Homeowners associations have so much power in Colorado that they possess the capability to place liens on people’s homes that supersede even the banks that hold their mortgages. bynoelle_phillips and bysajahindi
A grease stain on the driveway.
The couple thought they owed about $2,000. Instead, the debt had ballooned to $17,000 because the HOA wanted them to pay attorneys’ fees associated with the lien. Homeowners associations have so much power in Colorado that they possess the capability to place liens on people’s homes that supersede even the banks that hold their mortgages. That means an HOA could sell a property to collect the money it’s owed and the owner still would be left with mortgage debt and none of the equity they had built.
HOAs initiated a total of 119 foreclosures citywide in 2021, though most filed no more than five, according to a March 10 email to the City Council from Denver’s Housing Stability Office. “The reported increase in foreclosures is nothing more than resumption of normal actions which were halted in 2020, along with more recent enforcement actions,” the statement said. “The board has always and continues to remain open to resolution of these cases in an amicable manner.”
Residents who live within the Master Homeowners Association and the GVR Metropolitan District’s boundaries do not pay dues to the HOA. Instead, the metro district collects taxes and performs duties on behalf of the HOA. The metro district employs a manager and inspectors who respond to complaints, roam the neighborhood to look for violations and mail out notices to the residents.
A person is not allowed to serve on the metro district board and the HOA board at the same time, he said. Stan Hrincevich, president of the Colorado HOA Forum, an advocacy group for homeowners, said some residents told him they never received explanations about the compounding fees they were being assessed — with fines below $100 ballooning into the thousands of dollars — until foreclosure. The notification process, from the fines to foreclosure action, was short, and the residents didn’t have a venue to dispute the fees before that happened.
In the summer of 2020, Washington, a retiree, said he received a letter at the rental property from the HOA saying he would be fined for damaged blinds and weeds growing between some rocks. Within three days, he fixed the problems, called the HOA office and left a message, and paid his fine, he said. No one called him back.Michael Washington protests against foreclosures in Green Valley Ranch on Friday, April 1, 2022.
When the Meeks family moved into Green Valley Ranch in 2008, Dwayne and Terry Meeks became the first homeowners in their families. She is a nurse and he is a social worker. They previously lived in Park Hill, but they wanted to move their children away from the influences of gangs in the neighborhood, and Green Valley Ranch was safe and affordable, Terry Meeks said.
More hearings are set for May and June, and they have no idea what they will do if their home is sold at a foreclosure auction.“The fines just keep going and going and going,” she said.Paola Segura walks her dog Lucas near her home in Green Valley Ranch in Denver on March 30, 2022.Advocates are asking the Master Homeowners Association to place a moratorium on the foreclosures to give residents time to solve their debts.
“We can’t allow families to lose their wealth for an oil stain in their driveway,” Adams said. “It’s a call to action for our organization and for me personally. Let’s find a solution to get all these people out of foreclosure.” He wrote a letter to the HOA, talked with a manager, negotiated a reduced fine and paid it. Then he got his refinance loan approved.
“They claim they have sent me a violation notice but I haven’t seen any of that,” Abrhaley said. “They hired a lawyer and the lawyer is just piling up fee after fee.”
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