What happens if I pay my assessment late?

Two things happen, and they happen on different clocks.

**Your membership rights stop right away.** Once an assessment is past due, the rights that come with membership are suspended for as long as it stays unpaid. That includes use of the common properties and facilities. When you pay, those rights come back automatically. You also have the right to ask the Board to lift a suspension, but you have to show good cause, and the Board decides what counts as good cause.

**Charges start 30 days later.** If the assessment is still not paid 30 days after it became past due, the covenants allow a penalty fee of up to $25.00 to be added. From that same date, interest of 12% per year may be added to the unpaid balance (1% per month, billed monthly) and the penalty. A lien will be placed on the property, and the ability to clear a title search will fail.

The covenants also allow the Association to go to court — either to sue the owner who owes the money, or to foreclose the lien against the property. If that happens, the covenants say the cost of preparing and filing the complaint gets added to what is owed. If a judgment is entered, it includes interest on the total, court costs, and a reasonable attorney's fee set by the court.

If you are behind and want to work something out, call the office. That conversation is better had early than late.

*Source: Restrictive Covenants, Article V, Section 9, and Article IV, Section 3(c); By-Laws (Revised 2021), Section 2.2.*