We review association documents and resale certificates for clients on a regular basis. Every week we post stats and something fun or interesting.
This week it is 500 Elliott with 44 residential and one commercial unit in the Queen Anne part of Seattle.
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- Average Sale Price – ~$589 per sq.ft. (based on three sales over the last 6 months)
- Currently For Sale:
- Average Monthly Assessment – $0.43 per sq.ft. (so if your condo is 1,000 sq.ft you’d be paying ~$430/month).
- Move-in Fee – yes, $500
- Pets – allowed with a limit of 2 dogs, 2 cats, or 1 dog and 1 cat (subject to “typical” guidelines and restrictions)
- Rental cap – no
- EQ insurance – yes
- Reserve funding – 60% (at least 70% is generally recommended)
- Risk of special assessment – none / very low
Fun facts – we all know that we, as individuals, each have our own opinions and values. Making everybody happy with everything is nearly impossible. Disagreements do arise when it comes to a group of people living in a community setting. That might be the primary reason associations develop and implement a set of rules. If everybody agrees and adheres to community standards, all is well. If someone steps outside of those boundaries, HOAs step in with their enforcement policies.
It makes one wonder what might have been taking place at 500 Elliott… The rules and regulations are 22 pages long and are pretty straightforward, except almost half of those 22 pages is dedicated to enforcement procedures. Violating something at this condo gets very expensive very quickly. First violation is subject to a fine of $100 per violation, per occurrence, per day. Second is $200 per violation, per occurrence, per day. Third is $300 per violation, per occurrence, per day. And “fines are due immediately upon assessment pending final order from the Hearing Board“. Possession of illegal substances gets special attention (hope these things also get reported to proper law enforcement authorities):
“Possession of illegal substances shall not be tolerated at any time, not matter if by owner, tenant or guest. In the event that illegal substances are determined to be found to be present in a Unit, no matter if they are actively being used or not, shall be cause for fine(s). If multiple people are found to be in possession illegal substances, each person shall be considered a separate instance of a violation, and the Owner will be assessed a separate fine for each person in possession.
In order to deter use of illegal substances, any violation involving illegal substances will be fined at triple the normal rate. There fore the first fine will be $300, the second fine will be $600, and the third fine will be $900. It will double for each successive incident beyond the initial three.”
If you disagree with the fine, there is a 3 page write up on your right to appeal, the hearing procedures, and the ultimate decision and order. And if all that fails, 500 Elliott has an Alternative Dispute Resolution Policy to help guide combatants toward a resolution to the conflict. It starts with:
“From time to time, disputes arise between HOA members or between a member and Association. If left unchecked, these disputes can escalate into dueling lawyers in a no holds barred courtroom battle. However, there is never a satisfactory end to this war. The time, emotional and financial cost of legal jousting is tremendous. Judges are rarely schooled in how homeowner associations work so the verdicts are highly unpredictable. Often, both defendant and/or plaintiff are disappointed with the outcome. And after all is said and done, the parties are still neighbors who must figure out a way to get along.
One thing is for certain, neighbors do not always get along. Since that’s known, it’s only a matter of time before there is conflict. Since HOA’s have a structure in place to deal with people issues, it’s important to plan for these events just like preventive maintenance on the buildings. Once conflict erupts, it’s usually too late to get the parties pointed to an amicable settlement. To that end, adopting an Alternative Dispute Resolution Policy is a perfect way to help guide combatants toward a quicker, cheaper and usually more effective resolution to the conflict.”
It makes one wonder what might have been taking place at 500 Elliott…
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And of course a fancy disclosure has to follow because attorneys tell us it is a good idea – all information contained herein is based on third party records, is not guaranteed, and is subject to change. We simply review, tell you what we read in someone else’s docs, and hope whatever they have is / was correct at that time.