Posted on Fri, Feb. 10, 2006
IN SOUTH CHARLOTTE COMMUNITY, STANDOFF LEADS TO SHUTOFF
Trickle-down tactic: No dues? No water
Homeowners group invokes new N.C. law
MICHELLE CROUCH
mcrouch@charlotteobserver.com
In a move that is apparently a first for North Carolina, a condominium association on Thursday cut off water to two south Charlotte homeowners who were thousands of dollars behind in paying their homeowners' dues.

The Princeton at Southampton owners association, which controls the development's master water meter and pays the neighborhood's water bill, decided a shutoff was preferable to the traditional approach of taking someone's home through foreclosure, said association president Michael Kan.

So it hired a plumber to sever lines that deliver water to the Ballantyne-area townhomes.

"We thought this was better than kicking them out of their houses onto the street," Kan said. "It's also quicker and saves us money."

The tactic was made legal by legislation governing homeowner associations that went into effect last month, said attorney Richard Vinroot, who advises the association. The statute gives associations the authority "to suspend privileges or services" anytime a homeowner is more than a month behind in paying dues.

The association's written rules, called covenants, also allow the shutoff, Vinroot said.

Greg Gulledge, one of the homeowners whose water was turned off, said he hasn't paid his dues for more than a year because the association hasn't replaced a missing shutter on his condo.

Having no water won't get him to pay, he said.

"Why should I pay for services I'm not receiving?" he said. "I won't let them take my house, but I'll live without water for a while. If I have to call a water company to bring me 50 bottles a day, I'll do it."

Kan said the association first heard about the shutter this week and a work order has been placed.

The other homeowner could not be reached Thursday.

N.C. attorneys who specialize in homeowner association law said they know of no other associations in the Carolinas that have used the approach, though they expect more to try it.

It's also rare nationwide.

"It's certainly been done before, but it's not common," said Florida attorney Ellen Hirsch de Haan, a national expert. "That's partly because a lot of communities have laws that prohibit this sort of thing."

At least one N.C. attorney said she would advise against the practice, particularly since it doesn't guarantee payment.

"If landlords can't cut off people's water if they don't pay their rent, I don't think associations should either," said Tina Pace, a Raleigh attorney who specializes in homeowner association law. "If someone isn't paying rent, you evict them. If they're not paying dues, you foreclose on them."

There are more than 13,000 homeowner associations in North Carolina, including at least 1,844 in Mecklenburg, according to a Web site that registers the groups. In most recently built subdivisions -- and almost all condominium complexes -- the groups have the power to collect fees and foreclose on homeowners who don't pay.

But filing for foreclosure can be time-consuming and expensive, Kan said. Filing a lien would cost the association about $400 to $500, he said, and a foreclosure runs at least $1,000.

It cost the group about $300 to cut off water, which will be charged to the delinquent homeowner.

The delinquent Princeton at Southampton homeowners each owe more than $2,000 to the association, more than a year's worth of the community's $112-a-month dues. Both have received dozens of notices, including a certified letter and a door hanger informing them of the impending water shut-off, Kan said.

Three other delinquent homeowners paid up, Kan said, after learning their water could be cut off.

 

Hey Chris, why are you alerting Oliver on this ?
He doesn't live in a homeowner's association neighborhood.
Besides, he can just drive 5 minutes and shower at his parents condo if he loses his water.

 

Just to give him a hard time Alan. Actually I thought I posted in OT. :o

 

Hey Chris

I would be happy if he didn't fire the d^&Mns thing up,at 2am in the Motel 6 quadrangle!

jack