HOA should have given 48-hour notice before towing truck

Q: Thanks for taking the time to read my email and, hopefully, I can get a clear understanding of my rights. We already implemented a solution to prevent something like this from happening again.

So, my husband works for auto dealership and brought a truck home for the weekend to test drive per his job. That was on Friday, the following day, Saturday morning, the truck was gone. At first, we thought it was stolen because it just wasn’t there. We walked in front of our community called the towing company listed on the sign, and we found out it was towed. Also, I thought we needed a 48hour notice with the time that it will be towed if not moved.

The homeowners association claimed there were already six citations on this vehicle, which is untrue because this was the very first night we had the truck.

Plus, there were no stickers or written notices on the truck when we got it out of the impound that Saturday, and again we didn’t receive any warnings through the mail. We found out there were previously citations, not on the vehicle, but on the “dealers plate,” which is not a permanent plate. Very confusing, right?

So, my question is: Even if there were these so-called citations, which we never saw, by the way, can they tow any vehicle, even if there were previous violations without notice?

A: Yes, you should have received some 48-hour notice prior to the truck being towed. As to the six citations that the association claims on the truck, you have the right to receive copies of the citations and meet with the community manager. If the citations are not valid, you do have the right to seek reimbursement for the towing charges.

Q: Our association notified us the reserve fund was low. The decision was an $800 assessment. The payment was to be made in full. That changed to two payments of $400, which was changed again to four payments of $200. Now, the decision has been made to pay monthly. Is this an intelligent way of building the fund, or do you agree with me that we will never get the reserve fund fully funded?

Secondly, we have 126 units and 24 residents can say they see grass, the rest of us have rocks. Now, the president wants to replace the grass with artificial turf using the money from the water authority to install it. We will not be getting the $42,000 that it costs, but the president, who has been on the board in one capacity or another for at least 10 years, claims it will pay for itself. I say if rocks are good enough for 102 units it should be good for everyone. The president is one of the 24 owners with grass. The other members act as if they are afraid of him even though they agree with me. Is this something the ombudsman would look into or not?

A: It appears the board made the change to monthly payments in order to financially assist homeowners who would have had a difficult time paying $800 or $400, as originally planned. Many associations have monthly contributions, which are specific to the funding of the reserves. That is not a problem. The question to be asked is does the $800 per homeowner bring the reserve fund back to an acceptable level?

The decision as to rocks or artificial grass should be made by a majority vote of the board. The board will face some challenges from those homeowners who have rocks in their front lawns as opposed to the artificial grass, as they will want the same option. Since the president is using association funds, the association would need to offer the artificial grass to all owners as the artificial grass would provide a higher market value to the homes.

Q: A friend purchased a house several years ago that already had oleanders planted in the yard. Oleanders are on our prohibited plant list. Recently, the HOA cited my friend for having these plants. Is there a point in time where one is “grandfathered in” and the rule (this or any other) is no longer enforceable by the HOA?

A: I believe the board would have a hard time enforcing the removal of the oleanders because no action had been taken by the board over the years since your friend purchased their home.