G.H. from Middlesex County writes:
Dear Mister Condo,
Can an owner loan the association money? We were in the midst of estimated $6k repairs to the exterior of the building when one of our Unit owners put their unit on the market. The contractor indicated the problem was more severe than they initially thought and advised us to contact insurance. Insurance sent an adjuster. Meanwhile, our unit owners got antsy and got a second contractor’s quote for $9k. Since we had $12k in the bank, the trustees agreed to proceed with the repairs figuring that if we got paid by insurance, great, if not we decided we would do a special assessment. The contractor removed some drywall from the interior of the “for sale” unit and wants to fix that and other areas in a phase 2 which he estimates at $6k. So, at this point we don’t have the money but the unit owners want the repairs made and have offered to loan the condo association money to just get it done now. Is there a way to do that? The repairs would likely need to be made down the road at any rate…
Mister Condo replies:
G.H., the association’s ability to borrow money from anyone – a bank, a group of owners, whatever, is defined in the condo’s governing documents. If the documents are silent on the subject (many are) then the Board needs to adopt a resolution that allows the association to borrow money. Further, the unit owners need to ratify that resolution with a vote that satisfied the requirement for amending the documents. Sometimes it requires more than a simple majority so take a look at your documents to determine if the Board has the authority to borrow money on behalf of the association. The next question becomes one of competitiveness and convenience. Let’s assume that the Board can borrow the money. Why would they go to a group of unit owners versus a bank? How much interest is involved? If it is such a low amount of money and a Special Assessment is planned any way, why not just levy the Special Assessment and be done with it? If the association can’t raise the money to pay back the unit owners, what then? Will they withhold their common fees until they are paid? Borrowing from unit owners may be convenient but it opens up the association to a lot of risk and a potential nightmare down the road. If it were me, I would simply issue the Special Assessment and be done with it. Also, the trustees getting antsy shouldn’t have triggered all of this confusion. They had already hired a contractor. Getting a second opinion after the fact may not have been such a good business practice. Is the first contractor suing the association for reneging on the contract? Then, you could end up paying twice for the work. Protecting the association from such liability is the primary role of the Board. Practicing good fiscal policy is equally important. I question some of the decisions they are making here and would suggest they would benefit from important Board Member training. “Condo Inc.”, offered by the local chapter of CAI, would be a great start. All the best!