Snap people are not paying thier Association fees.

Condos Feel the Mortgage Crunch - washingtonpost.com

Condos Feel the Mortgage Crunch
Behind on Payments, Many Owners Forgo Association Dues

By Nancy Trejos
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, April 7, 2007; Page D01

At Glen Waye Gardens Condominiums in Silver Spring, 21 owners are more than 30 days behind on their monthly condo fees. Two other owners have not paid since they bought their units, one in April 2005 and the other in September 2006. Both properties went into foreclosure.

The lost fees, which make up 5 percent of the association's annual budget of $1.3 million, have pushed the condo board to dip into its reserve funds to fix the roof and replace a water heater.

Vicki Vergagni, board president of Glen Waye Gardens Condominiums in Silver Spring, where 21 owners are at least a month behind on fees, said:
Vicki Vergagni, board president of Glen Waye Gardens Condominiums in Silver Spring, where 21 owners are at least a month behind on fees, said: "We've had to use way too much of our reserves." (By Susan Biddle -- The Washington Post)


"When those things go bad, you have to spend on them. You have no choice," said Vicki Vergagni, president of the 214-unit community's board. "We've had to use way too much of our reserves."

Guess that last part about using the reserve funds sound funny to you too. Because if my memory serves me right it is against the law to use reserve funds for anything other than repair and maintenance of property. So now they have an under funded budget and a draining reserve fund. I wonder how those are going to be brought back into the black? Special Assessments which=Debit

Here is another funny thing about this in Maryland. With no financial disclosure on Townhouse and Single family Associations sales someone could move in and not know the community is bankrupt. Or what the status of the physical assets of the overall community

I also like the WashPost only showing the lien and foreclosure remedy for getting deliquient dues paid...Since I was one of the founder of an alternative method that does not result and lawyers getting rich and communities actually getting paid. One would think they could dig a bit deeper and find www.CommunityCollections.com

Good luck if your buying a home in Maryland because you will need it. Seeing how there is no law to help or one coming anytime soon.

Technorati Tags: Condo, HOA, Assessments, Foreclosure

So what that three hundred VA communities lost their money!

Homeowner Groups' Funds Missing in N.Va. - washingtonpost.com

Homeowner Groups' Funds Missing in N.Va.
Employee of Fairfax Management Company May Have Embezzled $800,000, State Officials Say

By Bill Turque
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, March 21, 2007; Page B01

At least $800,000 from homeowner associations in Northern Virginia may be missing and was probably embezzled by an employee of the Fairfax company hired to manage the money, state officials charge in court documents.

Koger Management Group Inc., which handles funds for more than 300 homeowner groups with approximately 70,000 members, was placed under a court-ordered monitor Feb. 26 while a forensic accountant appointed by the Virginia Real Estate Board investigates the disappearance of the money.

Guess what the State of Maryland does not require that Homeowner Associations have audited books, Anyone want to guess how many communities are missing some fund in Maryland. What I do know is that not very many elected offical's care.

Oh well it's just the economy going down the tube and 3 out of 4 homes in Maryland. No big deal no one need to do anything. It will just fix itself.

Technorati Tags: Homeowners Associations, MD, Lack of Disclosure, HOA Act,

I guess things change of the Hill too. Or do they?

I am sad to say that just the other day that I had the unhelpful experience with a staffer from Senator Mikulski's office. It started right after Al's senate testimony.

I was the Senator leaving and stopped her to say hello and to bring up to her some of the problems facing Maryland and other homeowner across the country which was along the line of some fact finding she did a few years earlier at the request of my company CPWI. She was like fine and a staffer stepped up and handed me her card, actually two of them and this staffer said call her and she will help.

So what happened? Well for those that already read this post ya know the first part--But like many things in life there may be a happy ending with the start of the new week. Seeing how I have now heard for the Senators office and it seems to be function very well.

Which just goes to show ya everyone has a bad day. Now if we can just do something about the State of Communities