HOA charging me $300/week for rental violation. What would I do?

Question

I own a rental in Dallas, TX.

The HOA has a rental cap and waitlist. I joined the waitlist 3 separate times and even reached the top of the list, but couldn't find a tenant within their 45-day approval window.

A few months later, I finally found a tenant and signed a one-year lease. The HOA later determined the rental was unauthorized because my 45-day approval period had expired and I should have rejoined the waitlist.

They're now fining me $300/week. I've already paid over a month, and the Board denied my request for a waiver.

I understand I may have technically violated the rule, but I wasn't trying to bypass the rental cap. I spent months trying to comply with the waitlist process.

Has anyone dealt with something similar? Would you:

- Keep negotiating with the HOA?

- Hire a Texas HOA attorney?

- Just pay the fines and move on?

Curious what other landlords would do.

Richard F. · Answer

It is more than likely that the HOA has the law on their side. Usually the Board uses a high powered specialist Attorney that knows condo/HOA laws inside and out. Since the Board does not pay for this attorney out of pocket, as with everything else, ALL of the Owners get saddled with the cost, including you, ultimately. It sounds like you obviously knew about the 45 day rule since you surpassed it 3 other times. There just is no excuse. You will get likely get screwed again when the Tenant sues you for breaching your contract with them! And they will win too.

You can argue all you want about how unfair the 45 day limit is, or the $300 per week, but ultimately, as long as the Board implemented those rules properly, with authority granted them within their by-laws, and with proper notice, proper voting if required by the by-laws, and proper distribution and notice of effective date...they make the rules, and you, as a condition of owning a unit, agreed to abide by their rules. All of their rules.

Lisa Davis · Answer

At $300/week, get a Texas HOA attorney involvedNot to go to war, but to review whether the fine is being assessed correctly and whether proper procedures were followed

Your three documented attempts to comply are relevant contextThat's worth putting on record formally before you pay another dollar

Jim Johnson · Answer

If I were in your position, I wouldn't simply assume the fines are valid and keep paying them without fully understanding my options. Based on what you've described, it sounds like you made multiple attempts to comply with the HOA's rental cap process and weren't intentionally trying to circumvent the rules.

Personally, I'd start by reviewing the HOA's governing documents to see exactly how the waitlist and approval window are written. If the language is clear and the fines continue to add up, I'd strongly consider consulting a Texas HOA attorney. A brief legal review may help determine whether the board is enforcing the rules properly and whether there's any basis for challenging the fines or requesting a resolution.

I've found that HOA disputes can become expensive quickly, so understanding your legal position early is usually worthwhile. At a minimum, I'd want to know whether the potential cost of an attorney is less than the fines you're likely to incur if this continues.

Diego Alvarado · Answer

Sorry to hear that you got into this.

As per many have mentioned, knowing that you were in violation won't help you moving forward. I would recommend to negotiate with the HOA Board. If you can, present the tenant to the board, provide improvement on the property, your landlord rules and everything that shows that the property is at a high standar for the neigborhood.

You may need to call each board member and discuss and address their concerns.

In the current situation with a tenant in place I wouldn't recommend to sell before resolving the incident with the HOA.I hope this is resolved promptly. Best of luck.

Travis Timmons · Answer

Agree with @Richard F. - you don't have any outs here that end well. Accept your fate and pick the best bad option.

Ryan Spath · Answer

It sounds like you knowingly broke the rules and are subject to the fine. I would pay the fines and move on.  I would personally consider selling this property if the HOA has this much weight on your property.

Dale K Poyser · Answer

Contact a lawyer to see what your rights are. If you make enough waves, the HOA is likely to listen just to get you to go away. They count on people not having the time or resources to fight their rules. Try the nice "work with me approach" first, then progressively step things up.

I believe there are organizations you can  contact to report them as well.

Jules Aton · Answer

I’m not anti-HOA but that timeframe is a weird rule. Hopefully you are already back on the waitlist. I would attempt to negotiate that they will grandfather in your current tenant when your number comes up for rental availability and just eat the fine in the interim.

HOA charging me $300/week for rental violation. What would I do?

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