FURIOUS homeowners are demanding a $10,000 refund from their homeowner’s association after it overcharged to pay someone else’s bills.
The dispute involves two communities in Steele Creek, Charlotte, North Carolina after one group took a look at their HOA’s finances.
Bennington Place I and Bennington Place II are in the same area but are entirely separate.
Andrew Page from Bennington Place II only discovered the questionable billing practices happening within his HOA after joining the board.
He quickly realised that his association was paying for two parcels from Bennington Place I.
“We paid somebody’s water bill,” he told WSOC-TV,
Not only had they been charged and paying someone else’s bills, it had gone unnoticed for two years.
“It was about $10,000,” he said.
“You don’t budget for that. We weren’t thinking we needed $10,000 extra.
“That had come out of our savings account.”
Being thousands of dollars poorer, the neighborhood suffered for it.
Andrew explained how there are several key problems in the area that the money could have helped fix had the mistake not gone unnoticed.
“Everybody in the neighborhood has paid that so now there’s $10,000 down the drain,” he said.
After noticing the mistake, the HOA contacted the local water company, Charlotte Water as well as city councillors.
But while the HOA’s account has been taken off the other water bill, it is not confirmed that the money will be refunded.
Charlotte Water issues refunds going back three years depending “on the situation”.
What is an HOA?
One in five Americans live in an area with a Homeowners’ Association – or HOA. But what exactly is it that they do?
- An HOA is a homeowner’s association – an organization that aims to maintain a clean and cohesive place to live for its residents.
- Entire neighborhoods, subdivisions, condominiums, family homes, or townhouses within “a planned development” will often make up an HOA.
- They also act as a governing body for tenants, who run and fund the HOA through monthly fees.
- Their principal aims are to keep the community functioning and visually appealing and to maintain property values.
- They primarily focus on common areas of a neighborhood, such as roads, parks, and pools – but may also stipulate what residents can do with their properties, such as yards and driveways.
- Often these restrictions enforce uniformity on properties, for example, ensuring most houses look the same and all driveways are clear of weeds.
- An HOA rulebook of covenants, conditions, and restrictions (CC&R) is distributed to all residents, and an elected volunteer board of directors enforces these regulations.
- Breaking these rules can result in penalties such as fines and even litigation – as most HOAs are incorporated and subject to state law.
- HOAs are often the subject of controversy, with some members feeling that the rules are too punitive and restricting, or that the leadership has too much power.
- But others like that HOAs give communities the power of self-governance, and can ensure a degree of harmony between residents.
According to the local news outlet, in this instance, the company would not say if the HOA would be getting a refund.
While the utility said it would not say due to customer privacy, Andrew claims there will not be a refund.
“I’m glad that they stopped billing us, but I feel that we are owed the 10,000 or so dollars,” he said.
Upon further investigation, he attempted to determine the recipients of the payments made by the HOA and whether the property owners were also contributing, however, he was unable to obtain this information.
Meanwhile, a resident of another HOA was left homeless after her home was sold by the association over just one late payment.
She claimed that she was never sent letters about the imminent sale of her home that the HOA carried out over unpaid fees of just $1,200.
It eventually sold her 3,300-square-foot home for just $49,000 which was later flipped by the new owner for an eye-watering sum.
