SIDE STREETS: 'HOAs Gone Wild' need a weekend in Vegas
Often I think of renaming this column “Homeowners Associations Gone Wild,” due to all the tales of HOA boards, drunk with power, abusing their authority.
In recent years, the Colorado General Assembly has tried to rein in HOA boards amid growing complaints of rigged elections, mishandled dues and arbitrary enforcement of covenants — the rules governing neighborhood landscaping, paint and life in general.
With our lawmakers back in session, I suggest they turn to Nevada, the home of life “Gone Wild,” for ideas in dealing with HOAs.
Nevada has been a pioneer in HOA regulation. The state has created agencies that give folks a place to turn as an alternative to the civil court system when they feel their HOA is out of control or acting illegally.
In 1997, the Nevada Legislature created an HOA ombudsman office, staffed by a single person. But as the state’s HOA and condo populations exploded, the need for the ombudsman increased and the office expanded.
Today, the Ombudsman Office has a staff of 15 and annual budget of $1.5 million to police the 480,000 homes and condos that make up Nevada’s 3,000 homeowners associations. The state’s HOAs range in size from tiny neighborhoods with a handful of homes up to 10,000 homes or condos.
“The ombudsman office was created as an informal mediation body,” said Nick Haley, spokesman for the agency. “It takes complaints from the public and tries to resolve the issue. The idea is to get neighbors together and get them talking.”
Haley said the agency is able to resolve about half the complaints it receives.
The agency is funded by a $3 fee assessed on every HOA unit. The agency requires every HOA to provide contact information on its officers as well as financial information, especially on the status of mandatory reserve funds they must maintain to stay solvent.
The agency provides information and mediation in HOA disputes. It investigates complaints of law if someone believes an election was mishandled, for example. It registers HOAs and sponsors seminars to educate folks about HOAs, how to conduct meetings and elections. It also regulates community management companies.
To further police the HOAs, Nevada lawmakers in 2006 created a five-member commission to adopt regulations and conduct disciplinary hearings and hear complaints about HOAs.
Among the nuances to Nevada’s HOA laws is a requirement all board meetings be audiotaped. Bidding for HOA contracts are now formalized. Tampering with HOA elections — a complaint I hear frequently in Colorado Springs — is now a felony crime in Nevada.
“There is a need for a process that expedites these little issues, which are important but not really appropriate for courts to handle,” Haley said. “Our goal is to get people back to living their lives.”
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