Residents of a North Carolina neighborhood are fighting a local management company that has charged fees for amenities that aren't even part of the neighborhood.
As WCNC reported, Braesael Management Company has allegedly used rules of the Mineral Springs homeowners association to charge its residents fees for a local pool, tennis court, and clubhouse. Some residents have received collection notices for failing to pay a $1,000 initiation fee and $39 monthly fee for those facilities.
Those amenities, however, aren't within the neighborhood and aren't owned by the HOA.
"That doesn't sit well with me," resident JR Tucker told WCNC. "It makes me very, very upset that we're having to deal with this."
Braesael, which manages these facilities on behalf of True Homes, told Tucker that HOA bylaws allow the company to collect these fees.
HOA bylaws are notoriously complex and difficult to navigate, particularly for the average homeowner who typically doesn't have legal training.
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This tactic has enabled many HOAs to ban environmentally friendly practices, such as planting native plants or growing food in homeowners' yards. Those who violate these often-vague rules can get hit with hefty fines.
Fortunately, it is possible to fight back against HOAs. It's even possible to get restrictions changed by explaining the potential benefits to both residents and the environment to board members.
In this North Carolina neighborhood, the HOA said it had nothing to do with the amenity fees. Residents took action, contacting local media to make the story public.
The management company finally relented, saying some collection notices had been sent in error and that fees should only be assessed to those who actually use the facilities in question.
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Under $1K 😎 "True Homes has been made aware of certain letters sent to homeowners by the management company that mistakenly mentioned possible steps for collection of unpaid facility fees through a homeowners association," True Homes officials said in a statement to WCNC.
"True Homes is coordinating with the property management company to ensure future correspondence clearly reflects the separate facility-fee structure."
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