- Acceleration: In case you missed our earlier newsletter article, acceleration can be a very useful tool early in the year. If allowed by your governing documents, accelerating allows you to call due now all the assessments due for the rest of the year. This is only an option if your governing documents allow for it, so be sure to confirm with your attorney that this is permitted for your association before using this tactic. Read more about acceleration in our recent newsletter article here.
- Owners must update their current mailing address: Often management companies get the homeowner’s current mailing address from the title company when the homeowner first purchases their property. After that, the homeowner may move from the property and use it as a rental, but fail to notify the association of their new off-site address. Or, if the property was originally purchased as a rental, but the homeowner moved their primary residence since the original purchase, the association may not know. While common sense says that of course, the homeowner must keep the association updated as to their current mailing address, many homeowners fail to do so. They then say that the association should have changed their off-site address to the address on their check, or the return label on their envelope, or some other place the association might have seen their new address. If the governing documents place the responsibility clearly on the homeowner to keep the association updated with their current address, we can avoid the finger-pointing and guessing game about whether that address on your check is really a new address or an old one.
- Withholding access to amenities: If your governing documents allow, an association can deny delinquent homeowners access to association amenities like the pool and workout rooms. COVID-related closures have turned these amenities on their head for the time being. But in normal times, not being able to take the kids to the pool on a hot summer day can be enough to motivate owners to pay their delinquent assessments. If your association is debating about opening their pool or workout rooms this year because of COVID, please see this article for more food for thought.
If your association does not have any of these three remedies in the governing documents, you should! Contact our office for more information about where and how to make these additions. If your association already has these remedies, consider adding a note about these in your regular newsletter. If your homeowners know what could happen if they don’t pay their assessments, they may be more likely to keep their assessments current. Having these collection options is great, but not having to use any collections options at all is even better!
Watch for our upcoming blog on the Top 3 Worst Collections Limitations You Should Delete from Your Governing Documents. In the meantime, if you have any questions about these collection remedies or any others, please feel free to contact any of our Altitude attorneys at 303-432-9999 or [email protected].