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Hear me out. Collections for an Association is vital for the health of the community. I know, I know, you get the dreaded certified letter from the attorney and all you want to do is throw it away. I hear all kinds of reasons why people don’t want to pay Association Dues. “My HOA does nothing for me”, “I don’t use the pool”, “the assessments are way too high”, “my HOA didn’t approve for me to do something so now I am not paying my dues”, etc. etc. Some people just cannot stomach paying their HOA dues if it means not paying for something essential to keep their family afloat. I understand the headache. But, I challenge all of those people to go to their HOA meetings. Ask for the budget. The HOA has bills too. I have seen HOAs suffer significantly because they cannot pay their bills. I have read about HOAs being sued because they didn’t have money to fix their park and a child was hurt on the equipment. I have seen crime and drugs start infiltrating communities because the HOA cannot afford to pay for additional security. HOAs are so important. I get calls all the time asking for advice on creating HOAs because residents are worried for their community.
There is good news! There are ways to get on payment plans and pay assessments without getting behind. In the last two years, people have been struggling. But America is getting back on her feet! Most Associations have management companies. Those management companies most likely have payment plan options established by the Association. Also, there usually is no penalty if members pay dues ahead of time. Members can put a small amount of money away every month before the assessments are due. If an account is turned over to an attorney, there are also payment plan options through their office. The longer the account sits in collections, the higher the fees (depending on the association). There are options and the Association can pay bills and keep amenities beautiful as opposed to paying fees to collect on the accounts that are delinquent.