Insurance news and information

It’s a disturbing trend and one that isn’t tracked by any government agency. But according to at least one nonprofit research group, association boards are initiating more foreclosures than previously. According to a Houston-based nonprofit research study, association-initiated foreclosures jumped from 500 in 1995 to 2,200 in 2007.

Association boards have found themselves unwilling enforcers of properties and unpaid bills. That’s in part due to the fact that of the 300,000 homeowner’s associations in the country, over 50 percent of them face serious financial problems. So says a September 2010 survey by the Community Association Institute.

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It’s not fair, is it? Your homeowner’s association is holding a stack of overdue association dues notices, yet there your residents are, still watching their cable and using their phones. You as an association want to make a statement – send a clear message to your residents that you’re on to them and that until their dues are paid, life is not all rosy. So you decide to shut off cable service or phone service to your past-due residents. A good idea, right?

Wrong. See, most states do not allow for associations to restrict or deny its residents any amenities as a means to force payment. Oh, you want to, but oh no, you can’t. It’s about protection for the consumer, not the association. Your homeowner’s association is limited to taking only the corrective action it has set forth in writing as a means of collection. Read more…