Tag: Arizona

Case study on how ‘stakeholders’ create dysfunctional HOA communities

Please read this unfolding case study of how the “stakeholders,” those who have put forth HB 2371, dominate the members of an upscale HOA in Scottsdale, AZ. HB 2371 calls for unlicensed HOA managers to represent HOAs in small claims court and creates an exception to state UPL laws.

In the Terravita Community Association, a vote was held this past Tuesday to amend the CC&Rs to permit the HOA to assess attorney fees against losing homeowners in an administrative hearing. (See HOA democracy at work:  dysfunctional adoption of amendments by minority vote). The unusual wording only permits the petitioner who filed the complaint to be awarded attorney fees if the prevailing party. But, the administrative hearings do not award attorney fees by law, and attorneys are not required. Yet Terravita sees the need to use an attorney and use member fees for this unnecessary expense.

Furthermore, as called to the attention of the Terravita board, the wording of the amendment would strip the existing contractual agreement that attorney fees be awarded in civil court, a more expensive procedure and subjecting the HOA to increased litigation costs.

In other words, state law be damned! The members have declared that they have agreed to ignore the law and to charge attorney fees as stated. And for only a few administrative petitions that have been filed. There was no debate, no discussion, no opposing views presented to the members. Just, “Here’s the ballot. Vote YES and return it.” And the members, like Colonel Potter in MASH who signed anything Radar put in front of him, voted in favor.

It should be noted that the CC&Rs amendment was passed by a minority of the members, only 571 members out of 1380 voted, a minority of 41%, and the amendment passed with just 514 votes or 37% of the membership. Minority voting was approved by the members in 2010, making this mockery of democratic principles possible. In 2011, the legislature had voted down a statute, proposed by the “stakeholders”, that would allow all HOAs to implement minority control of the amendment process — an unthinkable procedure allowing minority adoption of amendments to constitutions and charters.

Well, what does that say about that unassailable, inviolate “contract” that the special interests, those “stakeholders,” have been shouting?  It is meaningless when others can amend your agreement with changes that reasonable persons would not anticipate or expect.  And now in Terravita, by a minority vote. Apparently, it’s not an issue with the members of Terravita.

Tearravita Community Association is an upscale “resort” type HOA in Scottsdale, AZ, with a golf course, community center, and a security guard entrance. It has 1380 members, has a CAI/AACM management company, and a CAI attorney.

Arizona’s HB 2371 empowers unlicensed HOA property managers to avoid UPL

In short, HB 2371 would allow untrained and unlicensed HOA property managers to represent HOAs in small claims court, but does not allow the homeowner to be represented.  Yet, real estate agents, who are required to take continuing education courses in agency, real estate, and contracts law, are not allowed to represent others in court.  And even licensed paralegals cannot represent others! Why allow untrained and unlicensed HOA managers to represent a special class of nonprofit entities?  What legitimate reason is there for this provision except to provide income for the special interests?

The only justification for this bill, which was by offered by the Sponsor, was that it was not controversial and it was agreed to at a meeting of all the stakeholders. However, the stakeholders did not include any homeowner advocacy group, and this bill is very much not only controversial but un-American as well.  This is the second such bill brought by a state representative in the past 3 years, the other being HB 2441, the “minority control” bill in 2011, that was rightfully defeated in the Senate.

In January of last year HOA managers were put on notice by the AZ Supreme Court opinion (UPL Advisory Opinion, 12-01) on the Unauthorized Practice of Law, and one firm in particular, a member of two HOA special interest trade organizations, was found to have engaged in the unauthorized practice of law (in RE: Board of Legal Document Preparers v. AAM, LDP-NFC-09-L094 and LDP-NFC-10-L026). 

So, it appears, the problem of managers engaging in UPL activities is to be resolved by introducing a bill to “make it all good without any requirement for training and licensing!  This is a disgraceful bill! A bill that treats the good people of Arizona, who are subject to unregulated HOA private governments, as second-class citizens.  It insults the good people of Arizona!

Furthermore, HB 2371 goes on to allow “contractors” (that can not only be managers, but landscapers, pool maintenance people, etc.) of HOAs to represent HOAs before the Office of Administrative Hearings. It allows attorney fees to be awarded only for the Petitioner if he wins. Under the law, OAH is not permitted to award attorney fees, so this bill is needed to make it happen.

 But, it is only for HOA adjudication hearings and not for any other agency hearing!  With HB 2371, the unlicensed and untrained manager will get fees paid by the Pro Se homeowner who turns to OAH because of no attorney fees.   Records show that some 90% of the homeowners were Pro Se not using an attorney, while the HOAs were almost 90% represented by an unnecessary attorney. (Based on detailed OAH records for the first 66 cases in 2006-7).

 The purpose of OAH adjudication was to provide an increased level of judicial protections for homeowners in HOAs without the need for an attorney in an informal setting, and without the need to understand the rules of court.  The HOA attorneys have been trying for years to turn OAH into civil court proceedings under 100 rules found in some 200 pages of legalese. But, the bill does not require that the HOA manager learn and understand the civil rules or the law.  

Once more the citizen, the whole reason for the existence of a democratic system of government, is smashed down to the bottom of the food chain by an unconscionable bill.  A disgraceful and insulting bill!  The Senate committee cannot allow this bill to pass in good conscience.  It must be soundly thrashed.

HB 2371 will be heard in the Arizona Senate Government & Environment Committee on a Monday to be determined.

HOA democracy at work: dysfunctional adoption of amendments by minority vote

 

OPEN LETTER TO  TERRAVITA CA MEMBERS

Understand what a YES vote means for Terravita and your image as a citizen

Summary

The writer provides an example of how HOAs create a dysfunctional, un-American community, using arguments against the adoption of CC&Rs amendments on two occasions by the Terravita CA in Scottsdale, AZ.  In the first instance, amendments that violated Arizona statutes in regard to the content of the ballot were approved in 2010. One non-disclosed amendment made significant reductions in the requirement for adoption of future CC&Rs amendments, from a supermajority vote to a minority vote.  (In 2011, the Legislature defeated a CAI drafted bill that would allow for minority control of HOAs). 

The current amendment reflects an undisguised intent to punish one member for filing Office of Administrative Hearings (OAH) Petitions against Terravita.  Attorneys are not awarded fees at OAH because they are not required, yet the poorly constructed amendment removes attorney fee awards in civil court actions.  As a result of the approval of the non-disclosed “minority control” amendment in 2010, a minority of only 307  out of 1380 votes will be required to adopt this Board approved punitive amendment. 

Without any prior open discussion or debate, the distributed Absentee Ballot is one-sided in favor of the Board without opposing arguments. Adopting these amendments by a minority of members reflects an un-democratic and dysfunctional culture within Terravita.  The objectives of the “corporate state” are primary and individual property rights are secondary. Members are urged to reject the amendments.

Read the full letter here . . .

Az & TX legislators criticized for failures to support homeowner rights in HOAs

I let the Arizona Legislature know that advocates are not as stupid as they would like to believe (See Observations on AZ legislative treatment of HOA reform bills We know what is going on and has been happening for years with respect to legislative support for private government HOA regimes. HOAs that deny homeowners their rights and freedoms while imposing harsh penalties only on the members and not on the HOA boards.

The attitude of the legislatures appears to be: The HOA must survive at all costs – it’s a matter of national and state security so constitutional protections be damned.

A leading Texas advocate has added to this exposure of legislative cooperation, support, and coercion to permit HOAs to rule without accountability. Read her Open letter.

There are 4 main constitutional issues that are continually ignored by the legislatures: clean elections procedures; due process and the equal application of the laws; ‘consent to agree’ fallacy; and that the Constitution is only about ‘no contract interference.’ These issues must be addressed and reforms instituted, but they are not addressed because the legislators well know that they are defending the indefensible if they speak out.

It falls to the true advocates for HOA reform to have the courage to speak out about the reality of the HOA legal concept. They need to set the record straight about legislation supported and promoted by the so called “stakeholders”, the vendors (read as HOA attorneys and managers) who make money from the unrepresented and truly affected class, the private property owners, the homeowners.

Send a message to your state legislature.

Observations on AZ legislative treatment of HOA reform bills

If you listen carefully to the HB 2371 sponsor and committee chair explain her bill you would hear the familiar attitude taken by many legislators. First, you were told that a “meeting of all the stakeholders” to work on combining all the bills into one took place.  Oh yeah?  All the stakeholders, but no homeowners.  

 Second, the objective of the bill was to remove “all the contentious issues” and arrive at a bill satisfactory to all. So, those serious violations of homeowner rights will die each time CAI shouts, “HELL NO, WE WON’T GO”!  And of course, there ain’t nobody present to object.  

 So, that would explain what happened to the wording of SB 1333, the “clean elections” in HOAs bill?  A bill that, if passed, would severely cripple the political machine HOA boards and reduce HOA attorney influence.  A bill that would put an end to HOAs, under attorney guidance, finding ways to deny homeowners a legitimate voice in their governance.  But, there were no homeowners invited to the stakeholder meeting!

 Advocate Pat Haruff corrected the sponsor on this comment about “stakeholders.” No response from the Senator. That means that your pool guy, AC service man, landscaper, etc. are all stakeholders in your private property interests because they make money from you, the homeowner. And the legislators don’t need to hear from you! Welcome to how state legislatures are creating the New America of HOA-Land.

An argument against unlicensed management companies being granted exceptions to the unauthorized practice of law (UPL) laws was raised. While the bill would allow managers to represent HOAs in small claims court, it says nothing about homeowners being allowed to have their own unlicensed person speak for them. No one against the management company amendment portion brought up the AZ UPL decisions and opinions contained in AZ Supreme Court’s Final Order: HOA management firm engaged in unauthorized practice of law. Well, did you really expect CAI or AACM (manager’s association) to do it?  And believe me they know, because the management firm was both a CAI and AACM member.

 The CAI paid lobbyist once again falsely proclaims that CAI represents homeowners, failing to mention that CAI does not, and cannot as a business trade group, represent consumers — and HOAs are consumers of CAI member services. No one corrected him.

 I also got the feeling from the sponsor’s comments that the legislature was sort of tired of all these HOA bills, again and again, so wrap them into one bill and get it done with. I wonder if the annoyance is because they know that they are doing wrong to the people whom they are supposed to represent, and favoring the special interests. What about protecting the private property rights of the individual, a principle uttered so many times in so many arenas except in the HOA arena?

I can’t recall over the past 5 years many HOAs coming before the committees on behalf of HOA bills. No, it’s just the special interest vendors, the “stakeholders”, who live off HOA income who come before the committees. And nobody seems to notice. Yet, the homeowner who comes and/or writes is given short rift.  I’ve told several legislators over the years that we will be coming back year after year until they get it right.

 So, there it is! Homeowners are at the bottom of the food chain, with the legislators ignoring the principle that in a democracy citizens rule.  To paraphrase a statement in an address to the British prisoners of war by the Japanese commandant in the movie, The Bridge on the River Kwai,

 “Be happy in your home”