Real Estate & Property Law

Owner Misconduct - How Does It Show Up?

Time to address rude behavior once again. I am getting lots of emails from directors and also from owners reporting really rude conduct. So I am reprinting 2 blogs done in 2007 related to rude and inappropriate conduct.

Reprint of October 9, 2007 Blog

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I have written several blogs lately that are about Board conduct. But what about owners' conduct. I receive calls every week from Board members who are dealing with owner misconduct. What kind of things occur? See the following, and I keep thinking I have heard it all, but I am sure I have not.

HOA members should not ... ever ...

**"Get in the face" of a board member or manager or association vendor.
**Attack verbally or physically any board member or other member.
**Threaten other board members or neighbors.
**Ignore rules of the association.
**Disrupt board or membership meetings.
**Visit or call board members about association complaints at their homes (unless invited to do so) and never late at night.
**House dangerous dogs or other dangerous pets.
** Stalk board members, managers or neighbors or association vendors.
** Take it upon themselves to direct association vendors.
**Purposefully interfere with vendors on site trying to do their jobs.
**Take spiteful retaliatory actions because of the idiocy of others.
**Build additions, initiate constructions, sign contracts for, or install items that require architectural approval ... without architectural approval.

These are just a few examples of the things that happen every day in HOAs across the state and, as I hear, across the nation.

What can a board do about it? All HOA and Condo governing documents contain some kind of remedies - they might include:

Suspension of member rights (such as banning from meetings - but get legal advice as this is a serious remedy)
Fines (must be proper notice and hearing
Reimbursement assessments (some documents include legal fees - even if not, security issues might lead to hiring security for the meetings due to owner misconduct - get legal advice). and
The right to seek court orders.

Check out the Primers on Enforcement available in the webstore at www.californiacondoguru.com for cost efficient ways to find out a lot more.

Full post as published by California Condo & HOA Law on February 12, 2011 (boomark / email).