Travel expenses for board members. What do you think?

[Carolinian Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Carolinian]

This sounds like a resort I used to own at in my early days of timesharing, before looking around and discovering it was one of the worst managed on the OBX. I sold my weeks there. There was one problem after another. The cause was an HOA board that was very subservient to a VERY lackluster management company. They let the management company pick board candidates and only management's choice was printed on the ballot. Fortunately for homeowners, very recently they slipped up and allowed some people with more backbone on the board. The board is now asserting itself and demanding performance from management, treating them as the hired help that they are instead of as the boss, as it did. Two of the four timeshares that have used this management company have fired them, and this resort could well be the third. The board there is actively looking at other management companies or at self management.

I am reminded of a story I heard at a political meeting. Someone from a county in another part of the state was telling about a newly elected city council member tangling with an overly assertive city manager at his first meeting. When the new member commented on an early agenda item, the manager debated his comments in a rather dismissive way. When he finished, the council member looked directly at him and stated ''bureaucrats, like children, should only speak when spoken to!''. A large crowd that was present for a public hearing on another subject immediately erupted into a standing ovasion for the new council member, leaving the city manager with a crimson face and his mouth hanging open. From what was said, he did a much better job of keeping his mouth shut and not debating elected officials after that incident.

He would actually take that option, the week in the account without charging him anything for it. But can you do that without giving the deed? Do you have to actually own a week? Those would be questions some of you can answer.

Dave, we do need a financial person that can take the time to watch over our expenses. We have not EVER had a person who takes the job seriously enough to really go over the books. This guy was such a surprise at the owners' meeting. He actually pointed out that we did not have quorum, even though it has never been discussed before and we have probably NEVER had the 1/3 of the proxies that it takes to have quorum because the current two existing board members before me always thought it was 10% for quorum. The new guy pointed out that there has never been a change in the by-laws to reflect this number. It is 33%, not 10%. Yay for him. If they cannot pay, I will be a lone voice again and there will be no treasurer. This is very difficult to my mind.

Also, this management company, really the owner, is so different from those you are familiar with, Dave. He determines if we are going to take deedbacks and under what circumstances, he determines the minimum values for weeks in our inventory without any say from the board, he keeps us from using our weeks with other exchange companies because of our exclusive contract with II. He is all powerful. I don't like every decision to go through him. He is supposed to be employed by us, yet I feel I have to walk on eggs around HIM! He has been management for our resort now since its beginning. 27 years of management gives the guy too much ownership, though he doesn't own anything. He makes a lot of money from our resort and constantly asks for increases, or rather TELLS us of increases.

He is so different with the board for another resort. He actually does not run things there. I want to move forward, he wants us to stay in the dark ages. He hand-picked one of our newest board members to replace one that dropped out. It is absolutely ridiculous to give a manager that kind of power. I like the new board member, I do not have an issue with him at all. I do have an issue with the management company and do not mind telling him in person or in front of the board.

[shopgirl Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close shopgirl]

News!

The president of 5 years decided to step down and just sent an email to all members of the board. He has chosen the old president of 20 years to take his place. No election, no opportunity for the new person that volunteered for a board position on November 4th at the annual meeting. The guy just takes over?

The problem? Well, aside from the fact that this is no way to choose a board member, I really do not like the old president. I am going to insist on a vote and definitely do not want him on the board again. He made some mistakes, in my opinion, as did the board member who is still hanging around after 25 years. If this goes the way I think it is going to go, I am outta there.

[timeos2 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close timeos2]

Great news - you hold the cards

The president of 25 years decided to step down and just sent an email to all members of the board. He has chosen the old president of 20 years to take his place. No election, no opportunity for the new person that volunteered for a board position on November 4th at the annual meeting. The guy just takes over?

The problem? Well, aside from the fact that this is no way to choose a board member, I really do not like the old president. I am going to insist on a vote and definitely do not want him on the board again. He made some mistakes, in my opinion, as did the board member who is still hanging around after 25 years. If this goes the way I think it is going to go, I am outta there.

Have the Board accept his resignation. There is no open position to fill until he resigns. Don't tell him anything except that his resignation is accepted. After that he can suggest, but has no power, to appoint the ex-member to replace him. The Board has no obiligation to listen and can appoint any owner they want that is willing to serve. If he submitted his resignation his term is over and the Board gets to hold an organizational meeting to pick the new President (and other Officers if they haven't done so since the new Board was formed). Cindy - you have to step up here and "be the bad guy". It is up to you and the other Board members to take control and put management on notice who is in charge. It sounds like you have made the necessary waves to stir things up - now close the deal and represent the owners.

[shopgirl Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close shopgirl]

John, I meant the president of five years is stepping down and wants the old president of 20 years to take his place. My hands are faster than my brain.

This is such a soap opera, seriously it is. I cannot write stranger fiction than this. I just asked to be president myself. I will see how they feel about that. I am already the bad guy on the board, except now the new guy wants reimbursement for his travel, which will be under $300 easily for every meeting. That request has the board baffled. They are talking about saving the HOA money, pinching pennies, etc., but to me it is ridiculous.

Here is a shocker for you: This is the same board that with 27 timeshare units and 33 wholly-owned units, decided that the timeshare owners are more in number and should pay for more than our fair share of exterior maintenance. How stupid is this? We paid at least 3/4 of the deck and stair replacements for the entire complex. The secretary just made a comment, "we are 50 owners and they are only one." Hello! They own those units outright and are worth at least five times what ours are worth in the 50 pieces. This was illegally decided and the timeshare owners are not aware this happened about seven years ago. We paid $612 per week owned for decks, stair replacements and refurbishing the clubhouse. To appease owners at the meeting six years ago who appeared at the meeting in large numbers after the increase, the board told us that the whole owners would not be allowed to use the clubhouse. I found out at this last annual meeting that it was a lie. How illegal is that? They wanted to shut Rick and me up because we were asking for answers at that meeting. I have only been on the board for a year, but I see a lawsuit coming when I quit the board and send a letter out to every owner, telling them about that past assessment and the truth of the high cost. We are currently doing more exterior work and it has crossed my mind that perhaps this is happening AGAIN. It is the secretary and president that vote on behalf of the interval owners. Frankly, I am very worried.

This is why I want this treasurer to stay on board and want to reimburse his expenses. He will know if there is hanky panky going on, but I will not because I am obviously not analytical, I am emotional. Can you tell?

[taffy19 Gold Contributor Find all posts View Profile Close taffy19]

Cindy, does your complex have only one HOA? We own at a converted condo project too and there were even two timeshare developers selling here at the same time many years ago. At one time, we had three HOAs, I believe. One for the condo owners (Master HOA) and two for the two timeshare developers. From what I understand there are only two of them left today and they are getting along very well together.

We get a very nice newsletter in the mail every quarter of the year of what is happening at the resort with the whole project and get the scoop from both HOA Presidents plus what is going on in Maui in general. It is still done by snail mail because most timeshare owners here have owned many years and are older folks like us and do not use the internet yet as much as the younger generation does today.

You may want to contact our timeshare HOA's President and find out if he is willing to share some tips with you. The fees have to be quite different for the two type of ownerships in this or your condo project. We know from experience that this is true. Let me know and I will give you his name.

Tonight, we saw a TV ad for http://www.gotomeeting.com/ and I had to think of you. You may want to check this out too for your HOA board if people have to travel from far away.