Annual Disclosures, California Condo Guru,

The following disclosures are required of HOAs - some are required on an annual basis - and others by statute. The Annual Disclosure Checklist represents the summaries of the disclosures required for the fiscal year. The other links are sample forms that can be used in your packets. Some require integration of requirements of the Association governing documents because the information may vary from the statute and that is pertinent to finalizing your policy. Others are simply an interation or reiteration of the statutory requirements.

Note that some of the disclosures, when first prepared for approval by the Board, require circulation to Owners prior to adoption and circulation again after adoption by the Board under the California Statutory laws relating to imposition of operating rules for Associations found at Civil Code Section 1357.100 and following. Notes appear on the samples about this for guidance.

Policies are the way to go - without them Boards tend to flounder and end up with inconsistent handling of affairs. Other policies to be considered are: Meetings Policies (especially for handling difficult meetings), Elections Policies (note that Elections Rules are a new requirement as of July 1, 2006 and see the link to the Elections Laws in 2006), Records Inspection Policies and any other types of policies that help define practices in your Association.

The following illustrate samples of policies that are REQUIRED to be sent out every year to members, except for the Fining Policy.

There are two collections policies that Associations must send out to Owners every year - one is actually written into the statutes and needs to be produced word for word, and the other that is required as a disclosure of collection practices and lien rights. I am providing samples of each by the two links. A board could combine the two into one. What is important to understand is that the 1365.1 policy wording cannot be changed. It is the general disclosure the legislature thought Owners should have to make sure they could understand their general rights.

Associations may use these disclosure forms but reproduction of them on any website or use by others for their clients without written permission and credit to Beth A. Grimm, PLC, is forbidden.