Month: August 2018

Is There Now an Opportunity to Save Resident Funds?

HOW MANY LEVELS OF MANAGEMENT DOES AGI REALLY REQUIRE?

 The AGI General Manager has resigned per several statements from reliable sources in the community.  Does AGI need a General Manager, who allegedly earned a significant income (which was never disclosed) to oversee Golf, the Brassie Grille, and Tennis?  Chef Josh and Golf Pro Jonas are very capable professionals.  It would be expected the same from the Tennis operation.  This is an HOA operation, not a Harris or Grumman operation. Give folks like Josh and Jonas the responsibility they want, to show their expertise, and have them report to a Board AGI Committee.  Having the Board hire a General Manager makes no financial sense and creates too many chefs stirring the pot. Bottom Line – the Board hired an expensive General Manager and AGI is still financially short of funds even with the residents $200,000 plus subsidy.  BTW – that subsidy allegedly does not include rent, insurance, and who knows what else.

It’s time to take a general manager’s reins off the professionals that were hired and permit them to thrive in their skills.  It’s obvious that the Board wanted to exercise total control over the AGI businesses with the General Manager’s position.  It’s ironic that having control and maybe using the AGI businesses to the Board’s own end were more important than providing a laissez faire atmosphere for the folks, who were hired to make a success of these, in fact, ACSA businesses.

ONE MORE ITEM

 Per Florida Statute 720.303 (4) (j) 1) an HOA has the fiduciary responsibility to assemble “Accurate, itemized, and detailed records of all receipts and expenditures” and 4) “Any other records that identify, measure, record, or communicate financial information” in all its financial and accounting records, WHICH INCLUDE ALL THE AGI BUSINESSES, I.E. GOLF, TENNIS, AND THE BRASSIE GRILLE.

Per Florida Statute 720.303 (5) the financials of the HOA “shall be made available to a parcel owner (the Resident) for inspection and photocopying”.

One of our Residents had requested this financial information from the Board, followed the specific stated guidelines (attorney prepared) for the request, AND WAS DENIED ACCESS.  Why?  Hmm.  Oh yes, there is a $50 per day fine for not supplying the requested information, which would be from the Residents’ funds. HOWEVER, THE REQUESTING RESIDENT DID NOT WANT TO COLLECT ON THE BOARD’S FINES.

. . .  AND YET THE BOARD’S BEAT JUST SEEMS TO GO ON.

JUST BREAKING NEWS

 The Admin Building debacle gets worse.  Termite infestation that very well could be structural has been discovered after the Residents’ unapproved $100,000 renovation nears completion.  This is a 35 year old wood framed structure.

More to come.

Some Real Estate Sell and Buy Tips in HOA and Condo Communities

Aquarina is unique in that it has both and multiple HOA and Condo neighborhoods.  There is the Aquarina PUD, which has an HOA, i.e. the ACSA, the HOA for the whole Aquarina community. In addition, each neighborhood is then overseen by either another HOA or a Condo Association.  For example, Egret Trace has a Condo Association and Les Villas has an HOA.

Buying into this situation comes with several caveats, i.e. being familiar with Condo Associations and the HOA’s CC&R’s, i.e. Covenants, Conditions, and Restrictions.  Florida Statutes require a Condo and/or an HOA Disclosure Form be included with any Purchase Contract.  It is up to the Buyer to perform the due diligence of reviewing the documents for the neighborhood.  What is especially important are the House Rules, the Budgets (current and proposed), the last three Board Meeting Minutes, and the Annual Meeting Minutes for the particular neighborhood  where a purchase would be made.  You do not want to find out after you close on the Property that there may be a possible and huge assessment coming down the road or that you cannot leave your boat or RV in the driveway.

For those that may be selling, there are some other caveats to consider.  When that acceptable contract to purchase your property is put before you, make sure that if it is a cash purchase that you have a contingency that the Buyer provides you Proof of Funds (POF) to close that is acceptable to you. If there is a Buyer loan involved, then have a contingency that the Buyer provides, that is acceptable to you, a Lender Pre-Qualification Letter stating that the loan can be obtained and that the Buyer’s credit is acceptable.

For Sellers, there can be an Estoppel Charge from the Management Company to close out your maintenance fee account.  The charge here in Aquarina, which The Voice believes is too much, can be at least $350.  Typically in Brevard County, the Seller pays for the Title Insurance Policy; however, with new construction, the Buyer typically pays.  If the policy, in many cases, is no more than five years old, and is issued by the same insurer, then there can be a discount to the policy cost.

One last caveat, some neighborhoods, have a Right of First Refusal, whereby the Association or an owner has the right to match your offer to purchase and make the purchase instead of you.  There is a time period for the Association or owner  to make this purchase decision or not  during the contract process.

Having a seasoned Realtor or attorney can assist you in the Buy and Sell process.  A real estate transaction is a significant event, and having professional guidance and help would be a strong recommendation.

OMG – Did You See Our New Acquisition?

Another questionable Board decision to spend residents’ funds has emerged (see photos below).  We all want our beautiful golf course to thrive and appear pristine.  The residents, in a budget line item, subsidized  AGI, mostly the golf course operation, by well over $200,000 for 2018.  Generating revenue is a prime requirement in running the course other than the maintenance. A healthy marketing budget would assist in building revenue, i.e. players on the course.

As you know from previous posts, in January 2017, the Board, without a resident vote of approval, decided to place a nearly $400,000 assessment on the residents to restore, among other items, the Golf Maintenance Yard.  The Building Permit applied to the County was for storm damage repair at an estimated cost at a fraction of the $400,000 assessment, i.e. 25% t0 30%.

What you see below is a lawn mower washing station that has just been newly erected for over $43,000.  For the past 14 years the equipment has been hand hosed and power washed with apparent success.  Does this PGA Golf Course acquisition make financial sense for a business that is abundantly subsidized?  Is this storm damage repair?

The Board has stated that it operates as a developer for Aquarina.  Being a developer means you have funds to carry out your plans.  This Board, as a developer, does not have funds of its own, but the Board does have the residents’ funds.  Its easy to spend frivolously when it’s not your money.  Further, the Board’s responsibility is to maintain the community, and not change it.  The residents decide what stays, what goes, what is left alone, and how much money will be spent on any decided change.  It’s the Law!