“Remember those rains in February? I don’t because I was enjoying some needed vacationing with my girlfriend. No pets, no kids. I can come and go as I please, even for three weeks at a time. When I got home my condo was destroyed. That roofing work they are supposed to do, they didn’t do. Water everywhere. There was sheetrock and plaster and mold everywhere. It wasn’t pretty. I’m still not back in my home.

As my insurance and their insurance continue their ongoing battle, they’ve taken the rather absurd step of suing me for negligence. Apparently, I failed to promptly notify them of a roof problem while I was on my extended vacation. What on earth is wrong with these people?”

They are insisting on playing the Blame Game. You mentioned “roofing work they are supposed to do” which I interpret as preventative annual maintenance. Surely they didn’t know of an actual problem and failed to mitigate it timely? HOAs don’t do that, right?

I think the Board got caught with their pants down knowing full well that they took a gamble and lost. Unless they have some evidence that you knew your place was flooding while you were gone and didn’t take any steps to notify the HOA, I don’t see this being successful, and maybe they don’t want it to be. Maybe it’s a misguided attempt at forcing you and/or your insurance carrier to agree to participate in paying for some of the damage. As long as they have this pending, they may be motivated to just let you suffer.

I think you’re beyond IDR at this time and I’m assuming your insurance carrier has given you an attorney to represent you in this fight.

It’s so important that all owners in multifamily communities study their governing documents. The CC&Rs outline the maintenance, repair, and replacement responsibilities both owners and the HOA have. The responsibilities are not optional and they are not delegable. If maintenance, repair, and replacement work is not being performed, owners must work to hold their HOA accountable. We can help!