State of Communities

Chile Discrimination Against Maid, Felicita Pinto, Sets Off National Soul-Searching

2012-01-23T17:51:00.001-08:00

OMG they wrote into the bylaws of the non stock corporation that this was allowed. The lawyers for the developer need to be brought up before the Hague and any country that permits this needs to be questioned of their ability to sit on any humanitarian commissions, committees and let alone treaties they have signed. I hope no major NGO's have funding in this and if so they need to defund it.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Maria Cantwell's Marital Status Used By GOP Opponent In Political Attack

2011-12-17T10:24:00.001-08:00

""Maria Cantwell believes that the Plan B decision should be based on the best (available science)" said Cantwell campaign strategist Rose Kapolczynski. "Washington voters support {protecting} women's health. You don't need to be married to know that Baumgartner's extreme anti-choice position is out of touch.""

This is called a FRAME. The main point is that she uses (science) and that he will use {moral} code. Now this same moral code allows for the death penalty so don't think it has to be rational. That's the point there is no rational when the FRAME is view with a moral len's.

This FRAME both the left's use of (science) and the rights, which btw both left & right are FRAMES, use of {moral} or "principled" mandates to encode message to voters.

One works on conscious level and other on the subconscious; And, it don't take a genius to know which one works better.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

FHA May Require A Taxpayer Bailout By The End Of Next Year: Report

2011-11-15T13:18:00.001-08:00

Blogged about this back in 2010 on State of Communities: http://stateofcommunities.blogspot.com/2010/10/what-percentage-of-condominim-need-to.html And from what I have seen they FHA, Congress and the Obama Admin have only made it worse for themselves and for the housing market.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Maryland Appellate Court Rules That Individual Unit Owners Have a Right of Action Against the Council of Unit Owners For Failing To File a Timely Suit Against the Developer For Defects In The Common Elements

2011-09-27T12:51:00.000-07:00

Hillel Greenstein et al. vs. Council of Unit Owners of AvalonCourt Six Condominium, Inc. has been decided and the six clients seemly have won a decision to hold a board members personally liable for the specials assessments that his six clients don't want to share. This ruling is a major set back in many ways to Common Interest Communities "CIC" The attorney, Raymond D. Burke, is on record saying that he has in his own words.

"often warned condominium councils about the consequences of failing to take timely legal action to protect the unit owners when there is evidence of construction defects in the common elements."

Well! I have been involved with CIC since 1988 and I don't recall once seeing Attorney Burke talking about that happens to communities that are given no help from the state, county or city government in their efforts to get developers to live up to their contracts, obligation and I would say moral responsibilities; however, I know the crowd where talking about about; so I'll save the lecture.

In this case a Condominium board is being help responsible to the do what inspectors, permitting offices and the government on all levels has been backing out of ~ Ensuring that the community is livable.

The vener that this subject is being plastered over with is nothing but that -vener and these board members are now being held to account.

These communities often find themselves fighting with the developers by the time the 1st resident moves in and the developer is still in control of the meetings, voting and money. And, all to often these developers leave the community with no money, a completely unworkable budget and often don't hold a transition meeting to let the community know what is even happening. And this group of homeowners have to be do what......run a community as a professional board right out of the gate.

Meanwhile Maryland politicians are right there with the developers sucking up all those contributions and screwing the people out of any representations.

If you have tried to get a meeting with any Maryland offices about the issues facing these boards you know that Maryland officials want nothing to do with CIC's We have tried to get several meeting with Albert Wynn's office for some communities in Prince Georges, MD and the staffer refused to set one up and said that each owner had to come in on their own. This is not an isolated issues with him as not one Maryland state of federal public servent has done ONE THING for CICs.

The really sorry part about this is that many CIC are handicapped because Maryland refuses to enforce it's Condo ACT and to the extent that it has a HOA act it is pretty much a hollow shell of protecting, considering there is no financial disclosure in HOA in Maryland.

Where is this attorney on the face that banks, Fannie, Freddy, FHA, HUD and the VA aren't paying assessments, making reserve funds contributions and forget about special assessments. In our office we get calls every week by someone that just moved into a CIC in Maryland and they have no documents, financial statement or even clue as to who's even on their association board.

Now the really stupid part about this is that these six owners have sued themselves and they will have to share in the cost of this as there is no president what so ever that says that they are excluded from any special assessment or legal action that impacts the whole community. I'll guess they don't realizes that the insurance company that was covering the community will more then likely be dropping their community from coverage when reconstruction is happening in a condominium.

So who is going to cover this community that this Attorney and his clients are now forcing something

So, Great news all around another attorney got paid and the community gets the bill.

Maryland Appellate Court Rules That Individual Unit Owners Have a Right of Action Against the Council of Unit Owners For Failing To File a Timely Suit Against the Developer For Defects In The Common Elements

Community Candidates: So we have launched the 1st probe into Candidates ...

2011-04-25T09:57:00.000-07:00

Community Candidates: So we have launched the 1st probe into Candidates ...: "We are starting to ask candidates running for public office what their positions are with regards to a pularity of concerns and issues faci..."

There is no reason that your community should be on Social Media ~Right?

2011-04-20T13:02:00.000-07:00

Since part of our chairman's Nelson Jacobsen, background involves a life time in emergency management and a new area called CrisisData he has been at the forefront of the social media citizen movement.

Specifically, This tread of using social media to communicate during a disaster is changing the whole world of emergency management. Recently Nelson was part of a team of volunteers that assisted at the National Emergency Managers Association special workshop called SMEMCamp

This event allowed emergency managers "EM" to have access to social media practitioners who shared their experiences and knowledge in social media to help the EMs understand something that is completely overtaking their world.

More important to understand is that social media is 100 percent cloud based and this is really the forest behind the trees of twitter, facebook etc. So yes what is popular is going to change and board's will have to learn to use new communications technology or skills and there is nothing else to do~ save to adapt.

It should not be lost on boards and managers of Common Interest Communities that they need to adopt a social media strategy! Not only because most of their members are already there; we know from recently disasters that citizens are going to turn to social media to communicate during them.

We have to wonder if the property management company in Georgetown, DC been on twitter would they would have seen the alerts that the DC government has posted. We saw them and changed our plans for the day. They didn't and the outcome is a disaster

When your on social media it is interlinked and your emergency managers and national defense use these open system to look for what we call noise on the wire.

For more information about CrisisData visit here.
To establish your community Twitter visit here

If you do one thing after reading this! We would advise that each CIC establish a twitter feed not only communicate with your membership -- it needs to be connected to you local government, utilities companies and emergency responders and you need to share this account with a couple of board members so what they can monitor and respond with it matters most in your community.

Here is a simple example of how to use Twitter during an emergency.

If your community is interested in Community Emergency Plans or how to establish a social media presence please contact. Hastatus, LLC follow @hastausllc or @intercommassoc

Real Time real-estate blog | The Palm Beach Post » Blog Archive » Dizengoff buys 65 Palm Beach condos in bulk deal

2011-04-20T11:09:00.000-07:00

Real Time real-estate blog | The Palm Beach Post » Blog Archive » Dizengoff buys 65 Palm Beach condos in bulk deal: "Dizengoff-Trading Company has purchased the remaining 65 units at 2560 South Ocean Blvd. in Palm Beach for about $6.9 million in a cash."

Really, we are soooooo surprised.....

Beware of the Ides of March in CIC land.

2011-04-05T08:58:00.000-07:00

So if you think about the state of the condominium market right now with both FHA & Fannie Mae basically not able to back loans in what 100 thousand 1 million condo's single family & townhouse associations. Who knows. Really?

As with every other case follow the money. Think! If many urban communities which are largely made up of Condo & Townhouses since the 80s. They are no longer back-able by the annies, thus these entities no longer have assests to calm as counter to their notes. The whole market implodes

Which is what is happening now.

Who is the villains! You say a villain......Let's just make up a movie plot and you tell me who is whom?

Cut to. villains And, I do mean the worst kind as they are assembling huge piles of money ( backscene~ these piles are the loans they crammed into the system and resold in a ponzie scheme ) Now they are ready to descend like the plage upon cities and devour every single condo, townhouse and some partials completed HOA's that unit they can get their hands on

They are basically not re-sellable because the government refused to take steps to stop this train wreak years ago....well you draw your own conclusion.

As to why would villains (errr...investors) would want to buy up a million units at a time...........

VO because the 40 percent of owners that have been paying the bills are about to become totally beholden to the investor owners since their own units are not re-sellable using conventional or any other loan other then cash. And, who is going to step up and buy those units?

PLOT TWIST some of villains are currently advising the government on it's response to the current housing issues. Did any .GOV or Agency do one thing in regards to state of communities?

CIC's have been set up like bowling pins to be knocked down and redeveloped any way these Villains see fit. They will have a captive renter community and who knows after they are done 10 percent of the old owners may even qualify to buy a new home- It's the same as the old home.

Crux of the PLOT Only now new/oldhome just it generated a new series of transactions and these folks that run things including Congress it seems care more about that then they do your community.

Or the Congress and your Government starts to care about the 100 million U.S. citizens that live in these communities. The odds are that many of them do and they are going to stop this or be hoisted by the investors/villains.

2012 Elections need to be about the State of Communities and Communities

State of Communities: The Big Picture in CIC land.

2011-02-09T10:46:00.000-08:00

State of Communities: The Big Picture in CIC land.: "The Big Picture in CIC land. Community Associations (CA), Common Interest Communities (CIC) or Planned Unit Development (PUD) over the last..."

Yes this is back Storm Water Ponds.

International Community Association: Maryland’s Montgomery Council hearing on Pepco 2/7...

2011-02-07T10:06:00.000-08:00

International Community Association: Maryland’s Montgomery Council hearing on Pepco 2/7...: "Considering 3 out of 4 homes in Maryland fall within a Common Interest Communities “CIC” (aka Condominium, Cooperative Single Family Homeow..."

CIC2.0 Open.gov has to come to Condo, Coop & Hoa's

2011-01-31T09:05:00.000-08:00

Wow what a giant dark hole we are prying the lid open on when we come to think of Open Gov as it relates to Common Interest Communities (CIC). This is so far removed from the minds of those enabling, - NO! MANDATING- it that in some US States you don't even have to be told that your home is a combined assets of a nonstock company. And, as the CIC goes~So does your home.

Eample! Right now in the shadow of Congress and every Agency that is espousing OPEN.data.Gov/.Org new home owners moving into a Single Family or Townhouse Homeowners Associations (HOA) arn't told about the rules or the finances of the HOA. That means the biggest financial decision these folks will face in most of their lives~ they will have no information about the investment it rules, finances or even it's existence. How can our GOV makes disclosure of these things for securities and does not for the homeowner in an associations. How can the Federal Gov back loans in areas that don't offer this basic disclosure to the majority of new home buyers.

Because of this oversight or lack of it the management companies & boards operate in the dark to the membership. There is no enacted law to ensure this does not happen. Yet there is a uniform law that is being used in VA and partially in MD that would help in the dark homeowners. BTW we can see by resales states that have done so fair better. I have been to more then one reboot of a HOA after they found the management company or someone with access to the funds stole their money. It just makes sense a concepts like a Disclosure law; Yet afters years of seeking one none exist.

In Maryland we get to see the downfall of not enacting the financial disclosure requirements that States like Virginia and Washington along with the Bylaw, Covenants, rules and regulations (aka CondoHOA Docs) who require financial disclosure for resales in Single Family & Townhouse HOA's. In Maryland resale buyers when buying their home face a decision about a company/community and they don't get any details in the form of a balance sheet, audited statement or any financial disclosure for that matter . What does the homeowner have to do to get one leader to step up to the plate this makes no sense.

I am sorry to say that until there is some leadership on the National or State level communities themselves are going to be two steps behind. However, communities can jump ahead by making records available to your members/owners any Gov or Emergency responder that need access to data/info on the cloud.

We launched in 02 to bring attention to Condo, Coop and Hoa's plights

2011-01-25T12:42:00.000-08:00

Community Associations (CA), Common Interest Communities (CIC) or Planned Unit Development (PUD) over the last thirty years has become a staple of new home development for many reasons. They may be in the form of a Condominium, Cooperative or Homeowner Associations but they all share in number of characteristic and 1 out of 6 US home fall within one.

Each one of these developments has document and disclosure requirements and they have a responsibility to the membership as a whole to operate the community for the good of all residents and to generally increase the combined property value

What is the affect of non- resident oriented contracts and what are the dangers that may come about because the communities were not making these decisions? It is reported by Community Association Institute, a national trade group of the planned community professionals, that 1 out of 6 homes in the US falls within such a place.

This same group projects that 50 percent of all new home developments are being built as planned communities.

According to the Wayback machine we put this online in Aug 2002. Whois has it up April of 02.

It is our opinion that for owners of homes that happen to fall inside a Common Interest Communities it has only gotten worse and the State of the Union Speech tonight will not offer any home for the Millions that find themselves in this situation together.

Lets see if the Gov has a plan for your CIC we are trying to get them to pay attention and please feel free to visit our new group to do just that. InternationalCommunityAssociation.org Help Us Help Your Community.

BTW 25 THOUSAND CONDO"S just lost FHA Underwriting

2010-12-12T11:51:00.000-08:00

We said~ Hey this is coming and guess what it ain't over because Fannie's deadline is just a week or so away and even if they move the date back as it seems FHA is doing the facts on the ground are that these Condos are broke and until that is fixed none of them are going to get through a winter let alone pay for some stupid recertification that entangles your community with DEADBEAT OWNERS like FHA, FANNIE.

It might not be a bad Idea for communities to not deal with the agencies since it is these same agencies that placed all the dead beat owners in the units that FANNIE FHA and others now own and again don't pay dime of current assessments and they have not done ONE single thing to help any Community in the USA.

This is not a joke and the folks that are supposed to be your elected leaders have not done one thing either. Name one hearing that has been called. These same folks will take up days talking about Super Rich folks getting a tax cut HOWEVER they will not take one moment to talk about the 100 million US homeowners that are without single voice in DC, it would seem, that cares.

WAKE UP and at least one reporter seems to have http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/12/10/AR2010121002088.html

WHAT IN THE HELL IS GOING ON AT FHA.

2010-11-09T10:32:00.000-08:00

Additional update: The HUD Mortgagee Letter 2009-46A,eliminates “Spot Loan” approvals for condominiums going into affect on February 1, 2010. For a more detailed explanation, read this. We believe that this, along with thenew condo “concentration” guidelines (see number ten) will mean that from this point forward, the HUD database will not be the most accurate to guarantee that a unit “is” or “is not” FHA approved. After concluding our research, we believe that, by far, the most comprehensive and up to date collection on whether a unit is approved by the FHA will be found atFHA Pros. Check back here for updates. We will be posting them as they become available. Click to go to site.

Of course clicking on the FHA Pros link takes you to a $4.99 a search website. The HUD database is free and by what reasoning or act of law or agency can their data not be the authority answer on who is or is not in compliance.

I would like to hear from someone at HUD as to their database is still relevant and if not why.

Clearly we'll take a look into this and get back to everyone.

FHA Condo Reserve requirement kicking Condos in the gut

2010-11-09T09:17:00.000-08:00

The condominium/homeowners association must have at least 10% of its budgeted income designated in a capital reserve fund for replacement reserves and adequate funds budgeted for the insurance deductible.

FHA reserve requirements as per FHA Mortgagee Letter 2009-46B This law was put in place over a year ago and it was delayed so that some kind of education and outreach from the agency that is required to fulfill this function. As well this would with a massive pr blitz community the need to condo come into compliance with something that was never asked of them before.

~why wait, why not have this as part of any plan that would require repair and maintenance of plant and equipment. Why did the regulators hide this from consumers -- this is a whole blog itself.

I'll go out on a limb and say most don't know that every condo that is backed by FHA loans are required to established a reserve fund. Thats right and if you didn't get a reserve plan at closing that is a pretty good sign that your condo doesn't have one.

To be in compliance with this a base funding is set at 10% of your budget to be placed in a reserve account.

So what will happen if your Condo did not set up the fund and didn't get it to the 10% level. Anyone that seeks to refinance or sell a property in said Condo --the loan will be rejected. Yep, no FHA loans for anyone in your Condo.

Of course there is no official plan in plan by anyone anywhere to deal with this and the FANNIE Recertification requirement that comes up end of DEC as well.

Again, from Washington nothing.

We do have a plan and we'll need to get the help of everyone or we are going to wreak the entire US Economy.

Think CONDOICEBURG.

Here is some more

"Reserve Study – a current reserve study must be performed to assure that adequate funds are available for the funding of capital expenditures and maintenance. A current reserve study must be no more than 12 months old – if recent events or market conditions have affected the finished condition of the property that information must be included. When reviewing the reserve study, consideration must be given to items that have been replaced after the time that the reserve study was completed."

For existing associations with pre-owned condominiums, HUD underwriters require a current reserve study containing a funding projection which clearly indicates the percent funded level is 60% **or more at the time of approval. Once a particular association is approved for FHA lending guarantees there is no requirement that they re-qualify at a future date. However, that does not mean once you are approved by HUD you can forget about your reserve funding program. Even after an association has received HUD approval for FHA loans subsequent loan applications must include an updated reserve study as part of the document package submitted to underwriters. If the underwriters see evidence the reserves are not being funded as planned, or the percent funding amount has fallen to unacceptable levels, it could trigger the need for a new reserve study.
Not only must the reserve study provide a funding plan which indicates the reserves are 60% funded at the time approval is granted, but the association’s reserve account must be current in terms of the contributions which are required to maintain the funding levels indicated in the reserve study. Reserve contributions which are scheduled in the reserve study must be made on a monthly basis.
New condominium developments are treated somewhat differently than existing and converted condominium associations. New developments are said to be those which are newly constructed and are being sold by the developer to the first owner who will ever occupy the dwelling.
New developments are not required to maintain a specific percent funded level in their reserve account. What is required in order to gain approval for FHA loan guarantees is a current approved operating budget which includes a provision for a reserve transfer. The transfer must be adequate relative to the size of the association, its reserve funding obligations, etc.
While this may seem somewhat ambiguous what is important to understand is that the underwriters are looking at the budget and the reserve funding obligations of the association to develop a sense of whether there is a prudent plan for long range replacement funding in place.

http://www.paccrestreserves.com/FHA-HUD-condominium-Reserves.htm

If this is what they are sayin add to it what we have said..

2010-10-21T17:05:00.001-07:00

Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac Bailout Likely to Double, FHFA Scenarios Show

By Kevin Depew October 21, 2010 10:18 AM OUR FORECLOSED WORLD

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) today released projections of the financial performance of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The scenarios aren't pretty.

The really scaring thing is that these projection don't take into account the effect of Fannie Mae on whole condominiums and home/townhouse association bottom line.

What about the recertification requirement for every condo in the USA. What happens to them and Fannie with they fail to be recertified.

http://www.minyanville.com/dailyfeed/fannie-mae-freddie-mac-bailout/

Note still no talk about a CIC Bailout.

What percentage of Condos need to fail Fannie Recertification before it fails?

2010-10-18T07:40:00.000-07:00

If you think about the very premise that Fannie Mae requires that loans in common interest communities (especially condominiums) be backed up with various data points ( ie the parts of the recertification process) and that this recertification process will revel that at least ____% of them will fail.

What is that % number (20 -60) when reached shows that loans that Fannie Mae itself owns are not eligible for Fannie Mae underwriting. Do you get what we are saying. The biggest mortgage note holder notes are not going to be going forward backed by them they have worthless paper in their own underwriting process.

How can they resell these units or anyone else for that matter?

Citizens Property Insurance rate hikes approved in Florida

2010-10-16T22:48:00.000-07:00

Citizens Property Insurance rate hikes approved in Florida

Most condominium associations will pay 11% more on average for insurance next year, Just add this to the length of the condotrainwreak

Condominiums must re-certify with Fannie Mae by December ~TrainWreak....

2010-10-15T10:41:00.000-07:00

Do you really think we could make this stuff up...........Only in Government can it get this stupid While your reading these requirement consider that every Condominium in the USA has to do this (((((((((((We are not kidding))))))

Now while your reading also realize that in just about every case where a Fannie Mae loan has gone bad there has not been assessment payments sometime in years.

Talk about unfunded mandates just these kill the communities that your homes are part of, again, not kidding.

So if the community is dead broke, some with lost corporate charters we estimate that over 50 percent of the Condominiums well not be able to be re certified. At what point in time does that actually register with anyone other then this and a few other blogs.

RECERTIFICATION PROCESSING REQUIREMENTS

1) Determine date project was initially approved (can either check in FHA Connection or on the public web site located at: https://entp.hud.gov/idapp/html/condlook.cfm

2) If project initially approved prior to January 1, 2000, full project approval is required.

3) If project initially approved on or after January 1, 2000, then the project is eligible for the streamlined recertification process.

4) Projects may be recertified beginning six (6) months prior to the approval expiration date or within six (6) months after the approval expiration date.

5) Projects not recertified within six (6) months after the approval expiration date will require full project approval.

6) No new FHA case numbers will be assigned for those projects where the project approval has expired and the project has not been recertified or reapproved.

7) Recertification packages may be submitted by the Lender, Builder/Developer, Homeowners Association, Management Company or an Attorney or Project Consultant who submits on behalf of one of the other named parties. Packages may not be submitted by Borrowers, Sellers and/or Real Estate Agents.

8) Recertification packages may be submitted to the jurisdictional Homeownership Center and processed under the HRAP option DELRAP participating lenders may review and process recertification packages.

9) All documentation and information required on the Condominium Recertification Cover Letter/Document and Checklist must be included in the request for recertification review. Lenders may elect to use their own form; however, it must contain all information required on the examples provided.

10) DELRAP participating lenders must upload all required recertification documentation, including all recorded legal documents, in FHA Connection (FHAC).

11) Regardless of the processing option selected, HRAP or DELRAP, the reviewer must enter the final determination and associated data into the Condominium Maintenance screen in FHAC.

The ICA will be blogging about how to deal with this and offer help to Condominiums get through the process.

Hello Washington DC please stop killing communities.

Why has the main stream media done everything possible to not cover this?

2010-10-15T10:05:00.000-07:00

So I have been talking about Condo & Hoa issues since the first time I heard about one.

It was surprising to me as someone that worked in both Community Associations,( CPWI CEO 5yrs BOD 22) and politics my first campaign job was to make signs for a judges race when I was in 10th grade (1980) the fact that the needs of Tens of Millions of American homeowners are being harmed by the elected officials on the local state and federal level, now world wide since most new communities build world wide are Common Interest Communities should be one of these stories that a reporter dreams of covering.

Now the shock is that during this time I have not been able to get any reporter other then two local reporters or any media outlet. My wife worked in NPR for years and NOT ONE reporter has ever returned a phone call.
We did have for a short time have one producer from 60 Minutes, he died, and so has this story plus the Condos, Coops, and Hoa that are now 80 percent of all homes built

Yet we still have no one coving this story.

Maryland's Governor candiates are ducking CIC issues.

2010-10-14T18:01:00.000-07:00

Today on Twitter there was a debate between the Governor Omalley and Former Governor Bob Ehrlch about their vision for Maryland. During this debate the candidates were also on twitter and were following the #mddebate for twitter folk.

We decided to chim in and see if the respective leaders where aware or even cared about the issues facing Maryland Common Interest Communities. So we asked the some direct questions and some general ones. So far neither of them have bothered to do more then claim some piric victory in a debate that didn't even touch on the fact that 3/4 of Maryland's homes are in jeopardy of going broke and bankrupt.

We have to ask--Who will emerge from Maryland leaders, either party, to start to take on a task that most of them been ducking or denying for years

Let's take foreclosure.........Sure the easy thing to do is say stop them, if you don't know that most of those are in Condo's Single Family & Townhouse Associations. Now how are you going to help them keeps the lights on or the gas going when their master utility bills cannot be paid because past due assessments are at the all time high, let alone any other bills or budgeted obligations.

BTW Fannie/Feddy/Hud/Va and your underwriters. If you own guideline say that no more then 10 percent of owners can be past due in assessments and we know that many communities are 30-50 percent of owners not paying INCLUDING YA"LL how can you then allow the resale of these property when your the owners of them.

Is that even legal, let alone moral. We know the answer do they. BTW If your a resident of a common interest community and one of these campaigns calls, knocks or tweets to you ~ask them what's their plan for your community.

Here is r time line for this debate......