Good Fences Make Good Profits

QUESTION: Why would an HOA (and its agents) fail to acknowledge—for four years—that a homeowner did repair his fence? Is it merely innocent bungling? This (small) sample of the correspondence, showing the downward spiral of things for one homeowner, might help you, dear reader, answer this question for yourself, after you’ve considered the record.

ANSWER: To begin, here are charges by the HOA against the homeowner, 2016-2017. (The ledger also shows that the homeowner is, all along, paying his HOA assessment every month, on time. See photo #2, above):

July 17, 2016 Fine: broken/missing fence borders, $100.00

Aug. 17, 2016 Fine: broken/missing fence borders, $100.00

Sept 17, 2016 Fine: broken/missing fence borders, $100.00

Oct 17, 2016 Fine: broken/missing fence borders, $100.00

Nov 17, 2016 Fine: broken/missing fence borders, $100.00

Dec 17, 2016 Fine: broken/missing fence borders, $100.00
Prior Atty fees $ 50.00

Jan 18, 2017 Fine: broken/missing fence borders, $100.00

Feb 18, 2017 Fine: broken/missing fence borders, $100.00
Prior Atty fees $ 170.00

Mar 18, 2017 Fine: broken/missing fence borders, $100.00

Apr 18, 2017 Fine: broken/missing fence borders, $100.00

May 14, 2017 Fees (lwl, setup, ov,mail) $290.00

May 18, 2017 Fine: broken/missing fence borders, $100.00

Oct 18, 2017 Postage ($55); lwl,pps ($160); total = $215

Dec 18, 2017 Postage ($88.70) Lein, lnl, ff ($450) = $538.70

Feb 22, 2018 The homeowner asks the HOA to halt the lien against his house. He provides photos of the repaired fence. (By the way, this is a backyard fence, and the slats at issue are not visible from the street.)
(Excerpt): The repair “was done and fixed, however the association continued to fine us on a monthly basis. … [The HOA] was not aware it had been fixed. I have also attached pictures of the fixed fence to this email. …”

Mar 16, 2018. The HOA sends an email, “The case is closed.”

June 7, 2018. The homeowner has received more threatening letters. He notes that the HOA signed off (apparently twice) that the repairs were adequately done. (Excerpt): “Upon completion, it was approved by a board member of the time.” The homeowner asks the HOA and its debt collector to stop imposing fines. He also notices that his monthly dues are being kidnapped … to pay for the fines! Will late fees now be added to his growing debt? (Excerpt): “My monthly assessment was applied to the fines and deducted from the monthly HOA payment in June and July of 2017 for a total of $1,485.50.”

Aug 20, 2018
The homeowner writes to the debt attorney: Stop It! Do Your Job! Coordinate with the HOA board members, please! Here is the full message:
“As mentioned in this email previously and multiple times on the phone, the [HOA] and your law firm has confirmed multiple times that the violation is closed. Just a few emails ago in this email chain you mentioned that ‘our client [the HOA] has advised us that this violation has been resolved,’ and on June 13th noted in your email, ‘our client sent you a letter dated June 11, 2018, advising that any fines after 3/13/18 have now been waived.’ This has been an ongoing problem, taking us back and forth for months and is shameful that the association cannot communicate through such simple issues. Please manage to communicate thoroughly with your client so this case could move forward rather than going a few steps back every time. Please advise us promptly about the [HOA’s] decision.” [--signed by the homeowner]

Apr 1, 2019 By now, the homeowner wants to flee the neighborhood. He sends photos of the repaired fence to his real estate agent. He begins to prepare the house for sale.

2018-19. During this period, the Quail Valley HOA replaces one debt collector with another. Does the new vendor, the new debt attorney act reasonably? Or does it pick up the baton and continue whacking the homeowner?

Jan 20, 2020. HOA: [law]suit authorization. $ 45.00

July 27, 2021: The debt collector (CALS) sends the homeowner a letter:

You now owe $3,512.54.

(Excerpt): “Dear Homeowner(s): This office represents Quail Valley Homeowners Association, Inc. … According to our records, you are $3,512,14 in arrears through July 2021. A copy of your statement of account is enclosed. Please make full payment of the outstanding amount due within thirty days of receiving this letter … Please bear in mind that the community needs these revenues to properly conduct its affairs so that all homeowners, including you, benefit. … Partial payments are subject to a $15.00 collection cost … [etc.] ...
Very truly yours,
[The debt collection attorney]

QUESTION: Why would an HOA (and its property manager and its debt collector) fail to acknowledge—for four years—that a homeowner did indeed repair his fence?

Here is the final entry on this timeline:

August 2021. This month, a “For Sale” sign appeared in the yard.
Before the buyer can take ownership of the house, any outstanding HOA fees and fines will have to be paid--by the seller, or by the buyer. And the payments have to be received by somebody else: The Powerful Players of the HOA Industry in the State of Maryland.

** ****************** **

Read all of the chapters in this series at tinyurl.com/CuckooCourt. Reported by Steven Sellers Lapham, a 20-year resident of Quail Valley, Maryland.
Read about the nationwide problem of condo and HOA "dysfunction, corruption, and abuse" at https://independentamericancom