Quote:
Originally Posted by ace
Hello Grahame,
Thanks for your commets. For me it's not the money as much as the principle. It's not fair to all the other owners who don't pay or want to and there aren't enough spots. If everyone paid a small increase for maintenance then the place would look great.30 parking spots is enough when all the units aren't full all of the time. Sure in high season you'll have more cars, then in 2 months the place is half empty.
I'm very frustrated in the way it was presented. In an e-mail with one weeks notice when the problem been brewing for well over a year. A blind monkey could of seen this problem well in advance. This is not the solution. I'm not 100% sure what is but I do know this isn't.
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Seems to me there are two things going on here:
1) You don;t like the way it was handled
2) You don;t like the solution
I would humbly suggest that there are steps to be taken before involving lawyers.
First up, educate yourself about the condo rules (you seem to be in the process of doing that, so good job). This not so that you go and raise Cain about how unlawful it was, but rather so you know what your options are before settling on what might not be the best option.
Second, I would suggest you take a step back and separate your first, emotional response, from the equation. You feel this was not handled well. Fair enough. You are likely right. But you also say that the president has been doing a good job so far. So, as of yet, there;s no need to alienate this person, nor to enter into an adversarial dynamic. That road leads downhill and tends to pick up speed.
It might be worthwhile to simply talk to him and politely explain that this would have been better received had input from the owners been asked for and taken into consideration and that you at least would have liked to have been afforded the opportunity to bring some suggestions to the table.
Keep in mind, however, that it was handled the way it was handled -- your guy can;t change the past, so the best you can hope for on this subject is that he tells you he will keep you (and the other owners) in the loop on decisions of this nature. Don;t expect much more than that. Also remember that if he has been doing the good job you say he has, he is an asset to you and the owners -- treat him as such and give him a way to satisfy your requirements without losing face.
As to your second point, do you have a better, more equitable solution? If so, why not present it? It seems to me that the solution the president has put forward is a reasonable one, insofar as no one owner is being treated better than the others. The main problem is the lack of parking space -- he has put forward what he likely considers to be the best solution. If you have a better one, now is the time.
However you resolve this, there is one thing I can guarantee you -- a lawsuit will not solve your problems. A lawyer cannot make more parking spaces available, so at the end of the day, the owners are going to have to come up with a solution. This means working with, not against, the board.
In other words, you have the opportunity to work together with, rather than at odds with, the board. Handled properly, this issue can lead to better communication between the board and the owners and might even lead to a better solution for the parking issue and can open the door to discussions on how to better your property. Keep going down the road you have started on and you close the door on this opportunity.
It has been my experience that it is infinitely easier to go from working together to fighting than it is to go from fighting to working together. Therefore, try for the former first. You can always fight if you fail, but the reverse is seldom the case.
Let us know how you do
Best wishes for the Holiday season!
Joe
(10)
Legal Homeowners Issue : Please Read
When you look at the proposal in it's basic format, it is NOT that much different to the one YOU put forward ....... RD $400 per month as opposed to your RD $300 per month! 
~ Grahame.
