I Am the Lesser Person
You might remember my snow removal yelling match with the twenty-something male president of my town home’s home owners’ association. We are at it again. Every time he looks at me, I see in his eyes…”you are a non-Mormon woman who stands up for herself.”
In the mail yesterday, I received a letter telling me that my home owner fee account is delinquent. It says I owe a payment from 2006. TWO YEARS AGO 2006. Excuse me? To the best of my knowledge, I have never missed a payment. And if my advanced age has set in and I did miss a payment, could you possibly have told me about it TWO YEARS AGO when it happened?
I walked to the HOA president’s house and asked him what month they thought I missed. He didn’t know. I asked him to see a copy of the accounting for the year 2006. Apparently there have been four bookkeepers since then. So I asked who it is now. She just quit.
My final plea. “Well, how can you prove that I owe you from 2006?” His response? “We don’t need to prove it. YOU need to prove that you paid every month.” Effer.
I got online to get all of my check copies. But alas, the bank only keeps things online since January 2007. Before that, I have to order documents. So, because they can’t tell me what month I missed, I have to order twelve statements and twelve check copies, which will run well over $100. The fee I “missed” was $99. (Which in itself is incorrect, as our HOA fees in 2006 were $90.)
So, because I am also battling the HOA and Dish Network, because somehow they have hooked up our building’s satellite TV to MY electricity, and if I turn off a breaker to fix something electrical the satellite goes out for the building, I am going to be evil. The NBA playoff Utah Jazz game starts at 8:30pm. And at about 8:40pm tonight, I am going to turn off all the lights in the house, then turn off the one breaker that I know turns off the satellite. Then my daughter and I will retire to her bedroom and watch DVRd episodes of Cash Cab until we fall asleep.
Filed under: Ranting, Life Lessons, Am I Bad?
OMG - YOU ARE AWESOME!!!
Fucking awesome!
[…] APBnews wrote an interesting post today on I Am the Lesser PersonHere’s a quick excerptThe NBA playoff Utah Jazz game starts at 8:30pm. And at about 8:40pm tonight, I am going to turn off all the lights in the house, then turn… […]
I love the revenge — so Amelie! And so deserved.
Listen, that guy’s argument is bunk. There’s a little thing called “Burden of Proof”.
Here’s the Britannica definition: “Burden of proof (Latin, onus probandi) is the obligation to prove allegations which are presented in a legal action. The Latin maxim necessitas probandi incumbit ei qui agit explains the rule that “the necessity of proof lies with he who complains.” For example, a person has to prove that someone is guilty or not guilty (in a criminal case) or liable or not liable (in a civil case) depending on the allegations. More colloquially, burden of proof refers to an obligation in a particular context to defend a position against a prima facie other position.”
Basically, he DOES have to prove you didn’t pay, because he’s the one claiming you didn’t pay.
Additionally, if you order the checks and prove that you did, in fact, pay all the fees, then you can sue to HOA in small claims court for the $100 it costs you to get the checks, along with the attorneys fees it costs to file and prosecute the suit.
Some things are a matter of principle.
Of course, I’m not an attorney, and you’d want to consult an attorney if you decide to take action, but you ought to be aware of your rights!
Incidentally, sometimes threatening action is enough to get results without filing suit. You can explain the burden of proof issue to the HOA, and even tell them that you will file suit for the fees associated with proving you did pay, and that might scare them off. You could hire an attorney to send such a letter.
Additionally, it’s possible there might be some statute of limitations on claiming this type of fee. In medical malpractice, the statute of limitations to file suit against a medical provider for malpractice is two years after the incident. If you can’t sue someone after two years for, say, cutting off the wrong limb, then I wonder how long it is before you can’t ask somebody for back fees! I mean, taxes have already been paid for 2006, and everything!
Things to think about.
Brava!!
I just found your blog and now I just have to know if you really cut the power during the game. Also wondering if everyone’s satellite being connected to your electricity caused some sort of increase in your electrical bills.
Go get ‘em!
Aaah! Just read the sideblog. Sweet.
wow - HOAs are a nightmare - basically nobody in the HOAs really want an HOA except the people running it. This guy sounds like a real idot.