Homeowner's Association goes after activated serviceman

[Glocksman]

Story

By SHANNON COLAVECCHIO-VAN SICKLER, Times Staff Writer
Published November 12, 2004

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TAMPA - Three and a half years ago, Bernie Haithcock paid nearly $100,000 for a 1,500-square-foot home in the Villages of Lake St. Charles, a Riverview community.

The Air Force reservist, an electrician at MacDill Air Force Base, fit right in. About half of the 216 families who live in the Villages come from a military background.

But soon after he settled in, the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks happened. Haithcock was moved to active duty and has been deployed ever since, with his primary assignment at Robins Air Force Base, south of Macon, Ga.

Now Haithcock, 42, faces the prospect of losing his house because he failed to pay his annual $200 homeowners association fee on time.

In June, six months after the fee was due, the Villages association put a lien against Haithcock's home. Association leaders say he now owes more than $1,400 - the $200 fee, a $105 late fee and more than $1,100 in attorney costs.

If he doesn't pay up soon, association vice president Kate Cockerill said Thursday, "we will have to consider foreclosure."

Annual fees are part of owning a home in the Villages, Cockerill said, and, deployed or not, Haithcock needs to take care of his finances.

"My husband's in Iraq right now," she said. "And we've paid our dues."

Haithcock maintains that he was hundreds of miles away when the notice to pay the fee arrived in his Riverview mailbox in January. He said his mind has been on other things, including his assignment overseeing the security alarm division at Robins.

Haithcock doesn't have his mail forwarded to Georgia because his duties require him to travel to other bases frequently. His neighbors save his mail for him, and he comes home periodically to get caught up on his correspondence, he said.

"I worked hard for that house," Haithcock said Thursday from Georgia. "And there is no wife to get the mail when I'm gone. There's only me, and when I'm deployed, my mind is on the mission."

Seeking to settle the matter, he recently offered through his attorney to pay the association $616 - the annual fee plus a $100 late fee and about $300 to cover attorney costs.

"They refused," said Haithcock's attorney, Kenneth Grace of Tampa. Grace is an Air Force veteran himself. He said he usually represents homeowners associations with grievances against residents like Haithcock.

"I have dealt with these cases from the other side, and $300 is a reasonable legal fee," Grace said. "We're not going to pay unreasonable attorneys fees, which is what they're asking."

The association attorney, Elizabeth Frau of Meirose & Friscia in Tampa, was not in her office Thursday. But Cockerill said the association has tried to work with Haithcock. She notes that the association didn't put a lien on the home until June, six months after his annual fee was due.

"Our whole (homeowners association) board is from a military background," she said. "So it's not like we aren't understanding of that lifestyle."

This is the first year the association has filed liens against residents' homes, she said. And Haithcock isn't the only resident facing the specter of foreclosure.

"We're having problems with people paying their dues," Cockerill said.

The association uses the fees to maintain the community's amenities, like landscaping and recreational facilities. When residents buy into a community like the Villages, they agree to pay such fees and to adhere to rules about things such as the appearance of lawns.

If the rules aren't followed, it's within the association's power to file a lien and pursue foreclosure - even if it's over a fee as small as $200.

"I agree the HOAs need this assessment money to operate, and they need to be paid," said Grace, Haithcock's attorney. "But when I saw the bill against my client had crept up to $700, then $800, then $1,100, and now more than $1,400, I just thought it was unconscionable. I know from my own experience how being on active duty can really disrupt your life."

County records show this isn't Haithcock's first instance of financial problems related to his deployment. In October, the county water department put a lien on his home after he failed to pay a water bill. He said Thursday he has since taken care of that outstanding payment. "When I got deployed the last time there was a bill for $98, and I didn't have time to take care of it before I left," he said.

He concedes he needs to pay his bills on time, but wishes the association would be more understanding of his circumstances - and his efforts to take care of his debt.

"You don't have a man that's saying, I'm not going to pay it," he said. "And it's not like I've been sitting home watching Sunday night football, just ignoring the bills piling up. I've been defending my country."

Interesting. And would this even be legal under Soldiers and Sailors Civil Relief Act?

[Fuzzy]

Story

"My husband's in Iraq right now," she said. "And we've paid our dues."


"I worked hard for that house," Haithcock said Thursday from Georgia. "And there is no wife to get the mail when I'm gone. There's only me, and when I'm deployed, my mind is on the mission."

Interesting. And would this even be legal under Soldiers and Sailors Civil Relief Act?

But besides that minor mistake... I think that his community is generally composed of asshats. How the hell do you get $1100 worth of legal fees over $200? Seriously.... You'd think they'd be more leniant.

Legally, I have no idea, but it does smell like a rat.

[Wicked Pilot]

Why was the wife not paying the bills, does she not have a checkbook?

[Stormbringer]

Why was the wife not paying the bills, does she not have a checkbook?

She doesn't exist. He's single.

[Wicked Pilot]

She doesn't exist. He's single.

I seem to have misread it, thanks for the correction. Anyway, when you deploy it's always a good idea to give someone you trust power of attorney to take care of these matters. You can also be a good idea to pay ahead for these sorts of things. This HA is being kinda bitchy though, they could just wait till he returns before slapping him the bill unless but they have bills to pay themselves.

[Stormbringer]

She doesn't exist. He's single.

I seem to have misread it, thanks for the correction.

No problem, I had to look it over carefully to get it myself.

Anyway, when you deploy it's always a good idea to give someone you trust power of attorney to take care of these matters. You can also be a good idea to pay ahead for these sorts of things. This HA is being kinda bitchy though, they could just wait till he returns before slapping him the bill unless but they have bills to pay themselves.

They might have some dues. But frankly a lot of these are just plain old totalitarian. They're just assholes.

[TrailerParkJawa]

There are some bills you never let go:

1. The mortgage
2. Property taxes
3. HOA fees.

I think the HOA is charging too much for attorney's fees but the fact that this guy is on active duty is irrelevent. If he was in Iraq I'd say cut him some slack, otherwise he simply isn't paying his bills on time. If your job duties keep you away from your mail on a routine basis then you need to arrange for automatic payments to your checking account or credit card.

[Stark]

Is it common for active servicemen to give power of attorney to allow someone trusted to handle their affairs while they're out of civilian life?

[egyptfrk]

Is it common for active servicemen to give power of attorney to allow someone trusted to handle their affairs while they're out of civilian life?

I know Greg did. It just makes your financial life a bit easier to handle while you're away.

[RedImperator]

That's one of the reasons I'm never going anywhere near a place with a homeowner's association. Who the fuck thinks its a good idea to give your neighbors the power to take away your house?

[TrailerParkJawa]

That's one of the reasons I'm never going anywhere near a place with a homeowner's association. Who the fuck thinks its a good idea to give your neighbors the power to take away your house?

HOA's can be a pain in the ass, but for some people they simply can't afford a single family home. My HOA just replaced the entire roof for the building, its nice to not have to plan for a replacement roof on your own.

[Chardok]

If he has a mortgage, his mortgage company will not let the HOA file a lien against the house. they will charge him through his escrow account the cost of the fees, and perhaps attourney fees, but it will be taken care of. unless he owns the house outright. in which case, they're just being assholes.

[Darth Wong]

What's the chance that he could call "equitable estoppel" on these clowns in court, for inflating the late charges and trying to abuse the letter of the contract?

[Chardok]

What's the chance that he could call "equitable estoppel" on these clowns in court, for inflating the late charges and trying to abuse the letter of the contract?

Slim. Though, there is something to be said for companies (and HOA) being dickheads. He could call the BBB, or the FTC, and lodge a formal complaint. But knowing what I know, the HOA gives exactly the width of a human hair's worth of a shit about what he does. If this does go to trial, the judge will ultimately enforce the contract to the letter. But believe me when I tell you no mortgage company on the planet is going to be usurped out of 1st position on the title by some piddly assed Homeowners Association. Probalem is, the 10,000 dollars attourney fees plus the cost of the dues....he''ll have 12, maybe 24 or in extreme cases 36 months to pay them back, depending on the type of loan he has. (For example, if it's an FHA loan, he can get a sort of 2nd mortgage which will pay the fees/dues this one time, and that lien must be satisfied when his 1st mortgage is paid off.) he's far from out of options. And as far as the SSCRA goes, he must have applied for the benefits in order for it take effect. (which he can still do, retroactive to his activation date, if he has not already done so. If it is invoked, latecharges and negative credit reporting must be halted/removed, again, retroactive to his activation date, as I understand it.

[CmdrWilkens]

Well there's a couple things wrong here that smell fishy in multiple ways.

1) The lien should already exist on the house through the bank so I fail to see the legal basis for the HOA actually being able to put one on.

2) Foreclosure would be a case for failure to pay mortgage not failure to pay HOA fees, while they shoudl have a legal basis to take the guy to court for payment of fees I see it as highly unlikely that they would have some means to foreclose on the property.

3) I know in Columbia that HOA fees are almost always part and parcel with the mortgage (since the bank still technically "owns" the house they are the ones required to pay the fee). I somehow don't see that as not being the case here.

4) You CANNOT deploy overseas without a power of attorney (at least a limtied one) having been signed sealed and delivered. Someone had the power stateside to ensure prompt payement.

5) USERA and Soldiers/Sailors cover situations where the individual can demonstarte financial hardship...however taking such a case to court would require at elast several months of time and that seems unliekly to have passed here.

Overall this situation, based on my experiences, seems a bit fishy.