Q: Can my HOA disregard the terms of my discloser notice to prorate their bill and charge me late fees before i move in?
My discloser from the realtor said the HOA was to the prorated when i moved in on 8-8-17, and that my HOA was approx. $120 dollars a year. The HOA turned out to be $160 a year (approx. must mean within 25%) and they charge me a delinquency fee for 1-17-17 of $20, another on 2-17-17 for $20, a quarterly fee of $40 on 7-1-17 and another $20 delinquency fee on 7-17-17. All this when I didn't live there. I paid $140 dollars for the first year to cover (approximate HOA costs) when I got their bill. Turns out the 140 was what they thought I owed to date. I didn't get a payment schedule or history. Their sight had no fee history , only a pay bill area that didn't say what you owed. I thought I was good till August and I paid another $40 in October. Then they sent me a lien notice On August 12th 2018. I thought "they made a mistake, they'll figure it out". Yup I was dumb, the next communication I got was January 12th, saying I owed $756 to the HOA and $246 lawyer.
A: You are pretty much at the HOA' s mercy. As the owner of a condominium, you are subject to a ton of restrictions and fees. If they sue to execute on the lien, or worse, just conduct an execution sale, then you either satisfy the lien or file a very expensive Chancery Suit for a Declaratory Judgment and Injunction. The usual way of dealing with this is to acquire other owners to back you running for a position on the HOA.
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