COLUMN: Barbara Holland

Q. As a board member, I requested through our treasurer a copy of the check register of our association for a one-year period. I wanted to see where the money is going and use it for budget preparation.

Several days later, I received a letter from our paid bookkeeper, a homeowner in our association, stating that we do not have written bookkeeping records in our association, all of our accounting records are handled with a computer program. She also stated that she would assess me a $15 charge per hour for information research, outside copying charges, and 25 cents per page for copies.

As a board member, I need these records to do my job. Should there not be written records and should a board member be charged a cost to obtain these records?

Also, I read with interest the creation of a new commission, effective Oct. 1, 2003, that will hear homeowner complaints regarding associations. I understand they will have some enforcement powers. How does one go about requesting such a hearing?

A. State law requires boards to review certain functions at least once every 90 days at its meetings, unless the declaration or bylaws impose more stringent standards. This includes current reconciliation of the operating account and of the reserve account, the actual income and expenses compared to the budget, and the latest account statements prepared by financial institutions.

If your association was complying with this section of the law, you would have obtained this information on a regular basis and would have had the information in order to work on the budget. No, you should not have been charged for obtaining this information as part of your responsibility as a board member.

A person must first show that they have written to the other party on at least two separate occasions via certified mail, return receipt requested, with notices of the alleged violation. If the situation has not been resolved through these letters, then and only then, a person would file an affidavit with the Nevada Real Estate Division.

The affidavit goes to the ombudsman, whose office will try to assist the parties in resolving the alleged violations. If the ombudsman cannot resolve the alleged violations, a report will be written and submitted back to the Real Estate Division, which will investigate whether or not good cause exists to proceed with a hearing. If so, the administrator of the division will file a complaint with the Real Estate Commission and schedule a hearing.

The procedure is complex and filled with restrictions. Expect to read more about it in future columns.

Questions for Barbara Holland may be sent to Association Q. & A., P.O. Box 7440, Las Vegas, NV 89125. Her fax number is 385-3759.

Barbara Holland, Certified Property Manager, is president and co-owner of H&L Realty and Management Co. She is a member of the Institute of Real Estate Management and is the author of two books on the subject. Holland is a past president of the Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors.

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