| Bogus Association Fees
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Maryland
I have a neighbor below me who constantly calls the association with bogus claims against me. She says that my kids run up and down the stairs, stomp, she complains of an odor that irritates her nose. I have a 5 month old and 2 year old who can not run up and down stairs. The condo association has written to me twice threatening to take away my rights to using the common areas, taking me to court and issuing fines against me. They say that I am not following the bylaws of the community. I responded to the first letter asking for someone to come out and assess my home to verify her claims. I also let them know of her dog crying every morning and waking me and my family up. I asked that a meeting be setup to resolve both of our issues. I have not heard anything from the association regarding my concerns and have not received anything showing that they have addressed my claims. The third letter the associaiton sent was a letter stating that I was being fined $100 per day until the running, stomping and claims of "odors" stops. After taking a closer look at the bylaws of the community, it turns out that the association is not even following the bylaws concerning conflict resolution. They are suppose to hold a hearing with both parties to settle the issue before issuing fines of any kind. Not to mention, I can't understand how the association can fine someone when they have no proof of anything. I have called the condo association 4 times regarding her claims and have received no return calls.
She has recently made several claims that my A/C unit was leaking into her utility closet and causing damage to her unit. She constantly leaves notes on my door, sends me emails, calls the association who in turn send me letters and call my job and cell phones. I have responded to every claim that she has made. She has even involved my elderly babysitter by asking her to come to her home to view her damages while leaving my kids unattended. Someone from the association has even come out to my home to inspect for water leakage and did not find water leaking anywhere. He also confirmed that there was no odor throughout my home. I have had my A/C serviced and the serviceman did not find any leak. That same day, she called the fire department to come out and search my home and knock down the bottom half of my walls in my utility closet. They could not find the source of her leak. I feel harrassed and now have to pay for the damage they have done to my unit.
The condo association has written me a letter stating that I owe them $2300 for her claims of stomping, running, etc. This is a nightmare for me. I just moved back to this condo 5 months ago and I hate coming home because of her and the association's constant harrassment. When it comes to addressing the water leak, the association claims they are out of it yet they recently left a message on my work phone threatening to shut off the water in my home until the source of the leak is found and having the health department run me and my family out of the home. I am convinced that she has a close relationship with someone from the association because they are blatantly showing bias in not addressing any of my concerns, threatening me with no substantial evidence of my wrong doing and abusing the association powers by fining me based on her accusations.
I am stressed and tired of this mess. How should I address the association? How can I get the harassment to stop so that I can enjoy my home with my family? What laws are on my side for ending the letters, emails, calls and threats from the association? | 
07-30-2009, 04:58 PM
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