has increased regular dues of homeowners by 20%.
Homeowner Dan Ionita-Ariton estimates that over the next four years he will have to shell out approximately $60,000 in additional cash – money he doesn’t have.
Dan’s neighbor is first-time homebuyer Brian Guillen, who bought his home just two years ago. He says he will probably have to sell his condo and move his family into his parents’ home. “There is no way we can afford these assessments,” he says. Here’s the news story from ABC television https://abc7.com/yorba-linda-villages-condominium-association-hoa-fees-orange-county-homes-california/12797554/
San Joaquin homeowners are facing the same threat. Because they fear retaliation, they don’t want their HOA named, but the board just sent a bill for $49,000 for “emergency” repairs with a demand letter telling owners if they didn’t pay by February 1 that the association would record liens against their homes 30 days later and start foreclosure proceedings after that. There’s no evidence that an “emergency” even exists.
Last year CCHAL published Newsbriefs reporting on $60,000, $70,000, and $100,000 per unit assessments for “emergency” repairs in Ventura, Los Angeles, and Sacramento counties.
Can HOA boards do this – spring astronomical “emergency” assessments on homeowners and force them to pay under threat of foreclosure?
Yes – and No.
State law does give boards the right to levy emergency assessments BUT ONLY IN LIMITED AND SPECIFIC CIRCUMSTANCES, e.g. under a court order. See https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=CIV§ionNum=5610.
Two aspects of “emergency” assessments are scary for homeowners:
- THEY HAVE NO DOLLAR CAPS
- THEY REQUIRE NO VOTE BY HOMEOWNERS (unlike “special” assessments)
If your HOA has levied a SURPRISE assessment for “emergency” repairs – LIKE THE YORBA LINDA HOMEOWNERS GOT — and is forcing you to pay it, CCHAL wants to hear from you at [email protected]
We also urge homeowners to report “emergency” assessments to your state Senator and state Assembly Member in Sacramento. Don’t know who your lawmakers are? Go here to find out www.findyourrepr.legislature.ca.gov Your lawmakers sit on the policy committees that VOTE on HOA bills coming up this year.
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