Homeowner Association

[RichardDavies]

Homeowner Association formed after time of purchase

I live in Washington state and purchased a home two years ago in a new neighborhood. At the time of purchase, there was no mention of my property belonging to a homeowners association. A year or so after I purchased my house, the developer finished building the remaining homes in the neighborhood and a homeowners association has been formed to maintain a strip of grass alongside the entrance to my neighborhood.

They have recently sent bills for homeowners association dues to everyone in the neighborhood, claiming that we're all members of the association. But it seems to me that in this case, since the HOA was not formed until after I purchased my home, I would need to expressly consent to joining the HOA before I became a member. (I have verified with my title company that a HOA did not exist at the time of purchase.)

Does a homeowners association have the jurisdiction and authority to assess dues to homeowners who purchased their property before the association existed?

I've looked through the Washington Legislative Code dealing with HOAs, but I couldn't find any clarification about this specific issue.

 

[FlyingRon]

Many times there is a development document that establishes the home owners association at some point after a certain number of lots are sold by the developer. You usually don't get any choice in the matter as to whether you belong or not.

 

[HomeGuru]

I live in Washington state and purchased a home two years ago in a new neighborhood. At the time of purchase, there was no mention of my property belonging to a homeowners association. A year or so after I purchased my house, the developer finished building the remaining homes in the neighborhood and a homeowners association has been formed to maintain a strip of grass alongside the entrance to my neighborhood.

They have recently sent bills for homeowners association dues to everyone in the neighborhood, claiming that we're all members of the association. But it seems to me that in this case, since the HOA was not formed until after I purchased my home, I would need to expressly consent to joining the HOA before I became a member. (I have verified with my title company that a HOA did not exist at the time of purchase.)

Does a homeowners association have the jurisdiction and authority to assess dues to homeowners who purchased their property before the association existed?

I've looked through the Washington Legislative Code dealing with HOAs, but I couldn't find any clarification about this specific issue.

**A: when you bought the property where there CC&R's in place and recorded on title?

 

[RichardDavies]

**A: when you bought the property where there CC&R's in place and recorded on title?

Yes, I received a copy of the CC&R's when I bought the property. However, they do not mention a HOA.

On the plat recored with the county when the developer bought the land, there is one little note in reference to the strip of grass that says "Tract 'B' is a landscaped area to be owned and maintained by the homeowners association." That's it---no other mention of a HOA anywhere else in the plat description, CC&Rs, or anywhere else.

I just had another conversation with the HOA president who is claiming that this sentence established the creation/existence of the HOA before any of the homes were purchased and established the jurisdiction of the HOA as the entire neighborhood as recorded in the plat.

While I'm not an expert on these matters, I find it hard to believe that this one little vague sentence that barely mentions the term "homeowners association" is sufficient to establish the existence and jurisdiction of such an organization when everything else in real estate from property boundary lines, to the curvature of the sidewalk at the street corners, to property easements, etc. has to be specified down to the finest detail.

 

[Cbradford9977]

Got a bill for HOA fees but our community has no HOA?

I am new to this site and just need some advice on how to handle my current situation. We built our home about 5 years ago in a neighborhood that had no HOA. The last year they have cleared land behind our neighborhood and started building nicer newer houses. I was told that this newly built houses would be an addition to our neighborhood but could have another name. We don't have a gated entrance or sidewalks or a clubhouse with a pool or clubhouse. There is no park or get togethers done for our community.
This morning we received a bill in the mail for HOA fees??? I had no idea there was a group trying to create an HOA in our community and some of us have lived here for 5 years or more...we have no idea who the board consist of and what the HOA guidelines are but yet we get a bill for our dues for a year??? Is this how this works? My neighbors and I are a bit upset that we didn't even get a chance to be involved nor did we get a chance to vote for the members that are going to run the community we have lived in for years? Can someone please give me some advice on how I should handle this situation???

 

[Silverplum]

Please start your own thread, and give the name of your state.

I am new to this site and just need some advice on how to handle my current situation. We built our home about 5 years ago in a neighborhood that had no HOA. The last year they have cleared land behind our neighborhood and started building nicer newer houses. I was told that this newly built houses would be an addition to our neighborhood but could have another name. We don't have a gated entrance or sidewalks or a clubhouse with a pool or clubhouse. There is no park or get togethers done for our community.
This morning we received a bill in the mail for HOA fees??? I had no idea there was a group trying to create an HOA in our community and some of us have lived here for 5 years or more...we have no idea who the board consist of and what the HOA guidelines are but yet we get a bill for our dues for a year??? Is this how this works? My neighbors and I are a bit upset that we didn't even get a chance to be involved nor did we get a chance to vote for the members that are going to run the community we have lived in for years? Can someone please give me some advice on how I should handle this situation???