Condo Media - July 2014 - 26

HOMEOWNER'S
COLUMN NAME CORNER

Excuses, Excuses
Why Members Won't Pay

A

ssociation members who pay
their assessments late or not
at all come up with some very
interesting excuses. Here's half
a dozen of the most common, and why
it's smart not to use them.

Excuse #1: "I didn't
get what I paid for."

"My building hasn't been painted in ﬁve
years! I'm not paying another cent until
some basic maintenance gets done."
"The power was out for three days
during the storm. I'm withholding a
pro-rated amount from my assessment
check."
You have a right to require the association to perform its duties, and
various legal channels exist to accomplish this. Withholding assessments is
not one of them. If you withhold your
check or pay a reduced amount, you'll
become delinquent, and that leads to
late fees, possible foreclosure, and ultimately a worse situation.

Excuse #2: "You didn't bill me."
"I didn't get an invoice."
"You didn't tell me I was behind in
my payments."
Many association governing documents neither require the association
to send invoices nor provide advance
notice of payments due or past due.
However, associations are required
to send the approved budget to each
owner annually. When the association
approves and sends the budget each
year to members, it contains notice of
the amount owners must pay annually. If you're ever unsure about the
amount or the due dates, you should
contact the board and/or management company.
26

CONDO MEDIA * JULY 2014

Excuse #3:
"You can't do that!"

"These people have no right to make
me pay for neighborhood upkeep."
"If they think I'm paying those outrageous late fees and interest, they're crazy."
Actually, the association not only has
the authority, it has a duty to all owners
to collect assessments. This authority is
established in the governing documents
and the state's common interest ownership statutes. When you moved into a
community association, you agreed to
abide by those documents - and that
includes paying assessments.

Excuse #4: "I never use the
recreational facilities."

"I don't play golf, and it's an expensive
game. I shouldn't have to pay to maintain the course."
"I've never been in the ﬁtness center,
and I don't plan to ever use it. Why can't
you pro-rate my assessments accordingly?"
Admittedly, recreational facilities are
expensive to operate and - for some
associations - represent a good chunk
of the budget. Nevertheless, most declarations specify that even if you don't
use the association's amenities you're
still obligated to pay for their upkeep.
Many residents move into a community
speciﬁcally for the recreational amenities; they're willing to pay for them
because they take full advantage of the
opportunities they provide. Even if
you're not using some of the amenities,
they make the community more desirable and the homes in the community
more valuable. If you're not using the
facilities, perhaps you should consider
whether the community is the best ﬁt
for you and your needs.

Excuse #5: "I paid in full."

Sometimes the association receives a
check that says "paid in full" in the
memo section - but it isn't. Or the
check will arrive with a letter or note,
stating the check is "payment in full,"
or it covers all charges through a
certain date. Nice try. If you still have
an outstanding balance, your check
is likely going to be returned to you.
This will put you further behind in
your payments and just cause more
late fees.

Excuse #6:
"The fees are too high."

Assessments reﬂect the actual cost of
maintaining all common elements in the
community. If you owned your home
outside the association, you would
have to pay individually for all the same
expenses your assessments cover - trash
removal, water, landscaping, and so on.
In fact, you may actually be spending less
on assessments because the association
may have bulk buying power, and you
may be getting more because the common areas provide amenities that you
likely could not afford on your own.

Legitimate Reasons,
Not Excuses

When association members lose their
jobs or become injured or ill, the association board should understand that
arrangements need to be worked out
for paying assessments. If you have a
legitimate reason for falling behind and
you need to work out a payment plan,
members should contact the association
and/or management company. The
board should consider each situation
individually and attempt to accommodate special circumstances if possible. CM
Condo Media - July 2014

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