Latest news with #HOA
Daily Mail
14 hours ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
The 'insane' move buyers are now pulling before signing home contracts... but it them a better deal!
Millions of Americans live in communities governed by a homeowners association (HOA), and the number has only increased in recent years. But many buyers don't known much about the HOA they're joining, and the boards typically like to keep it that way.
Yahoo
21 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Florida firefighters had to rush to evacuate 60 residents from high-rise after massive crack spotted in column
In early May, construction crews working in the parking garage of South Beach III Condominiums in Clearwater, Florida, spotted a "several‑foot‑wide crack' in a concrete support pillar. As CBS News reports, they immediately flagged the structural concern, eager to prevent another tragedy like the 2021 condo collapse in Surfside, Florida, which killed 98 people. Within two hours, firefighters were knocking on doors in the 12‑story tower, hustling roughly 60 residents onto the street with what they could carry. Thanks to Jeff Bezos, you can now become a landlord for as little as $100 — and no, you don't have to deal with tenants or fix freezers. Here's how I'm 49 years old and have nothing saved for retirement — what should I do? Don't panic. Here are 5 of the easiest ways you can catch up (and fast) Nervous about the stock market in 2025? Find out how you can access this $1B private real estate fund (with as little as $10) 'Basically for like two days [I'm] wearing the same clothes until things kind of calmed down,' resident Scott May told FOX 13. A week later, engineers installed heavy shoring and declared the column stabilized. Most condo owners were allowed to return to their units — but not those with condos stacked over the column. They were left in limbo. Even the homeowners who could return had to agree to restrictions: no construction or remodeling without written board approval, no deliveries over 75 pounds, and closed balconies above the damaged pillar. It's the latest example of how post-Surfside safety legislation is impacting condo residents.. When the Champlain Towers South condominium crumbled in Surfside in 2021, it exposed decades‑old gaps in Florida's building‑safety oversight. In 2022, lawmakers passed Senate Bill 4-D, also known as the milestone-inspection law. Key points include: Mandatory structural reviews: Every condo of three or more stories must undergo a 'milestone inspection' by an architect or engineer 30 years after completion, or 25 years if it sits within three miles of the coastline, followed by re‑inspections every 10 years. No more reserve waivers: Associations must fully fund reserves for major repairs. Board members who skip or defer funding face personal liability. Read more: Want an extra $1,300,000 when you retire? Dave Ramsey says — and that 'anyone' can do it The new rules have already shuttered several condo towers for several years. One high‑profile case is Miami Beach's Castle Beach Club condominum — in which the onsite spa (Russian & Turkish Baths) was forced to close for structural repairs in 2022. The spa finally reopened after a three-year shutdown that kept portions of the 570-unit building off-limits and saddled owners with steep special assessments. The U.S. Sun reports that the monthly dues tripled at Winter Park Woods near Orlando after the HOA board rushed to meet the new reserve rules under the law. One condo owner's monthly HOA fees jumped from $634 to more than $2,100. Some longtime owners were pushed toward foreclosure or fire‑sale listings. State officials like Rep. Vicki Lopez, who sponsored the bill, insist the cost is worth it. "We have strived to reach that delicate balance between the safety of our constituents that live in condominiums, as well as understanding the incredible financial impact that sometimes these particular bills that we pass have,' she told WESH News. While you can't anticipate being forced to evacuate your home for structural reasons, it's good to have a grounding in the steps to take to make the disruption easier to navigate. Here's what to do if you're forced to leave your home: Get documentation. Get, in writing, the official word on why the building is off limits and how long engineers expect repairs to take. Under Florida's condo law, the condo board must share safety findings with owners and tenants upon request. Call your insurance company. Next, contact your homeowners' insurance company. A standard condo policy often includes Loss‑of‑Use (Additional Living Expense) coverage to reimburse your hotel bills, short‑term rentals and even the cost of boarding pets while your unit is uninhabitable. Make sure to save receipts for boarding, hotel, and food, as your insurance may require these for reimbursement. Talk to your lender. Unfortunately, being evacuated from your condo won't halt your mortgage payments. Contact your lender and inquire about a short-term forbearance or other options that may help you cover the costs of alternative accommodations while repairs are being made. Depending on its policies, you may be able to skip a few months of payments and tack them on to the end of the mortgage term. Look for government assistance. Look for programs at the city or county level as federal support may be limited. For example, programs like FEMA generally won't help, as grants require the federal government to declare a disaster and typically exclude defects discovered before a collapse or storm. Document, document, document. If possible, request limited access to your condo to photograph valuables and gather documents, then back up those photos to the cloud. Insurers and lenders may demand proof of condition later. Keep every email, notice, and receipt related to the disruption in one folder — special assessments, hotel invoices, even Uber rides — because you will need those when you file insurance claims, request fee waivers or seek tax relief. Here are 5 'must have' items that Americans (almost) always overpay for — and very quickly regret. How many are hurting you? Rich, young Americans are ditching the stormy stock market — here are the alternative assets they're banking on instead Robert Kiyosaki warns of a 'Greater Depression' coming to the US — with millions of Americans going poor. But he says these 2 'easy-money' assets will bring in 'great wealth'. How to get in now This is how American car dealers use the '4-square method' to make big profits off you — and how you can ensure you pay a fair price for all your vehicle costs Like what you read? Join 200,000+ readers and get the best of Moneywise straight to your inbox every week. This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind.
Daily Mail
2 days ago
- General
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE My war hero brother died for his country... then petty bureaucrats branded him a nuisance
Kendall Rasmusson was just 23 years old when she was forced to watch her younger brother die in a Canadian hospital on May 15, 2008. On May 1, Sgt. John Kyle Daggett, a 21-year-old Airborne Army Ranger, was struck with a rocket propelled grenade while fighting in Baghdad, Iraq. This kicked off the most nightmarish two weeks of Rasmusson's life. By May 3, her family arrived in Halifax to be by Daggett's side. Rasmusson told that her brother 'was fighting so hard to heal and get better'. But ultimately, despite him being a strong, healthy young man, his injuries were just too severe, causing him fall into septic shock. 'As soon as he got septic, you could see his wounds were seeping, and then his kidney function went down,' she said. 'My mom was like, "he's not going to want to live like this," so she just let him pass away. And it was a lot. It was a lot.' Rasmusson had her hand on his chest as he slipped away, telling she 'literally felt his heart stop beating.' Ever since that day, she has had a new, more profound respect for the armed forces and the sacrifices they make on the battlefield. It also began her years-long tradition of putting up a magnetic banner on her garage door depicting Daggett in full uniform. She ran into no issues doing this until she moved to a community with an homeowner's association. Seventeen years after her brother's death, Rasmusson was told by her HOA that she needed to take down this harmless display remembering her brother. In their May 7 letter to her, as seen by they described the banner as a 'nuisance.' Since April 2017, Rasmusson and her three kids have lived in a single-family home in Surprise, Arizona, a suburban community northwest of Phoenix. The Desert Oasis HOA Board first told her to take the banner down in April 2018, classifying it as a holiday decoration that couldn't be left up year round. Rasmusson was fined numerous times for refusing to take it down, totaling to $200. She struck back by speaking to the local news and launching an online petition calling the HOA out. After the petition racked up thousands of signatures, the HOA board relented in January 2019, a little less than a year after it first sent her a violation notice. Ever since then, she has been allowed to display it continuously from the day Daggett died, May 15, up until July 14. This covered Memorial Day, Flag Day and Independence Day. She was also given permission to keep the banner up three days before and 10 days after Veteran's Day, Daggett's birthday and Patriot's Day. After getting this concession, Rasmusson never imagined that she'd again have to explain herself to this exacting HOA leadership. That all changed when the HOA got rid of its old management company in favor of Trestle Management Group in November 2024. Pictured: The letter that was sent to Rasmusson on May 7 instructing her to take down the banner of her brother because it qualified as a 'nuisance' under the HOA's rules These companies typically serve at the pleasure of HOA boards and are the ones to enforce the often draconian rules they impose on homeowners. On May 7, Trestle's Jennifer Jahn sent the Rasmusson family a letter telling them that the banner of Daggett violated an HOA regulation on property nuisances. The letter compared the display to dead plants, rubbish and debris. It was also deemed to be 'unsightly.' Again, Rasmusson felt she had no choice but to go to the local news, this time giving an interview with AZFamily. This prompted a torrent of backlash against the HOA board and Trestle on social media, so much so that the Trestle President Jim Baska sent out a letter to the entire community addressing the controversy. In it, Baska claimed he didn't know about the prior HOA management company allowing Rasmusson to put up the banner during certain times of the year. He also said his company's software for mistakenly categorizing the banner as a nuisance, an excuse that rang particularly hollow for Rasmusson. She said Baska's letter seeking to was a 'sorry excuse' for an apology and called it 'weak.' 'Regardless of how your software coded this, it literally says it's a nuisance and you sent it out anyway. Anyone with like a heart would be like, "this is a memorial decoration for her brother, and we're calling it a nuisance, and we're just going to be okay with sending that out and not think that she's going to be offended by that?"' She was also outraged that Trestle demanded she take down the banner in May, after it had been up for months without issue. 'And then also to send it out on May 7. It's the month of Memorial Day, like why May? Why did you wait to tell me?' she asked. Rasmusson pointed out that Trestle manages 310 communities and over 60,000 homes in the Phoenix area. The company also has more than 80 employees, which made her wonder why no one could have just called her, instead of sending her a 'heartless' letter. Eventually, Baska did call her on the phone and she said he tried to shift blame to the HOA board. She said Baska told her that the HOA board hired Trestle because the previous management company had become 'lackadaisical on handing out violation letters.' According to Rasmusson, Baska said the board told him to 'go overboard and ramp up sending out violations.' Those violations, of course, are paired with fines that the homeowners have to pay. 'The homeowners in our neighborhood are very upset,' Rasmusson said, explaining that people are being 'nitpicked' for things like their grass being slightly too high and having the wrong type of bench in their yard. 'It's getting wild.' Two days after Rasmusson got the letter calling her brother's banner a 'nuisance,' someone created a petition calling for the removal of HOA President C.C. Hunziker. The petition, which so far has 637 verified signatures, accuses Hunziker of abusing her power and misusing HOA funds. When reached out to Hunziker for comment, she said she was 'not interested' in giving a response. Rasmusson said she didn't want to be in the news or have to get into a brawl with her HOA over what she feels is a simple, inoffensive expression of her love for her late brother. 'I do not back down for anything, so I'm gonna keep fighting if I feel like I have the right to do so, or if I can work something out where I can have it up. And I'm glad that they agreed to it, but even if they hadn't, I would have still put it up,' she said. 'I pay my HOA dues every month on time, so they can just keep racking up the fees if they want to. I'm gonna put it up because I want to, and I like doing it. 'I am proud of him, and I want everybody to know that I radiate an overjoyment of pride for him, what we went through together as a family with his sacrifice and how much he meant to our family.' Rasmusson's initial motivation in putting up the banner was the anger and 'intense grief' she was feeling after losing Daggett in such a horrific way. 'The blast tore up his shoulder. His back, his shoulder and part of the back bicep area of his right arm looked like he got bit by a shark,' she said. After he was injured in Baghdad, Daggett was rushed to Germany, where doctors removed his right eye and the right frontal lobe of his brain. They also placed what's called an external vascular drain, which helps decrease cerebral spinal fluid that the brain produces. The intricate system of tubing relieves pressure those fluids exert on the brain. Too much pressure can cause brain damage, seizures, strokes or death. While Daggett was en route to Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland, the pressure on Daggett's brain dramatically worsened, forcing the plane transporting him to land in Halifax, Canada. Even though he didn't make it, Rasmusson counts herself as lucky that she got to see him before he died. 'A lot of people don't have that when they lose their soldier, they don't get to be with them and to help take care of them. And it meant so much to me,' she said. Her banner honoring Daggett often attracts veterans and ordinary citizens who thank her for her brother's service and want to get to know his story. 'It's just nice. It brings this military community together more. I think because all the men and women that serve, they all have people that they lost too,' she said. 'The military community is smaller than our entire community nationwide, and I feel like sometimes, a lot of their grief and loss and PTSD and their trauma that they went through while serving gets completely overlooked, ignored and forgotten,' she added. 'I'm a huge supporter of continuing to raise that awareness.' She continued: 'I think my biggest point was to just show everybody how proud I was of him, but then to also make a statement of our military families are here. We're all present. And it was just to recognize everybody and raise public awareness.' Rasmusson said Daggett's fellow soldiers 'looked up to him and looked to him for direction.' 'Even his higher ups and all the leaders were like, 'your brother was the spearhead of our unit,' she said. 'He was a leader. He took the younger guys under his wing. He taught them things. He worked with them. He had incredible patience with these guys, but he was funny and wild and such a goofball. Everybody loved him. It was just a big loss, so I hoped to display all of that in my sign.' Not only was Daggett considered a leader in his unit, he also did something practically no soldiers his age are capable of. He graduated the 62-day course to become a US Army Ranger at just age 20. 'That is insanely young for most Rangers. They're typically in their mid to late twenties,' she said. The Rangers, also known as the 75th Ranger Regiment, are an elite fighting force within the army frequently tasked with conducting dangerous special operations missions in enemy territory. 'I had other buddies of mine that were in the service with my brother,' she said. 'No matter how hard these men worked to get the standards met to even qualify for Ranger training, it took them years and years and years. And he did it at such a young age.' At his graduation from Ranger School on May 7, 2007, Daggett gave his sister the honor of pinning his Ranger tabs to his uniform. After his death, the army renamed the headquarters at Camp Taji after Daggett. Camp Taji was the military installation he was based at throughout his tour in Iraq. Daggett posthumously received the Bronze Star, a military decoration awarded to soldiers who have committed acts of heroism on the battlefield. He was also bestowed with a Purple Heart, a honor reserved for service members who have been wounded or killed in battle. And still, he inspires his older sister to keep fighting for what she believes in. 'I fight because you fought. I fight because you paid the ultimate sacrifice. I keep going,' Rasmusson said.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Las Vegas HOA faces $30M shortfall
Setting foot in Sun City Summerlin one can see lush grass, full pools, and active clubhouses. So how is the homeowners association facing a $30 million budget deficit? Inside the Starlight Theatre, the Sun City Summerlin Community Association voted on a new plan to find a sufficient strategy to tackle a deficit discovered in a 4-year budget study. The neighborhood's reserve is required to maintain at a certain level due to state law. 'Our funding percent did drop from 70% to 45% over the last five years,' Mitzi Mills, the Sun City Summerlin Association executive director, said. 'Primarily because of inflation on manufactured items and equipment needed for a community this size.' Mills pushed back against the $29,265,699 figure sent to 8 News Now by residents citing a 2024 reserve budget assessment. '[The HOA] is an association with third party documented assets of $40,318,493,' she said. 'We currently have—going into our 2026 budget—$18,222,915 just in our Reserve Fund account to maintain these assets which have useful lives ranging from 5 to 30 years. This means that our reserve account is 45 percent funded.' The effort and assessment have caused concern for some residents who spoke with 8 News Now anonymously and on camera, like Rob Kirkwood. 'The state law says that you should have adequate resources, sufficient to pay for future expenses,' Kirkwood said. 'This board, I think, got too aggressive and trying to hit that 70 percent number sooner than they need.' In previous stories, 8 News Now has found HOA damage costs which caused some residents to move and others to ask for city intervention. The costs and concerns in Sun City Summerlin appear to mainly surround a one-time $5,000 cost to new homeowners. The New Owner Reserve Assessment (NORA) which is negotiable during sale was originally set to $1,839 according to a petition in district court which sought to stop it in January. On Mar. 31, District Court Judge Carli Kierny found the HOA had authorization to increase the NORA for new homeowners. Kirkwood said the NORA increase is too much, pointing to the oddity in jump in budget assessment from 2019 to 2024. '[The HOA] put in there that $30 million was what the 2024 reserve study specialist calculated that they needed by 2029 in contributions in order to hit a 70% figure,' he said. 'Now contrast that with the 2019 study, that one had a lot less expenses, and I think that was more like a 15 million, which is still a large amount for the next four years, but it jumped up substantially in the 2024 reserve study.' Inflation was cited as a possible reason by the HOA for the increase in overall costs in the budget between 2019 and 2024. Mills told 8 News Now the maintenance pertains to many aspects of the neighborhood. 'We have three golf courses, four fitness centers, four community centers, and a theatre,' she said. 'There are 7,781 homes in the community and the owners assessments pay for their exclusive use of all of the areas except the golf courses and restaurants.' Mills said the between the miles of landscaped parkways and park areas residents know what they are signing up for and the cost is not hidden. 'The total cost to live here annually and use all of the facilities and amenities is $2,257.92 a year,' she said. 'And in comparison to other 'city sized' communities living in Sun City Summerlin is a bargain.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Disabled veteran fights homeowners association lawsuit over flagpole in Florida yard
A disabled veteran in Volusia County, Florida, is at the center of a heated dispute with his homeowners association (HOA) over a flagpole installed in his yard. According to Fox News affiliate Wofl-tv, the Countryside Villas PUD3 HOA has filed a lawsuit against the unnamed veteran, claiming he failed to obtain the required approval before erecting the permanent structure. Despite the legal friction, community support for the veteran has surged, with neighbors speaking out against what they see as harassment and unnecessary litigation. "Leave the veteran alone. He hasn't done anything wrong," Frank Johnson, a veteran himself, told the outlet. "He's called me crying that they're harassing him and bullying him. He's served this country. He's paid his dues. They wanted to get him on a flagpole and some weeds in the lawn. It's pathetic. It's really pathetic." Associated Press Moves To Dismiss Defamation Claim From Veteran Who Defeated Cnn In Court The HOA maintains that its actions are grounded in procedural compliance. Read On The Fox News App In a letter sent to the veteran, the association emphasized that it was not denying his right to fly the American flag, but rather enforcing a policy requiring prior approval for permanent flagpoles. The letter noted that the veteran's military service does not exempt him from these rules. The situation only escalated when the veteran refused to remove the flagpole, accruing $1,000 in fines. The HOA responded by initiating a lawsuit for $8,000 and threatening to place a lien on his property. Orlando Law Managing Partner Jennifer Englert told WOFL-TV that this action may not be legally defensible. Englert explained that Florida statute says as long as the flagpole is under 20 feet, a homeowner can have a flagpole on their property, even if the HOA has rules against it. "Why are you fighting about something that you know you have to allow? That is very clear," she said. Maryland School Suspends Marine Hopeful After American Flag Law Controversy Concerned neighbors and a caregiver have come forward to condemn the HOA's tactics, describing them as bullying and deeply disrespectful to someone who served the country. Margaret Murphy, a resident who attended HOA meetings, took the issue to State Sen. Tom Wright, expressing in a letter that her own father's legacy as a Pearl Harbor survivor compelled her to act. "My father was a survivor in Pearl Harbor. He would be rolling over in his grave if I didn't say something," she told the outlet. In a statement to WOFL-TV, The Countryside PUD Unit III-B HOA, Inc. Board of Directors said that they never told the veteran homeowner that the "flagpole/flag was prohibited." "Factually, this has never been about a flag or a flagpole. The resident was told via multiple correspondences that he absolutely can have them. The situation boils down to that he failed to submit an ARC application, which is required for flagpoles by the HOA. That rule has been in place since 1990," they said. "The resident was given multiple opportunities to remedy the situation including assistance from the American Legion and the Elks. He also was given an opportunity at a hearing that he never showed up for. Florida Statute makes it clear that an HOA resident also needs to follow the governing documents which he has failed to do. This situation is no different than any other architectural guidelines in our docs. As a result, a fine was imposed, and he failed to pay the fine." A pre-trial hearing is scheduled for September. Fox News Digital has reached out to The Countryside PUD Unit III-B HOA, Inc. Board of Directors for article source: Disabled veteran fights homeowners association lawsuit over flagpole in Florida yard
