HOA Fee, who controls it?

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fjdc_IHB

New member
Hi everyone,

Regarding the home assoication of the new development (Portola Springs, for example), it is obviously higher than that of NP & NPS. Does anyone have a clue on how they come up with the number and is the builder making profit out of it? I'm interested in getting a unit in Manzanita, but the HOAs are just outrageous and they dont even make sense. I dont understand why NP can maintain a relatively low HOA with so many parks & pools while the one in PS cant do that.

Any feedback will be appreciated!
 
HOA is paid to the association not the builder. The association is non-profit. A lot of the fees go into reserve for repairs such as replacing roof or garage doors.
 
<p>fjdc</p>

<p> </p>

<p>The HOA fee on a new home is established by the builder submitting a budget to the California Department of Real Estate and getting it approved as part of receiving the Subdivision Report (White Report) allowing them to sell the project. A copy of the budget at each phase as well as build out has to be provided to any prospective buyer.</p>

<p>Sometimes the initial phases are subsidized by the builder since the ammenties can not be supported by the contribution of only a few home without the dues being a detrement to the marketing.</p>

<p>The budget is comprised of three areas: Annual operating expenses, Reserves to replace various items, and Contingency funds.</p>

<p>The builder makes no profit from HOA dues as they are paid to and controlled by the HOA. At first the builder is the Board but they have a responsibility to the home owners to act in their behalf in good faith.</p>

<p>The overall submission is highly controlled and usually prepared by consultants that specialize in budget preparation.</p>

<p>The governing documents are provided at the time of purchase but most buyers do not read them.</p>

<p>Often there are 2 associations. One being the Master HOA and the other being tract specific. All information on both should be read and understood fully by any prospective buyer.</p>

<p>I hope this helps you a little.</p>

<p>Enjoy!</p>

<p> </p>
 
XSoCal - Doesn't land pricing play a part in this as well? Doesn't the HOA have to buy the common area land (parks, pools, etc.) from the developer?





FJDC - Because Manzanita is a quasi-detached condo scenario, you are paying two HOA fees - one for the master association (Portola Springs) and one for your immediate association (Manzanita). This is one of the reasons I'm not a fan of the detached condo products. If you're in a true SFR, you only pay one HOA fee. In the detached, you have to pay two, but don't get the benefit of the HOA insuring the structure and have to pay that as well. Check with the sales advisor on whether the HOA insures the structure at Manzanita, because those are partially attached.
 
Eva



The HOA areas are noted on the tract map, usualy as lettered lots, and deeded to the HOA prior to the close of the phase that they are attached too. Usually pools and major ammenities are attached to Phase 1 so they are available as a marketing tool. Sometimes ownership of those and the cost to maintain is held by the builder until later to allow dues to be kept low or the builder subsidizes the initial phases by paying a portion of the dues. This is always stated in the Public Report.



The master HOA usually covers the entry statement, if any, slopes, parks, and pools, if any for the overall project. The sub association cover the areas unique to the individual tract such as entry statement, interior parks, slopes within tract boundry, and somtimes streets if they are private. Maintance on buildings and insurance varies with the respective tract. Each community can vary in what items are covered again that is why buyers need to read and UNDERSTAND the subdivision documents. As usual they are written in legaleeze and are not easy to understand.



Enjoy!
 
One of my concerns of being a potential future homeowner in this area is the HOA fees because it seems to be very susceptible to corruption. Are there audit controls in place to ensure skims and kickbacks aren't happening? Is there a bid process to ensure a fair price for jobs? Etcetera?



Now, I can not pretend to know anything about an HOA board, but I hear concerning stories like "the community wants to replace all garage doors before they begin breaking down and to help hold property values comparitive to neighboring communities. Would you like to pay for the garage door up front at once or add it to the monthly." I believe this to be somewhere in the University area, but from what I've heard (1) the garage doors still have a good 5 years of life on them, (2) At least here at IHB, we know property values are crashing back to earth, and (3) Many folks won't vote to pay for the garage doors up front so adding the cost to the monthly means the cost won't fall off the monthly once the garages are replaced. These are the immediate thoughts I had when listening to this story from a complaining co-worker. Does everybody simply pay what they are being charged and without question?
 
its unfortunate indeed but many people really dont care enough to be involved in their HOA. mine has tried 3 times to hold the last annual mtg but every time there arent enough residents there for quorum. they sent out notices so people could vote by mail or at the very least check off a box saying you'd like to be counted in the head count for quorum even if you arent there and dont care to vote. apparently that was too much effort for most residents and they had to resend notices a 2nd time!
 
<p>>One of my concerns of being a potential future homeowner in this area is the HOA fees because it seems to be very susceptible to corruption. Are there audit controls in place to ensure skims and kickbacks aren't happening? Is there a bid process to ensure a fair price for jobs? Etcetera?


</p>

<p>Read the bylaws of the HOA, which are supposed to be provided to you at the close of escrow. Also, familiarize yourself with Cal. Civil Code sections 1350 - 1378, which governs common interest developments.</p>

<p> </p>
 
<p><em>its unfortunate indeed but many people really dont care enough to be involved in their HOA.</em></p>

<p>Considering that the HOA has the power to make people's lives a living hell, you'd think they'd become more involved. I've known exactly ONE condo owner in my eight years in California who was involved in their HOA. Nobody else cared.</p>

<p>Brio residents got a wake-up call when the parking rules went from loose to ultra-tight overnight. I heard that attendance tripled at the subsequent meetings. If those residents had already been involved in their HOA, they would've been able to influence the rules before they were adopted. Instead they had to perform damage control. </p>
 
<p>There are two primary problems with HOAs.</p>

<p>1. They're like the Federal Government, with less oversight.</p>

<p>2. It's all OPM (Other People's Money).</p>

<p> </p>

<p>You pay more for not having to hassle with a Gardener, Pool Guy, exterior paint, slurry coating the private drives every few years, etc. You also have the added expense, fights, and lawsuits over what is and is not covered under ther CC&Rs. You want to see a minature nightmare, watch the tantrums when a older complex is trying to decide on a roof replacement for the 25 year old wood-Shaker roofs. Or they replaced the old wooden delapidated fences facing the common areas with block walls but do not replace the same fences that are shared between two units.</p>
 
Thanks all for your comment



I just checked with Manzanita. No, insurance is not included in HOA because they are DETACHED with each other.
 
<p>Re: roof replacement on a condo high or mid rise.</p>

<p>I have actually heard people say and mean that they should not have to pay for roof replacement because they are not on the top floor.</p>

<p>There is an incredible amount of litigation involving HOAs and Condo assns in Florida, to the point that Florida required mandatory arbitration with a state medicator. And if you want to litigate, you have only 30 days to file for a Trial De Novo, meaning you get to hash it all over again before a judge. This has not stemmed the litigation tide.</p>

<p>Many fingers are pointed, but I don't really know how much theft and corruption there is.</p>

<p> </p>
 
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