When does the Special Assessment begin?
September 1, 2023 and will continue until September 1, 2026 for a duration of three years.
Can I pay monthly, quarterly, annually or all at once?
Yes, all amounts listed below would be in addition to current monthly dues.
Monthly – $16
Quarterly – $48
Yearly – $192
Full Amount – $576
Why do I have to pay a special assessment when the pool has been closed for the last few years?
The pool has been open since spring of 2020, during COVID-19, and had remained open with lifeguards and a pool management company up until spring of 2023. The special assessment is to repair the pool deck that has been neglected for years prior to this point and make it safe for use for the community.
Why can’t we just close/get rid of the pool?
Having a pool as an amenity raises property values in our community. Also, the process to remove the pool as an amenity would require 2/3 of all homeowners in our community to vote to remove it. That would mean that 312 homes would have to vote in favor of removal. If this were accomplished, then the association would still have to pay to have a permit for demolition, and have a specialized contractor remove the pool, electrical, plumbing and cabana. Because the pool is 50 years old, the Village has strict restrictions on processes to remove old pools. Then we would have to pay to fill in all areas with dirt to bring it level. This would still cost the association a lot of time and money.
Note: We have 468 households, and to be legally able to vote you must be current on all dues and have no ACC violations, it would remove about 100 households from the voting pool as we have about that many ineligible to vote at this time.
How are we paying for this project while the special assessment is being collected?
The Board is currently in negotiation with Capital One bank to secure a loan of $300,000 in order to complete this project. The bank has suggested a 10-year loan with a 7% interest rate per annum. We will have to pay back the loan on a monthly basis, but will have a 30-day grace period before the first payment will be due. Any money being collected for the special assessment is being put aside to pay off the loan in a shorter time frame. The board is hoping to pay it off in three years, avoiding seven years of interest payments. There is no penalty for paying off the loan sooner.
When will work on the pool begin?
Pending a successful secured loan, the first step would be to sign a contract with a general contractor to complete the work. The next step would be to order the necessary materials for work on the pool as there is a 4–6-week lead time. Pending completion of these steps, work may or may not be started pending weather. If work cannot be completed before winter, work would resume in the spring. If everything goes as planned and no other unforeseen circumstances arise, the Board is hopeful the deck would be ready for summer of 2024.
Since the pool is not open, why can’t the HOA reimburse us for some of our monthly dues?
Your monthly dues go towards the upkeep and running of the association. This includes, but is not limited to the following:
· Insurance coverage for common areas (we have a two-million-dollar policy).
· Snow removal for common areas not owned by the Village or individual homeowners
· Landscaping of common areas
· Employee* Salaries, which allows the residents access to information through the office such as statements, rentals, general questions, notary, etc.
· Clubhouse and Cabana utilities
· Pool Operation
For a full list of items that your dues go toward, please see the 2023 budget. You may request a copy from the office or view it on the HOA website.
*Employees/Office Staff are non-residents, and are NOT volunteers, unlike the Board Members who do not receive any monetary compensation for being on the Board.
Why don’t we have the money in the reserve account to pay for this project outright?
Prior to the current board that took over in October of 2019, the association was owed over $230,000 in back dues that was not even attempted to be collected between 2012 and 2019. The current board and office staff of the past three years were able to secure all but roughly $55,000 of those past dues. All homeowners who owe are either on a payment plan through the office, in collections with the attorney, or are on the verge of being sent to collections. While we are collecting these past due amounts, it is a slow process. In the past three years, other major repairs have been made before the beginning of the pool deck. These include the tear out and replacement of the clubhouse parking lot, repairs to the common grounds due to prior neglect, and updating of the 20-year-old clubhouse for resident use. If we were to use all of the money remaining in the reserve account, we would deplete it to nothing, and that is not a fiscally responsible action for any board to take. This would leave the association in a very unstable financial situation.
I don’t use any of the amenities, why do I have to pay a special assessment for something I’m already not using?
When any homeowner purchases a home in an HOA, regardless of whether they use the amenities or not, every household contributes equally to the running and upkeep of their association. So, while you may not take advantage of the amenities, it does not exempt any household from paying for them.
Can I opt out of being a part of the association?
The short answer to this question is yes, you can.
BUT
The Long answer is that it would take the board of directors calling for a dissolution of the association and then the super majority of the association to disband the HOA. This would mean 75% of the homeowners, which would mean 351 households, would have to agree to do so. Then it would have to be decided who would take possession of the common areas. If we dissolve the HOA without knowing who is responsible for the common areas, then each individual homeowner is liable for ALL common areas. The only real way to avoid this would be to get the Village or Municipality to take possession of all of the common areas. If they do not, then it would take many years and cost thousands of dollars in legal fees to accomplish. So, while you can opt out as a full community, a single household cannot.