Ensuring Fiscal Responsibility : Addressing maintenance fund misuse and upholding HOA regulations
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Ensuring Fiscal Responsibility : Addressing maintenance fund misuse and upholding HOA regulations
MEET OUR GUEST EXPERT
What recourse do I have when most HOA trustees decide , without proper procedure , to varnish doors and windows despite earlier agreements ? They bypassed the required notice and vote yet claim majority support based on a simple YES / NO poll .
Additionally , they ' re pushing for costly changes like aluminum replacements without proper owner consent . How can I address this misuse of maintenance funds and ensure adherence to HOA regulations ?
A
Homeowners ’ Association does not fall under the Sectional Titles Schemes Management Act 8 of 2011 , but rather under the Companies ’ Act 71 of 2008 , having a Memorandum of Incorporation ( MOI ) which governs scheme .
MARINA CONSTAS Attorney , Sectional Title Specialist & Author BBM Law
Without seeing the exact clauses of the MOI , it is difficult to reply to this question . If we assume that there are no clauses in the architectural guidelines clause and the MOI is silent on whose responsibility it is to varnish doors and window frames , then it would be the responsibility of each homeowner to varnish their own doors and window frames .
The homes in an HOA are freehold and the Directors handle the funds in respect of common property areas . This would not stop them making policies about what the specifications for the work undertaken would be . Perhaps the rationale for the HOA taking over this responsibility is that individual owners are not keeping up the varnishing , rendering the scheme shabby and unkempt .
The way that the Directors have gone about things , however , is irregular and illegal . Firstly , there would have had to be a meeting for agreement to take place around delegating this work to the HOA .
10 MAY 2024 Real Estate Investor Magazine