As a new year begins, it is outstanding maintenance fees that continue to plague many community associations. These outstanding fees will ultimately be the responsibility of every single member of the association. This may have a chilling effect on especially smaller community associations. The legal pursuit of these outstanding maintenance fees, although costly to the association, must be pursued by the Board of Directors. The following procedures should be followed:

1. Obtaining monthly status reports and having board member, or property manager review the report monthly
2. Written collection procedures should be in place, and followed for each unit
3. Privileges should be suspended after an agreed upon period of time
4. Overdue accounts should be turned over to an attorney, after an agreed upon period of time
5. When possible, settlement should be encouraged to avoid additional legal fees

The legal process for collecting outstanding maintenance fees is often long, and costly for the association. Even after a final judgment is obtained, often associations are required to continue to pay legal fees to collect on the judgment. These post judgment collection efforts may include bank levies and wage garnishments. Often times, the debtor files for bankruptcy relief. It is helpful to have an attorney experienced in collection of community association debts to guide you through the process. Please contact Alyson E. Galusha at Mark & Galusha, LLC by filling out the form on our contact us page or by calling 908-626-1001.