Letter to BOD in response to 2013 Budget Letter

November 26, 2012

 

Angela D Shinn, Community Manager

Superior Community Management

P. O. Box 4585

Tualatin, Ore. 97062-9997

RE: 2013 Budget letter and enclosed declaration

 

Dear Mrs. Angela Shinn,

 

First and foremost, the Board of Directors (BOD) of the Oak Knoll Homeowners Association has no statutory authority to ask for the private information contained within the “HOMEOWNER AND TENANT CONTACT INFORMATION AND DECLARATION” page. It is none of the board’s business who resides within my home, who our emergency contacts are, and/or what vehicles we own or that may which be parked on our property. Therefore you will not receive that information from me, and I have encouraged several other homeowners to do just the same via Facebook and my OKHA blog, as well as in person.

 

Second, I see the BOD and the attorneys for the HOA quietly agreed with my previous legal arguments about the reserve account and required reserve study mandated by the CC&Rs, voted in by the 1999 (then) BOD, and the Oregon Revised Statutes (ORS 94.595) on point. I believe this is the third time, or maybe the fourth that I’ve provided the better legal argument in which the BOD of the HOA (and its attorneys) have conceded to in one form or another. Not sure, lost count over the years…anyhow, I digress.

 

Getting back on track, the letter also stated that the sidewalk maintenance reminders about tree damage along Foothills will be repaired by the HOA. What budgetary item would this repair come from, because under ORS 94.595, only that which is a common property of the HOA shall reserve funds be used to repair, maintain and/or replace that common property.

 

I will be monitoring the board meeting minutes and come this time next year, I will be asking for a copy or appointment to review the HOA’s expense account history for 2013; and if I find even one non-common property being repaired, maintained or replaced via reserve account funds in violation of ORS 94.595, we will have a problem.

 

Exactly what board meeting (so I may select the minutes from the website) did the BOD approve of adding a new budgetary item – Tree Trimming & Removal – to the annual budget? This is a self-serving budget item in the sense that it benefits only those homeowners along Foothills Dr. and that is a breach of the BOD fiduciary duties in ensuring fairness to all homeowners.

 

In other words, this line item budget account for the trees along Foothills was merely to circumvent ORS 94.595 and the CC&Rs that clearly state that ALL trees of the association are to be maintained by the HOA, not just those along Foothills Drive. Either the HOA pays for the repair, maintenance and/or replacement of ALL the trees within the HOA as the CC&Rs state, or none at all. Continuing the “status quo” of the BOD ignorance from one generation of the board to the next is still a violation of the plain language of the CC&Rs and ORS 94.595 regarding common property.

 

Yours Truly...

 

UPDATE: As of January 15, 2013...no reply to the questions posed within this letter. Surprised? Of course not.

 

OKHA 2013 Budget Letter - MUST READ!!!

Dear fellow homeowners,

Many of you should have received the 2013 Budget Letter that included a HOMEOWNER AND TENANT CONTACT INFORMATION AND DECLARATION page today, if not you soon will.

A few things to keep in mind as you read over these documents for the coming new year, and to ponder on years past as well.

First and foremost is the FACT that the Board of Directors (BOD) are assessing us another reserve, though significantly less than the $14.5k in 2011; the KEY POINT OF FACT to note here is the $350 reserve study charge. The mere fact that the BOD put this line item in the budget last year and have not funded for one in order to legally justify the $3,627 they are charging us this is PROVES that my LEGAL ARGUMENT presented to the BOD in 2011 was in fact CORRECT!

The BOD via their own law firm has quietly (they would never admit it in writing) conceded to my argument and are now finally doing what they are supposed to do where the reserve study is concerned in order to justify the amount being asked for in funding the reserve account for the year.

On that note, I would highly encourage each and every one of you to write the management company and ask for a copy of the reserve study so that you may see where the BOD are spending our money via the reserve account. Because if history is anything, it is always repeated...and in the letter enclosed with the budget is proof that history is once again being repeated!!

In the budget they a $1,000 assessment for Tree Trimming and Removal for those trees along Foothills Drive. This, once again, is NOT a common improvement of the OKHA!!! It is NOT the collective homeowners responsibility to fund this account.

Nor is it the collective homeowners responsibility to pay for ANY sidewalk damage caused by the street trees along Foothills Drive, yet within the letter the BOD says it is; it is NOT and the CC&Rs don't support it and THEY KNOW IT and THEY (both the BOD and the attorney representing them at a past HOA meeting) ADMITTED IT!!!! They're just continuing the status quo of the same error they did in the past, and they will continue to do so until a group of us take a stand against their illegal self-serving agenda.

This means that NONE OF THE RESERVE FUNDS can be used to pay for the repair of the sidewalks damaged by the street trees because they are NOT a common improvement of the HOA.

They shouldn't even be having a separate account charging us $1,000 for the trimming and removal of the trees (I intend to review the CC&Rs, By Laws and Oregon Revised Statutes on the authority of the BOD to create such an account for NON-common improvements of the HOA)!!!

Second, it's interesting to see yet again how the expense of having the management company - THAT DOES NOTHING EFFECTIVE OR MEANINGFUL TO THE BENEFIT OF THIS ASSOCIATION - is going UP!!!!

Last but not least, the HOMEOWNER AND TENANT CONTACT INFORMATION AND DECLARATION sheet is NOT REQUIRED and the BOD has NO LEGAL RIGHT to ask for this information. By giving them this information you voluntarily put your privacy at risk!!!!!

DO NOT COMPLETE THIS FORM!!!! It is NONE of the BOD business to know anything more than that which was provided them when you purchased your home!!!!

For those of you who are renters, you have no responsibility either under the CC&Rs to complete either!!!!

Food for thought to fill any space not filled from your Thanksgiving!!

Sincerely Yours,

OKHA Watch Dog

If you do nothing...

If you do nothing to make a change regarding that which you complain about...then you lose the right to complain about it.

Food for thought!