anandagirl
Junior Member
What is the name of your state?California
I have been having the worst time with my Association and Property Management Company (for the complex, not my own) since July. Some of the more serious issues:
Our building fire alarm that is attatched to 6 units wasn't working properly for two months - when it was plugged in, it would go off regularly, and the rest of the time it was left unplugged, which meant we had no fire protection. There was no alarm connection to the local fire department, and they themselves had no override code. My neighbors and I were woken up several times in the middle of the night to ear piercing noise and the only way to get it to stop was to unplug the unit. The Property Manager called the alarm company a couple of times, but after the first couple of days, refused to do anything.
They enforce rules unevenly - I have recieved letters about my dog wandering the grounds (different dog, same color), however, they refuse to do anything about another dog that has attacked my 5 month old puppy because they don't know where it lives, and I am legally not allowed to try and follow the dog's owner home. The CC&R's even state that all dogs must be registered with the association, but now claim that enforcing that would be "too invasive." They also do nothing about unsupervised children, dogs or glass containers in the pool area, when those are clearly prohibited in the CC&R's.
There are other issues as well, but these are the two that really bother me. The first because I missed a lot of sleep because of a problem that could have easily been remedied, and the second because my poor little puppy is now terrified of people and other animals.
During the time of the Fire Alarm issue, I stopped paying my association dues as what I percieved to be the only recourse I had, since going to the BOD meetings, emails, and phone calls didn't seem to do anything. I paid the total due once the fire alarm was finally fixed, two months later. However, now they have added a delinquent fee to my account and they refuse to remove it even though they were negligent and unresponsive during this time period. Apparently, I am not allowed to withhold payment.
Here is my question: What kind of legal recourse do I have? I often don't feel 100% safe, and I suspect the Association and property manger are being vindictive because I refuse to let them walk all over me. I have considered moving, but the sheer hassle and expense keeps me from making that move quite yet. I feel like I have absolutely no rights or recourse!! Help!
I have been having the worst time with my Association and Property Management Company (for the complex, not my own) since July. Some of the more serious issues:
Our building fire alarm that is attatched to 6 units wasn't working properly for two months - when it was plugged in, it would go off regularly, and the rest of the time it was left unplugged, which meant we had no fire protection. There was no alarm connection to the local fire department, and they themselves had no override code. My neighbors and I were woken up several times in the middle of the night to ear piercing noise and the only way to get it to stop was to unplug the unit. The Property Manager called the alarm company a couple of times, but after the first couple of days, refused to do anything.
They enforce rules unevenly - I have recieved letters about my dog wandering the grounds (different dog, same color), however, they refuse to do anything about another dog that has attacked my 5 month old puppy because they don't know where it lives, and I am legally not allowed to try and follow the dog's owner home. The CC&R's even state that all dogs must be registered with the association, but now claim that enforcing that would be "too invasive." They also do nothing about unsupervised children, dogs or glass containers in the pool area, when those are clearly prohibited in the CC&R's.
There are other issues as well, but these are the two that really bother me. The first because I missed a lot of sleep because of a problem that could have easily been remedied, and the second because my poor little puppy is now terrified of people and other animals.
During the time of the Fire Alarm issue, I stopped paying my association dues as what I percieved to be the only recourse I had, since going to the BOD meetings, emails, and phone calls didn't seem to do anything. I paid the total due once the fire alarm was finally fixed, two months later. However, now they have added a delinquent fee to my account and they refuse to remove it even though they were negligent and unresponsive during this time period. Apparently, I am not allowed to withhold payment.
Here is my question: What kind of legal recourse do I have? I often don't feel 100% safe, and I suspect the Association and property manger are being vindictive because I refuse to let them walk all over me. I have considered moving, but the sheer hassle and expense keeps me from making that move quite yet. I feel like I have absolutely no rights or recourse!! Help!