The last thing that any homeowners association (HOA) board member wants is a problem that lands them in court—particularly someone getting hurt at a meeting. However, sometimes the unwanted happens, as it did recently with the homeowners at a condominium complex located in Mesa, Arizona. It was a situation that escalated, got out of control, and ended up in a court room.
While no one thinks this will ever happen in their community, there are some important lessons to be learned from what happened in Mesa.
A few people who live in the condominium community felt they were being unfairly targeted and receiving violations and fines. When one woman tried to inquire about it, things escalated. She attended an HOA meeting that turned into a yelling match. HOA members told her on camera to move out of the Mesa neighborhood, and then she was hit by another member. To make a long story short, she wanted to see the HOA financial records, but was being denied access.
When she was finally able to get the HOA financial records, she found out that the funds had been spent on questionable items. There were many receipts for dining out, and other purchases that the HOA hadn’t seemed to use for the benefit for the community, including almonds, alcohol, laundry detergent, and baby wipes, to name a few things cited in news reports. All in all, the HOA president had been reimbursed for $38,000 over a course of two years according to news reports.
Dealing with Problem Homeowners
Not all situations need to turn ugly, and it should be the mission of every HOA board to do what they can to keep it from happening. There are several precautions that an HOA board can take in order to help avoid circumstances from escalating.
- Be transparent. It is important that the HOA not hide anything. The board should be completely transparent with their meetings, expenses, records, and anything else that homeowners may have an interest in. If homeowners approach the board seeking financial records, hand them over or make sure the management company does so.
- Get homeowners involved. When homeowners are involved, there is going to be more harmony in the community. Be sure to inform and invite them to meetings, get the word out about important issues, and welcome their questions and concerns.
- Stick to the rules. While we can’t say why alcohol was on HOA receipts, there is a good chance that it wasn’t how the homeowners wanted their money spent. Stick to what is best for the community with every purchase you make.
- Suggest mediation. If someone has an issue with the HOA that can’t be resolved through a meeting between them and the board, suggest going to mediation first. This is going to be more cost effective and may save a legal headache.
- Tape difficult meetings. Anytime there is going to be a difficult meeting, get the recorder rolling. Inform everyone that the meeting will be taped and then tape the entire thing. That way, everything is out in the open and there are no questions later about anything that took place. This is just one more step in transparency.
- Use a responsive management company.  Nothing damages an HOA board’s reputation more than a management company that doesn’t return calls or respond to homeowner requests.  Homeowners often view the management company as an extension of the board.  If the management company isn’t transparent than homeowners will believe the board is trying to hide something.
Even HOA boards who seem to have happy homeowners should keep this information in mind. It doesn’t take much to get someone worked up to the point where they dig for more information and escalate a situation. If you and your HOA board are prepared and know how to handle it, the outcome will be for everyone involved.
