Signs of a dysfunctional condo association [DC]

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For investment properties, at least 50% of the units are owner-occupied or second homes
For owner-occupied transactions, there is no owner occupancy requirement

For financing, investment properties ration has to be much less.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:A lot of rentals. Low condo fees.

I wouldn't say "a lot of rentals" is a red flag at all. Low condo fees I agree with.

I wouldn’t say that’s a sure thing. My building charges mid-range condo fees and is a hot mess. We don’t get anything for them.

What do you expect to get?
Managing agent, electricity, heat common areas, cpa, lawyers fees, insurance and building maint and any snow/grass outside plus a little in reserve each month it is nearly all gone.

Plus my condo we discussed storage area, benches, small gym, garden area but each time only few want to use so we have zero amenities in building. Then the older buildings things pop up.

Then if you have a large lobby, elevators, laundry room, garages and large flat roof and building liable outside windows and doors or outside pools ouch

I expect a functioning staff, not managers who steal from the condo association and who the management company refuses to fire. A competent board, not people who've embedded themselves into the power structure 40+ years ago and refuse to leave, who get kickbacks from forced building projects and who reject any opposition votes/concerns. Our voting process makes N. Korea look like a beacon of democracy. People who do attempt to change the power structure are bullied out of the building entirely. We have an unqualified, racist and xenophobic guy who's not qualified to do maintenance, so he refuses to do anything. We have contractors who refuse to work with the building because of him, and the building isn't maintained. We have building-wide issues multiple times a week. We had some great equipment in the gym, but that was completely overhauled and replaced with the cheapest, most unworkable crap imaginable. We have staff who don't show up to work and nothing can be done. Our common areas are saunas in the summer, except where the building manager sits. There, the temperature is regulated perfectly.

So I'd expect the opposite of all of the above.

Sounds like you are the other folks like you are letting this happen. Don’t sit there waiting for someone else to join board to fix it or current board to change go gather up the votes and join. I had a worse building. We went door to door, phone calls hunting folks down to get their proxies weeks before meeting. We did it very low key. We got over 50 percent of proxies pre meeting and just voted ourselves in and fired over next three years landscaper, cpa, lawyer, managing agent and replaced all contractors and put in bidding process in everything.

PP you're responding to here and I completely agree. Everyone complains about it, and people do attempt to bring change in small groups (think 3-5), but it goes nowhere. We had a small group attempt to speak at the last board meeting, but they were literally shouted down in anger by the board chair. This happens to everyone, no matter the issue; even the sweet, extremely elderly women who speak up about benign things get the same treatment. How many people were involved in your case and how long did it take to get the issue resolved? How did you address residents feeling powerless and convincing them that their voices could be heard?

We had five crooks on the board. We got over 50 percent of proxies off pissed off from folk and took over board. We foreclosed or filed lawsuits on 20 percent of Building for arrears, towed cars from spots, fired managing agent, lawyer, CPA, Gardner, snow removal service and got a death threat or two.

I had an ex NFL player I attempted to foreclose on.

In end most of old board sold.