Updated 15Ocotber 2017
Letter to the Editor Archive
posted 25 August 2017
Letters to the EDITOR
HVN asked the new HOA Presiden"Secret Meetings prior to its publication. She garciously provided us with these comments:
To HVN:
It is your first amendment right to say whatever you want on your website and on your Harbour Vista News publication.
I also appreciate you letting us know ahead of time what you are going to print, I wish you had done the same prior to printing the erroneous information as to what was said at the last meeting.
No secret meetings were held. We held a closed session and published an agenda because I wanted to be as transparent as possible. And I can assure you that no decisions were made that might affect the integrity of our fiduciary responsibility to the organization.
I hope that you will attend the next meeting and hear what we as board have to say and then judge us.
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Helen Ruvelas
Preisdent Harbour Vista HOA |
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posted 25 August 2017
Letters to the EDITOR
Owner with Window Upgrade & Parking Concern
Greetings Mike!
I need your assistance in 2 matters.
First, I need to install 5 windows in my unit that my daughter is moving into. Windows are all worn out. Do I need an approval to install white vinyl windows? If so, will it be approved?  Second, I need a tree trimmed in the Cabana center Parking lot. I am willing to pay for the cost. The tree branches are overhanging a tenants auto & is constantly putting sap all over it plus the birds are always dirtying it. Branch will break soon & damage the auto. Do I put in a request for just get it cut & say nothing to anyone?
Any advice is appreciated!
To Owner:
The retrofit windows require a submittal of an Architectural Request Form that must be send to Action Property Management. Action timestamps your request and then generate a request and minute template for the ARC committee (Architectural Committee). The timestamp is important. The ARC Committee must respond within 45 days or your request is automatically approved. Based on passed experience, it is a good idea to also email the ARC spokesperson Michael Barto (yours truly) a copy of your request to help the committee schedule a meeting and to make sure that all the information has been provided.
According to the Architectural Guidelines,”Owners may upgrade windows with white energy efficient double pane clear glass only. Any other colors are not acceptable.” If you are installing retrofit windows, a permit is not required as the existing framing is reused.
Since you are willing to pay the expenses to trim the tree, you should send your request to the Landscaping Committee Spokesperson Terri Piper Johnson (call or text 707-477-9044) and see if the Committee will agree along with the Board to let you go forward. You can then hire your own person (or use the HOA’s) and monitor the work. This should be an arrangement between you and the Landscaping Committee. Personally I see no issue with this request and praise you for doing this. This will save money for the HOA which is a win for all of us.
--Michael Barto
To Ask a Question of Harbour Vista News: Simply email, call ot text (714-883-1949) or send a letter. Remember: "We are all in this together™". Letters and responses are only published with the permission of the homeowner. |
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posted 18 August 2017
Frustrations
IT’S HOT and No SHADES
It is hot and you cannot put up  shades. For over five years this owners condo has had shades on its second balcony. But in the last six months he has received letters from the HOA telling him they are not allowed. Over the previous three Board meetings, the HOA had asked for comments for the new Rules and Regulations. He diligently submitted his request along with other members to allow shades. But to no avail. The new rules still contained the same restrictions.
Put Up A Tree
OK, there is more than one way to skin a cat. He took down the shades and installed a tree/bush potted
plant. It may not be the best solution, but for now, the condo is cooler.■ |
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posted 29 May 2015
From Heartbroken Owner (Second Letter),
Our battle with the HOA Board continues and in the interest of transparency we wanted to let other homeowners know what is happening.
Preliminary Injunction
The Board had the HOA attorney file for a "Preliminary Injunction" against us in the Orange County Superior Court on May 5th. The judge denied the Injunction stating he did not find that it met the requirements for a Preliminary Injunction. The court ordered both our HOA Board and us to appear in court on June 4th when the judge will resolve the issue unless the HOA Board and we work out an agreement which is "fair, reasonable and expeditious".
Very Scary
The Board wants an Injunction to order us to immediately stop all construction of renovations on our condo. And further to return the condo to its original condition (??) within 30 days and we would be financially responsible for any damage to the common areas. Lastly, if we do not stop all construction on renovations to our condo the Board could gain access to our condo by having a locksmith change the locks on our condo with the assistance of the HB Police Department. Then the Board can have our condo returned to its original condition and the cost would be assessed to us along with all the attorney fees and court cost and any other associated costs. Scary!!
For Our Family
My husband, me and our two children still hope that we can continue to make our condo modern and updated and move in to our new home in Harbour Vista. We have tried to get our condo renovated so we can live in it since last November. We have paid our monthly HOA dues, land lease fees, property taxes and have not been able to live in our condo to this date.
We hope the Judge will help us reach a "fair and reasonable" agreement with the Board so we can go forward with our plans without incurring any further expensive attorney fees and court costs for the HOA or us.
To Heartbroken Homeowner:
It is troubling to learn that our HOA Board has proceeded ahead with attempting to file an Injunction against a fellow homeowner. I hope that the judge will find a fair and reasonable solution when you go to court on June 4th.
I am concerned for both you and the HOA. There are already significant attorney and court costs that either the HOA or you will have to pay. Not to mention the financial costs you have spent to purchase your condo and to do the renovations you hope to do.
I hope cool heads will prevail by all involved and a reasonable, fair and equable solution will be reached and soon!
-----Michael Barto
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HB City Inspector checks work done on "Heartbroken" homeowner's condo. |
To Ask a Question of Harbour Vista News: Simply email, call (714-883-1949) or send a letter. Remember: "We are all in this together™".
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posted 24 April 2015 (300px)
Letter to the Editor
From Heartbroken Homeowner:
My husband and I became the proud new owners of a 3 bedroom condo in October 2014(actually closed escrow on my birthday, so exciting).
We had been looking to buy here for a very long time. Such a lovely hidden gem in Huntington Beach. Unfortunately for us, this has become the nightmare of our lives.
Our new home was very original, so we began the remodeling process. We gutted everything and redesigned our layout to have an open kitchen and large family area, taking away the third bedroom. In early December, after all the messy work was done, we received a stop work order from the City Inspector. Evidently someone had complained; looking back I completely understand. None of our neighbors have any idea that we know what we are doing (we install marble and granite in bathrooms and kitchens for a living and have a ton of building experience). A few days later we received a Cease and Desist from the Board of Directors. No big deal. So we fill out the architectural application and multiple emails go back and forth and we meet with the city inspector and apply for our permits. We were irresponsible by starting prior to taking the necessary steps and for that we can only apologize, but we are doing it right now.
Then on January 5th we receive a letter from the Architectural Committee stamped DENIED. And we are told we have to "return EVERYTHING back to its original condition". I can only cry and my husband promises me that I will still get the modern I have always dreamed of. This must be a misunderstanding. So we begin the appeals process and on January 26th meet with the board in executive session and they tell us that "the associations lawyer says there is nowhere in the CC&R's that allow us to do what we are doing". WHAT????? So we show them other unit modifications and point out section 2.08 and 8.05 in the CC&R's. More emails and pictures go back and forth and then we receive another letter from the Lawyer saying "do not send future communications to any of the board members". So how are we going to resolve this???
We continue working under the supervision of the city and upgrade our electrical panel and install our own shut off valves to ALL OUR pipes, and new water saving toilets. We rewire the entire condo for more efficient LED lights, smoke and Carbon monoxide detectors, etc. Just before things start to get exciting with color, design and character, we are hand delivered a NEW cease and desist from the lawyer threatening to place a temporary restraining order on us and pursue legal proceedings. What is going on, this is OUR home.
The city has been extremely helpful and the homeowners we have spoken with have offered nothing but support. We can not be the only ones interested in remodeling. Are we not ALL members of this association? Could something like this prevent me from running for the board? Wont a lengthy legal lawsuit cost our association money it does not have? Who is on our architectural committee anyways?
Any help, advice, or suggestions you can offer would be wonderful. Desperate for design change We can not wait to call this place home, even though we may never have the opportunity to remodel and move in.
To Heartbroken Homeowner:
It seems your renovation/remodel of your condo has been elevated to a legal battle with the HOA Board and the HOA General Legal Counsel. The board's decision to have an attorney involved in this matter will cost our HOA money and time. You may want to seek legal counsel yourself.
As your letter states you have corrected the original problem of not first going to the HOA Architectural Committee for approval of your plans and then obtaining the proper permits from the City of Huntington Beach. Now you have received a denial of your remodel plans from the HOA board and at this point you are appealing the decision and hope to go forward with making renovations and improvements so you can move into and enjoy your new home in Harbour Vista.
While the Davis-Sterling Act, our CC&R's and our HOA Rules & Regulations all require homeowners to have approval from the Architectural Committee and the Board along with the proper City permits and inspections, the Board also has a responsibility to work with the homeowner to assist them in obtaining the needed approval. This may mean compromise from both the Board and the homeowner. Once the Board gives their approval the expertise of the City staff/inspectors will make sure the remodel/renovations are done to current codes and regulations, thus protecting the HOA's interests.
-----Harbour Vista News
Note: The Harbour Vista News web site has copies of the CC&R's (Unit), CC&R's (Committee), CC&R's (Installation), Rules & Regulations, Comittee Charter and the Application for Architectural Review for your convenience. If you are considering remodeling/renovating your condo you should be familiar with these requirements.
To Ask a Question of Harbour Vista News: Simply email, call (714-883-1949) or send a letter. Remember: "We are all in this together™". |
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posted 23 March 2015
From Laundry Flooding Homeowner,
We live in a bottom floor unit with two units above us. Last month we had again a laundry room flood from the drain line from our washing machine.This has been going on for a couple of months. I called the Action management and explained the problem. Next day they sent out Scott English to asses the problem. They said this problem was the homeowners responsibility and would cost us $185 to have them clean it out. I told them to talk to Julie Carter at Action and clear this up. She wasn't in, so nothing was done to fix it.
The next day, I called Julie Carter and explained what happened and then said to her " I thought if it was in the wall, its the responsibility of the HOA to fix it". Julie said that to her understanding, this was true. She would bring this subject up at the next board meeting.
After the board meeting in January, she replied by email, that the board considered the laundry drain to be an "exclusive drain", and is solely my responsibility. I shot back in reply, " if this is a exclusive drain, then why do we get flooded when we aren't using our washing machine?
I question the HOA point that this an "exclusive drain". This seems to be an exception to the "in the wall" rule. Where does this ruling appear in the C,C,& R's, or does it? I have had many floods from this drain, one time in the middle of the night, water came gushing out of this drain. Where do I find the " blue prints" for the plumbing and piping structure in order to find the proof?
To Laundry Flooding Homeowner,
"Section 1.42 Unit" of Harbour Vista CC&R's describes the condominium boundaries.These documents are posted on Harbour Vista News under "HOA Documents" tab. Under the "Maps" tab is a set of "Builder Plans" in PDF format.
Why Scott English Plumbing and the HOA Board decided the flooding in your laundry room was caused by an "exclusive use drain" for your wash machine and therefore not a HOA responsibility, deserves a better explanation why they came to that conclusion. Since you are on the bottom floor and the 2 units along with your unit have a common drain pipe it would seem it is a HOA responsibility to pay for the cleaning of the drain.
Since you have left numerous messages asking Julie Carter (Community Manager) to call you and give a more detailed explanation why this drain is an "exclusive use" drain and you have not had a call from her, you may want to write to the Board requesting an explanation of why they concluded the drain pipe is an "exclusive use" for your unit.
It would be helpful to all homeowners to have a clear understanding of what is the homeowner's responsibility (exclusive use) and what is the HOA's responsibility. It has been past policy that if the pipe is inside the wall and is a common drain it is the HOA's responsibility. More clarification from the current Board would be good for homeowners to know.
-----Michael Barto
To Ask a Question of Harbour Vista News: Simply email, call (714-883-1949) or send a letter. Remember: "We are all in this together™". |
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posted 1 June 2014
From Unit Owner with Repairs,
I want to share with you my story with the BUGMAN. I have to say I love their blue trucks but I can't say I agree with their pricing and billing.
So the HOA decided to a termite treatment and wood repair and actually I didn't even ask for it so I was quite happy. I wasn't so happy with the events that unfolded on Saturday May 15th. At about 8 am, the young gentleman from the bugman came by and treated my garage and unit. He only treated 2 or 3 areas above my window and my sliding door and a few areas in my garage. I asked about the balcony, rafters, etc and apparently this wasn't aproved by the HOA. I am in the process of obtaining this now. After about 30 minutes of work, he presented me with a bill for $375 and asked me to sign. Since I wasn't paying for it, I signed it but I would have been quite upset if I was paying for it. I still feel bad that the HOA is paying such ridiculous prices for a 30 minute service.
Then in the afternoon, two gentleman from bugman came to repair the closet frame and they finished the job in about an hour and half but they went to home depot for about 30 minutes and talked and joked and listened to music most of the time. The closet frame fixed was only about 10 inches long and they didn't even match the paint to my closet and just left it white. I was then presented with a bill for $475 and signed this also. So apparently for about 1.5 hours of work total from the bugman, I was charged $850 and this was happily paid by the HOA.
I think we have take some fiscal responsibility as homeowners and report that the BUGMAN is seriously overcharging the HOA and we should find a better contractor to do the work. I personally have paid licensed contractors much less or even a fraction for similar work. Hopefully the other homeowners will let the HOA know about how the BUGMAN is seriously overcharging us.
To Unit Owner with Repairs,
Thank you for your letter. You are absolutely correct, homeowners should pay attention to the HOA finances. Every homeowner has a vested interest in how our HOA dues are spent by the HOA Board and the management company. If a homeowner thinks the HOA is being over charged for services from a vendor, Homeowners can send an email to Taylor DeLauder advising him of the issue, or they can always send a Letter to the Editor and Harbour Vista News will publish it on the web site.
Thank you being a concerned Homeowner and bringing this issue to the HOA membership.
-----Michael Barto
To Ask a Question of Harbour Vista News: Simply email, call (714-883-1949) or send a letter. Remember: "We are all in this together™". |
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posted 28 May 2014
Letter to the EDITOR
From Concerned about Sub-Lease
I had a question about the land lease. It states in the Sublease Condominium Page 6, that the lessor can take over the properties (i.e. the condos) at the end of the lease. Is this true? This is a bit scary. I assume the lease will be extended before that but still it is scary.
Dear Concerned about Sub-Lease
Thank you for your letter regarding the Sub-Lease that all condo owners have with Harbour Vista LLC. Yes, that is what our current Sub-Lease states and we are contractually bound by our Sub-Lease. We agreed to and signed the Sub-Lease at the time we purchased our condos.
Currently our Sub-Lease expires in 2041. However, Harbour Vista LLC successfully obtained a fifteen year extension from the Land Owners. So, their Land Lease goes to 2056. But to date this extension has NOT been extended to the Owners of Harbour Vista.
Discussions between Harbour Vista LLC and our current Board have not been successful (See Land Lease report). It remains to be seen if condo owners will be able to negotiate an extension of the Sub-Leases. This has an impact on the property values at Harbour Vista.
At present, when the Sub-Leases expire in 2041, all the improvements, (i.e. the condos, club house, garages, pools, etc), go to the Lease Holder without any compensation to the condo owner. Even if extended to 2056, at the end of the extension all improvements will go to the Land Owners without compensation.
It is beneficial to all owners to have the 15 year extension. There is a concern about the cost of the extension to each owner. It remains to be seen how our current or future HOA Board deals with this important issue. Participating in the Monthly HOA meetings would be a place to start.
--Michael Barto
To Ask a Question of Harbour Vista News: Simply email, call (714-883-1949) or send a letter. Remember: "We are all in this together™". |
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posted 25 November 2013
From Mike on the Top Floor
Recently I moved to Harbour Vista to a 3rd floor unit on Blackbeard Lane. I am trying to have Verizon Fios installed in my unit. Verizon informed me they have to run their Fios line through the utility closets on the balcony/patio of the two condos below my condo. They told me HOA requires Verizon to install the Fios lines through the utility closets on the patios and balconies only. Verizon has to have permission and access to the two condos below me and they asked me to talk with these neighbors to get access and set up an appointment for the installation. I can contact the owner for the second floor condo. However, the ground floor unit appears to be vacant , so I cannot contact anyone for that condo.
I called the Action Property Management Company and was told they are not sure who is responsible for this ground floor condo since it might be in foreclosure.
What should I do? I want to install Fios..
Dear Mike Top on the Floor Unit
Yes, it is true that Verizon’s Agreement with the Association only allows them to run their Fios lines through the patio and balcony utility closets to get to your unit. We will check with one of our Harbour Vista News real estate resources to see if we can provide you with contact information for the owner of the ground unit. You could call or mail the owner.
If this is not successful for you, the HOA CC&R’s “Section 6.02 Right of Entry” provides a mechanism whereby the HOA can send a letter with a 7 day notice to gain access to the property. It is not required that the owner respond, only that they be notified. In looking at the units involved, the closets where Verizon needs access are on the outside of the units which falls under HOA outside access privileges.
I am sure that Action or the HOA Board should be able to get this matter resolved. You should first try contacting Action Property Management. If that does not work you can ask Action to have a HOA Board Member call. You could also send an e-mail to the Board at:
or you can attend the next HOA Board meeting on Monday the 25th of November at 7:30 P.M. in the Cabana Clubhouse and ask the Board to help you with this matter.
-----Michael Barto
To Ask a Question of Harbour Vista News: Simply email, call (714-883-1949) or send a letter. Remember: "We are all in this together". |
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posted 6 February 2014
From Mike
A GOOD ARTICLE IN THE LA TIMES
No doubt we all know about the Davis-Sterling Act, and dealt with some sections of it.
However, as of January 1, 2014, numerous sections of the code will be repealed and replaced with a new Part 5. California legislation reorganized and recodified the Act. But it is causing confusion for many people.
To help dealing with the changes, the December 29, 2013 Los Angeles Times (Business section), where every Sunday a column under subtitle “Associations” is printed, published the one titled “Code change is confusing”, and the authors offered a free conversion chart of how the changed statues relate to the original Davis-Sterling Act. To obtain such chart, a first-class stamped, self-addressed envelope should be sent ot the authors.
I think you can forward this to the Harbour Vista Board, and it will be helpful for the board to get such referenced conversion chart for future use.
Dear Mike
I am aware of the changes you referred to in your letter. On the Harbour Vista News web site there is a link under the "HOA Documents" tab to Davis-Sterling.com web site. This web site has a conversion chart for the new code numbers and is very user friendly. It has the entire Davis-Sterling Act along with an index of subjects that makes it easy to look at the statues that pertain to a subject you would want to look up. The site also shows legislation and case law pertaining to Davis-Sterling.
I appreciate you bringing this to our attention so we could let homeowners/property owners at Harbour Vista have this information also. We hope the web site is useful and convenient for you and others.
-----Michael Barto
To Ask a Question of Harbour Vista News: Simply email, call (714-883-1949) or send a letter. Remember: "We are all in this together™". |
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posted 22 January 2014
From Confused Homeowner:
In reading the article about “Ground Lease Extension”, I was a little confused. Does this mean my lease is now extended an additional fifteen years?
Dear Confused Homeowner:
The short answer is NO, your Sub-lease remains the same and will expire in the year 2041 and that is true for all the Homeowners/Property Owners in Harbour Vista. All the terms of the Sub-Lease you have with Harbour Vista LLC remain the same. You should have received copies of the Ground Lease, Sub-Lease and Amendments to these documents from your Escrow Company when you purchased your condo. For a convenient place to look at these documents, you can click on the Land Lease tab to see copies of these documents.
It helps to remember the chain of ownership:
- Land is owned by the Duc Family;
- they leased all the land at Harbour Vista to Harbour Vista LLC , represented by William Dickey; Harbour Vista LLC then Sub-Leased the land to individual Homeowners/property owners in HarbourVista.
In January of 2013 Harbour Vista LLC (Land Lease Holder) successfully negotiated a 15 year Extension of the Ground Lease with the Land Owners (Duc family). That Extension expires in 2056. So, Harbour Vista LLC owns the Land Lease for an additional 15 years until 2056. See this link.
It remains to be seen if, in the future, the 15 year extension will be extended to the Homeowners/property owners at the Harbour Vista Homeowners. Extending the Sub-lease for the additional 15 years would require the terms be negotiated between Harbour Vista LLC and Harbour Vista Homeowners. While the HOA hired an Attorney to contact Harbour Vista LLC regarding an extension of the Sub-leases they were not successful and gave a report to the Homeowners in March of last year regarding the issue. You can see a copy of the report at this link.
Perhaps an opportunity will arise in the future for a HV Board of Directors to re-open talks with Harbour Vista LLC about extending the Sub-Leases.
Hope this clarifies the issue for you and thank you for your letter.
-----Michael Barto
To Ask a Question of Harbour Vista News: Simply email, call (714-883-1949) or send a letter. Remember: "We are all in this together™". |
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posted 12 February 2014
I live in a three bedroom top floor unit. I noticed I have a crawl space to a very large attic space.
I was wondering what the rules and regulations are regarding making this area into a storage area or some other use?
--- Paul with Attic Space
Dear Paul with Attic Space
The governing documents regarding modifications to a unit can be found on the Harbour Vista News website under the HOA Documents tab. Under that tab you will find the HOA Rules and Regulations and there you will find the Architectural Rules and Regulations. Basically, if a homeowner wants to make a modification to their unit they should contact Taylor DeLauder at Action Property Management and tell him you want to submit an Architectural Form for review by the Board of Directors. You can also obtain a copy of this form under the Other Information tab on the Harbour Vista News web site. Taylor will be able to answer any question you have regarding the process to follow for approval of your Architectural modification to your unit.
The Harbour Vista Rules and Regulations state that any modifications must be in compliance with the CCandRs Section 4.02. You can also take a look at the CCandRs Section 8.05 and CCandRs Section 1.42 on the web site.
I spoke with a couple of former Board Members who said there were modifications made to units, in the past, that had permits from the City and Approval from the Board. But there may be units where the owner did not have Permits or Approval from the Board for modifications to their unit. This could be a problem for these homeowners should they decide to sell their unit. They will have to declare the modification to their unit as “non-permitted” and “not approved” by the HOA. Potential Buyers may not want to purchase a unit without the proper HOA Board Approval and City Permits.
I hope this information and places to find the governing documents for modifications to units is helpful.
-----Michael Barto
To Ask a Question of Harbour Vista News: Simply email, call (714-883-1949) or send a letter. Remember: "We are all in this together™". |
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