NECESSARY REFORMS?

By Jan Bergemann

Published February 10, 2017

 

Let’s face it: HOA owners are the stepchildren of Florida’s Legislature – and are being treated as such!


More than 2.5 million homes are located in Florida alone in homeowners’ associations, and so far the Florida Legislature is allowing these associations to be abused by certain individuals as dictatorships.

 

Elections of the Board: Just a joke!

No Russian interference needed in order to rig the election and make sure that the sitting board members – or their buddies – are re-elected – over and over again.


And the Florida statutes make it absolutely legal for these folks to rig the elections.

 

How about it: The board members create a Nomination Committee and appoint their spouses – or friends – to this committee, This committee than decides that only the sitting board members – or the ones they want elected – are qualified to serve on the board. All other possible candidates will not be nominated. Period!

The written ballot sent out to all owners with the announcement of the annual meeting with the election of the board will only contain the names of the sitting board – or other convenient candidates.

 

Rejected candidates, who might complain about this “pre-election system” will be told that they will have – according to FS 720.306 – the opportunity to nominate themselves from the floor at the annual meeting.

 

What a joke! Because at that time many of the owners, who will not be at the meeting in person, have already mailed in their ballots – ballots listing only the names of the candidates the sitting board wants to get elected.

 

Who needs Russian interference in the election process if the Florida Legislature legalizes such election fraud?

 

And allowing fines turning into liens? What a great way to “blackmail” owners who are not following the “party-line of the sitting board or the management company? No proof need, just do! This “obnoxious” owner will quickly learn that he/she will lose their home if they don’t shut up!

 

These really are reforms desperately needed in order to keep some sanity in the system called: Mandatory Homeowners’ Association!


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Jan Bergemann Jan Bergemann is president of Cyber Citizens For Justice, Florida 's largest state-wide property owners' advocacy group. CCFJ works on legislation to help owners living in community  

associations. He moved to Florida in 1995 - hoping to retire. He moved into a HOA, where the developer cheated the homeowners and used the association dues for his own purposes. End of retirement!

 

CCFJ was born in the year 2000, when some owners met in Tallahassee - finding out that power is only in numbers. Bergemann was a member of Governor Jeb Bush's HOA Task force in 2003/2004.

 

The organization has two websites to inform interested Florida homeowners and condo owners:

News Website: http://www.ccfj.net/.

Educational Website: http://www.ccfjfoundation.net/.

   
We think that only owners can really represent owners, since all service providers surely have a different interest! We are trying to create owner-friendly laws, but the best laws are useless without enforcement. And enforcement is totally lacking in Florida !


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