J.P. from Florida writes:
Dear Mister Condo,
I live in a small condo association in Florida. While being a new owner, I have noticed that the whole board and the running of the property is out of control. The President has been in place for several years as I can tell since no one else wanted to be on the board. It is a 55+ community. He also put himself as the property manager. The budget is less than $100K, so no property management company is required. He does not pay any HOA fees as he says that is in lieu of his property manager position. The association never voted for this, he just took this over on his own. He bullies the owners who are old and some do not speak good English. When he gets mad at you, he is very vindictive and knocks on people’s doors late at night. This guy is in his 70’s and a heavy drinker. I voted myself onto the board recently as Treasurer to have a voice and he has yet to hand over the books, check writing, etc. Many people believe he is hiding stuff and he now refuses to answer his door or calls from me. He feels threatened and believes I will expose what he has been doing the past 5 years or so. What do you recommend the best course of action to get control of the situation? I have spoken to the association’s lawyer who says to file a complaint with the state (Florida), I plan to do so in hopes of getting the ball rolling to have him removed. We also have cameras throughout the property which he installed but he is the only one who has control of them as it is set up in his unit. Many people feel uncomfortable as he watches all day and approaches people when they get home. I have to assume that is not legal as when we ask to see a clip he does not allow it. As you can see this place is a mess and would be happy to hear any suggestions you may have before I contact the state. Thank you for your advice.
Mister Condo replies:
J.P., there is very little that I can add before you contact the state, which I hope you have already done. The association attorney can only do as much as the association (the Board) instructs him or her to do. You do need to review your governance documents (or have the attorney review them for you) to see what steps will be necessary to remove the President from office and from the Board. If funds are missing or misappropriated, there may very well be criminal charges as well. Right off the bat, I can tell you that the association should go after the unpaid common fees. Board members are not exempt from common fees and unless there is some kind of formal agreement between the President and the Association for him to serve as a paid Property Manager, he will have to make good on those unpaid fees as well as any late fees. Shame on your fellow unit owners who took no action until now. From what you have said, this behavior has been going on for years. Who knows what financial perils this person has brought upon the association. What about other Board members? Are there none? This situation stinks to high heaven and you are correct to pursue a remedy for you and all of the other unit owners are at serious financial risk as long as this individual has the association checkbook. The time for action is now. Good luck!