Q: The developer of our community still retains control of our HOA and refuses to hold annual meetings or share information about how dues are spent. What is our recourse?
A: There are two chapters of North Carolina state laws that govern HOAs: Chapter 55, the North Carolina Nonprofit Corporation Act, and Chapter 47F, the Planned Community Act (or Chapter 47C, which governs condominiums). The Nonprofit Corporation Act states plainly that “a corporation shall hold a meeting of shareholders annually at a time stated in or fixed in accordance with the bylaws.”
The Planned Community Act (PCA) states that “a meeting of the association shall be held at least once each year.” It also states that “in addition to any specific information that is required by the bylaws to be assembled and reported to the lot owners at specified times, the association shall make an annual income and expense statement and balance sheet available to all lot owners at no charge and within 75 days after the close of the fiscal year to which the information relates.”
If the developer continues to ignore your written requests that the laws be followed, you may need to hire an attorney to represent you and other like-minded owners. You may be able to recover your attorney fees if litigation becomes necessary.
Charlotte attorney Michael Hunter represents community and condominium associations for the firm of Horack Talley.
“Ask The Experts” Articles have been Reprinted with permission from the Charlotte Observer and Mike Hunter
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