Post by Admin on Feb 14, 2015 3:15:45 GMT -5
Our Association has arrived a yet another example of the wrong road we are rushing down. According to the BTMUA, we are so far behind on paying our bills that they have put us on the Tax Sale chopping block. For those that don't know what this means;
As any property owner fails to pay their taxes or utility bills, the authority has the right to sell the debt at a "Tax Certificate Sale" auction.
Should the Certificate be sold, it is a lien against the entire property (Association). The reason for someone wanting to buy these certificates,
is they pay a guaranteed interest up to 18%. And the buyer has the right to eventually foreclose on the debt. Or in plain terms, demand
repayment with interest and court costs. From us.
This means that we are now buying our utilities with a virtual credit card, with an interest rate up to 18%. And guess who's responsible
to pay that 18%? We the owners.
**As a side note - for the past couple of years, we've been paying an extra $40 per month for the MUA costs. That should have taken
care of something shouldn't it. It means 40 x 12 = $480 per year. Assuming that the number of paying units was over stated and using
the numbers that are reported now by the board. 260 of the 366 units are paying their monthly fees. That would then mean......
$480 x 260 units = $124,800. Wow....that's more than the $114,000+ we currently owe. Then, let's not forget, we also had a special
assessment of $240, that Metro Associates claims would have collected $60,000 by Nov. 1, 2014. So, if we take the 124,800 + 60,000
we now have a bank roll of $184,800. We could have paid off nearly 1-1/2 years worth of costs. Now comes the really sketchy part of this.
Metro Associates only paid "less than" 1% of the total billed in the last 6 months. And only 24-1/2% for last year, most of which was paid
in December 2014. So what happened to the money?
Everyone complains when we get that annual notice of "hey, it's not the board's fault, but, here's the new maintenance increase". Now we're
faced with this possible new debt that takes our money and guarantees nothing in return.
And if you hadn't thought about it yet. Allowing this debt/lien to be placed on the Association, is in direct violation of our laws. So, for those
who still believe we aren't victims of mis-management and serious money management problems, it might be time to take a step back, take
a deep breathe and take another look. And if you can come up with a plan to fix the Association, using mis-management, mis-alignment of
responsibilities, conflict of interests, and fraudulent behavior ---- let me know. I'd like to book my next vacation on that island.
Here is the actual posting and billing of the BTMUA, as of 2-12-2015.
As any property owner fails to pay their taxes or utility bills, the authority has the right to sell the debt at a "Tax Certificate Sale" auction.
Should the Certificate be sold, it is a lien against the entire property (Association). The reason for someone wanting to buy these certificates,
is they pay a guaranteed interest up to 18%. And the buyer has the right to eventually foreclose on the debt. Or in plain terms, demand
repayment with interest and court costs. From us.
This means that we are now buying our utilities with a virtual credit card, with an interest rate up to 18%. And guess who's responsible
to pay that 18%? We the owners.
**As a side note - for the past couple of years, we've been paying an extra $40 per month for the MUA costs. That should have taken
care of something shouldn't it. It means 40 x 12 = $480 per year. Assuming that the number of paying units was over stated and using
the numbers that are reported now by the board. 260 of the 366 units are paying their monthly fees. That would then mean......
$480 x 260 units = $124,800. Wow....that's more than the $114,000+ we currently owe. Then, let's not forget, we also had a special
assessment of $240, that Metro Associates claims would have collected $60,000 by Nov. 1, 2014. So, if we take the 124,800 + 60,000
we now have a bank roll of $184,800. We could have paid off nearly 1-1/2 years worth of costs. Now comes the really sketchy part of this.
Metro Associates only paid "less than" 1% of the total billed in the last 6 months. And only 24-1/2% for last year, most of which was paid
in December 2014. So what happened to the money?
Everyone complains when we get that annual notice of "hey, it's not the board's fault, but, here's the new maintenance increase". Now we're
faced with this possible new debt that takes our money and guarantees nothing in return.
And if you hadn't thought about it yet. Allowing this debt/lien to be placed on the Association, is in direct violation of our laws. So, for those
who still believe we aren't victims of mis-management and serious money management problems, it might be time to take a step back, take
a deep breathe and take another look. And if you can come up with a plan to fix the Association, using mis-management, mis-alignment of
responsibilities, conflict of interests, and fraudulent behavior ---- let me know. I'd like to book my next vacation on that island.
Here is the actual posting and billing of the BTMUA, as of 2-12-2015.
