Seniors, Hispanics, Asians and moderate income citizens will lose more homes to association collection lawyers

May 02, 2002

By AHRC News Services

Lobbyists on the payroll of the Congress of California Seniors, AARP , California Association of Realtors, Older Women's League, Consumers Union ,and Grey Panthers have been working with homeowner association (HOA) collection lawyers (CAI and ECHO) and their protege managers (CACM). They have been working on a bill (AB2289) that will give collection lawyers more power and money and multiply foreclosures in homeowner associations .

The organizations lent support to a bill in February 2002 that said:

This bill would permit the association to use a sale by a trustee to enforce the above-described lien only if the assessment imposed exceeds $5,000. This bill would also make technical corrections.

The collection lawyers then launched their attack. They first of all eliminated the $5000 provision completely. Then they systematically went through each section of the current law, and at every stage gave themselves even more rights to legal fees, collection costs - and to top it all, 12% interest in addition. They have truly created a vise for each and every homeowner in order to extort even more money from them.

Here is a sample a portion of the bill(shown in italics) - it includes existing law.

The board can levy huge assessments on property owners with a 30 day notice.

(d) The association shall provide notice by first-class mail to the owners of the separate interests of any increase in the regular or special assessments of the association, not less than 30 nor more than 60 days prior to the increased assessment becoming due, unless the declaration provides a longer time period, in which case the longer time period shall apply.

Assessments are delinquent 15 days after the due date
( Some CCRs give homeowners 30 days. Homeowners who cannot pay these sudden, huge assessments will quickly lose homes to the collection lawyers.)

(e) Regular and special assessments levied pursuant to the governing documents are delinquent 15 days after they become due. If an assessment is delinquent the association may recover all of the following:

Homeowners will be subject to "reasonable" managers and lawyers costs and fees.
(Reasonable has very strange definitions in certain situations. e.g.managers are now routinely charging $300-to over $500 to add a new homeowner to their billing records. Lawyers and rental judges charge homeowners $250 to $500 per hour.)

(1) Reasonable costs incurred in collecting the delinquent assessment, including reasonable attorney's fees.

(2) A late charge not exceeding 10 percent of the delinquent assessment or ten dollars ($10), whichever is greater, unless the declaration specifies a late charge in a smaller amount, in which case any late charge imposed shall not exceed the amount specified in the declaration.


Lawyers and Mangers give themselves 12 % interest per year for late charges, bookkeeping costs, and lawyers fees etc..
(The CCRs of some HOAs do not have late charges or interest.)

(3) Interest on all sums imposed in accordance with this section,including the delinquent assessments, reasonable fees and costs ofcollection, and reasonable attorney's fees, at an annual interest rate not to exceed 12 percent, commencing 30 days after the assessment becomes due.

The lawyers grant themselves an exemption from the maximum interest rate imposed by the California Constitution.

(f) Associations are hereby exempted from interest-rate limitations imposed by Article XV of the California Constitution,subject to the limitations of this section.

CAI lobbyist Skip Daum (Capital Communications) paid $80, 000 this past year to a number of politicians. The other lobbyists have given much more. CAI, ECHO and CACM, are celebrating. The nine politicians on the California Housing Committee in effect just gave them a a major pay increase at the expense of the homeowners.

Angry association homeowners are demanding that AARP, Consumers Union, Congress of California Seniors, Grey Panthers, Older Women's Leagure and California Association of Realtors cease the backroom dealing and support to such an anti homeowner bill.


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Bill author:
Assemblymember Christine Kehoe: Dem-76 (916) 319-2076 Email Assemblymember Kehoe
Author consultant: Amy King ... Email consultnat King

Bill Sponsor:
Congress of California Seniors: (916)442-4474 Bill Powers Email Bill Powers
Hank Lacayo (805)498-7679 Email Hank Lacaya

Lobbyists who lobbied on this bill:
American Association of Retired Persons -AARP(916)556-3036: : Lupe Dela Cruz Email Lupe Dela Cruz
Consumers Union (916)431-6747 Norma Garcia Email Sacramento Lobby Office
Jim Guest and (914)378-2000 Email Jim guest
Gray Panthers : Joan Lee (916)739-1540
Older Women's League-Betty Perry 9916)444-2526

Homeowner Association Vendor Lobbyists involved:
Community Associations Institute (CAI) - lobby group for HOA lawyers
Executive Council of Homeowner Organizations (ECHO) - lobby group for lawyers
California Association of Community Managers (CACM) - HOA managers trained by CAI lawyers
(Misc. per Author's office: Allied Trustee, title ompany lobbyist, lender lobbyists who lend to HOAs)
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STATUS OF AB 2289

California State AssemblyCommittee on Housing and Community Development Voted Unanimously for AB2289 on April 24, 2002
Committee's primary jurisdictions are Subdivision Map Act re: housing, structural fire safety, rent control, and redevelopment.

Committee Member District Phone E-mail
Alan Lowenthal, Chair Dem-54 (916) 319-2054 Email Assm Lowenthal
Dennis Mountjoy, Vice Chair Rep-59 (916) 319-2059 Assemblymember. Email Assm Mountjoy
Dave Cogdill Rep-25 (916) 319-2025 Email Assm Cogdill
George Runner Rep-36 (916) 319-2036 Email Assm Runner
John A. Dutra Dem-20 (916) 319-2020 Email Assm Dutra
Howard Wayne Dem-78 (916) 319-2078 Email Assm Wayne
Darrell Steinberg Dem-9 (916) 319-2009 Email Assm Steinberg
Christine Kehoe Dem-76 (916) 319-2076 Email Assm Kehoe
Simon Salinas Dem-28 (916) 319-2028 Email Assm Salinas

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Set for Hearing in the California State Assembly Committee on Judiciary
Primary jurisdictions are family law, product liability, tort liability, Civil Code, and Evidence Code (excluding criminal procedure).

Committee Phone: (916) 319-2334 Committee consultant: Drew Liebert: Email Drew Liebert
Committee consultant Drew Liebert had taken bill file home on May 2, 2002. Homeowners attempts to find support and oppostion ignored by both consultants Drew Liebert and Amy King.

Committee Member District Phone E-mail
Ellen M. Corbett, Chair Dem-18 (916) 319-2018 Email Assm Corbett
Tom Harman, Vice Chair Rep-67 (916) 319-2067Email Assm Harman
Patricia C. Bates Rep-73 (916) 319-2073 Email Assm Bates
Rod Pacheco Rep-64 (916) 319-2064 Email Assm Pacheco
Robert Pacheco Rep-60 (916) 319-2060 Email Assm Pacheco
John A. Dutra Dem-20 (916) 319-2020Email Assm Dutra
Hannah-Beth Jackson Dem-35 (916) 319-2035 Email Assm Jackson
Howard Wayne Dem-78 (916) 319-2078 Email Assm Wayne
Darrell Steinberg Dem-9 (916) 319-2009 Email Assm Steinberg
John Longville Dem-62 (916) 319-2062 Email Assm Longville
Juan Vargas Dem-79 (916) 319-2079 Email Assm Vargas>
Kevin Shelley Dem-12 (916) 319-2012 Email Assm Shelley

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Related articles:
AB 2289 Analysis & Request for Amendment From Homeowners

:
AB555 - California's Manager Monopoly Bill
:
CAI Lawyers Slaughter AB 2289 - AHomeowner Protection Bill

AB 2289, as it is now written, can only benefit CAI scoundrels - I would like to address Committee Members