By Joyce Coronel
If you live in a neighborhood with a homeowners association, chances are the Phoenix Suns fan next door won’t be painting his house purple with orange trim any time soon. But how much power does the HOA board really have when it comes to sprucing up your castle?
Judy Ramos, neighborhood programs supervisor for the city of Chandler, is hoping area residents will sign up for the four spring sessions of an HOA academy that starts later this month.
Local HOA attorneys present the free 90-minute classes at no cost to residents and provide lunch for the participants.
City staff works alongside the lawyers to decide what topics need to be addressed, Ramos said, adding that the lawyers are needed because city staff can’t give legal advice when it comes to HOAs. The spring session of the academy will have a back-to-basics emphasis this year, she said. Some of the sessions will deal with board members’ roles and responsibilities and the code of conduct for boards.
Many of those who attend, Ramos said, are board members from the various HOAs around town, but other residents who don’t serve on the board are also encouraged to attend.
“It’s always great to come in and get that information so you understand the rules and regulations and the state laws that govern HOAs,” Ramos said. “So you also get it that ‘Oh they’re not picking on me — these are state laws.’”
On Wednesday, April 6 the academy will address the pros and cons of professionally managed versus self-managed HOAs. Most area associations are professionally managed, Ramos said, but a handful are administered by the residents themselves.
Ida Rodriguez has lived in her Chandler home for 25 years and said she has attended the HOA academy for more than 10 years. While she doesn’t currently sit on the board, she has in the past and still helps out with accounting for the association’s dues, which recently increased to $100 per month. Rodriguez called the city-sponsored HOA academy a “blessing” and said that her HOA may have been the first one established in the city.
“We are a small, self-managed HOA so we don’t have a lot of funds and every bit of information we can get helps keep our board members in the know,” Rodriguez said. “Every time you go you learn at least one new thing. They keep you up to date on the latest laws and provisions in the statutes.”
“There’s a lot involved in running an HOA. It’s not just having a board,” Ramos agreed. “There are many rules and regulations, so being self-managed, you have to be really on top of things—your budget and so forth.”
With new legislation constantly coming up for discussion, the city wants HOA board members and the residents in the area to stay informed. But city staff also needs to keep an eye on developments, which explains why representatives from her department will be attending the HOA academy sessions as well.
The academy begins March 23 and continues on Wednesdays through April 13 at the Environmental Education Center, 4050 E. Chandler Heights Road. Information: chandleraz.gov or call (480) 782-4320.
