Fight with Brunswick condo association leads man to push for state reform

Timothy Hinds and his wife, Jeanne, thought they’d found the perfect second home when they purchased a condo at Ocean Walk on Oak Island in October 2020.

“We have loved Oak Island for decades, vacationing and visiting here every year, renting each time,” Hinds explained. “When we finally had the money to buy here, we looked at houses and condos all over the island, finally settling on Ocean Walk for the spacious layout, proximity to the beach, easy parking, and having an elevator.”

But soon after they purchased the unit, they began to question some things happening in the community’s condo association. The fight over contracts and transparency led Timothy to establish the North Carolina Homeowner Association Law Reform Coalition.

Now, he’s working with others to advocate for HOA reform.

Hint of a problem

Hinds explained the issues at Ocean Walk arose when he noticed a significant amount of money — $182,057— had been moved out of the association’s reserve fund and into a working account. He explained this concerned some of the condo owners because they worried how this could impact the condos in the event of a hurricane or storm that caused damage to the common areas.

After noticing what Hinds called other “questionable expenditures,” he asked for an audited financial statement, but after years of pressing, he has yet to be provided one.

“The board has vehemently opposed the idea of an audited financial statement,” he said.

Instead, he said they release “only high-level summaries.”

He noted the lack of transparency was further demonstrated when the board announced it had purchased about 16 storage sheds that would be placed in the common area of the community.

“There were no minutes from any meeting showing that they had decided to do this,” Hinds said.

He questioned the legality of the move, noting it would change the common area to a limited common area, which goes against the laws set forth in N.C. General Statute 47C.2.108, which states, common elements not previously allocated as limited common elements may not be so allocated except by unanimous consent, something Hinds said the board members didn’t obtain.

While the storage sheds were purchased, Hinds said they were never installed. The town of Oak Island placed a stop work order on the project on Nov. 28, 2022, citing failure to obtain the necessary permits. Following the stop work order, the town’s fire inspector said the project could not continue because the location of the sheds interfered with the town’s fire code.

For more than a year, Hinds said they have voiced their concerns with these issues and the lack of transparency in the Ocean Walk Condo Association’s board of directors. As a result, Jeanne decided to run for a position on the board of directors. They said that effort also failed. Hinds said membership lists should have been sent to all members of the condo association to allow candidates to campaign, but that never happened.

The StarNews was unable to find a contact list for the Ocean Walk Condo Association’s board of directors and reached out to the community’s association manager, GOProperty Management, which is based in Wilmington.

“Ocean Walk Condo Association is comprised of a volunteer Board of Directors elected by the members of the association,” said Kimberly Duff, association manager for GOProperty Management. “Our office is not authorized to respond on behalf of the Board of Directors. The questions raised have been shared with the Board of Directors for further response.”

At time of publication, the StarNews had not received a response from Ocean Walk’s Board of Directors.

Becoming a 'reformer'

After a year of fighting the organization at the local level, Hinds realized the problems of transparency weren’t exclusive to the Ocean Walk Condo Association.

“The problem is not the individual HOAs,” he said. “It’s the laws. They’re set up to benefit developers and builders; they’re not set up to benefit homeowners.”

He explained the issues arise because HOAs perform governmental functions.

“It’s almost like a little dictatorship,” he explained.

He noted while he didn’t have a problem with there being some regulations, he does have an issue with the homeowners’ inability to obtain financial records, and he believes there should be more transparency with elections.

He added for homeowners who have grievances with their HOA, there is little recourse. The only option is to sue, and finding an attorney skilled enough to take on the HOAs is difficult.

“Then even if you win, that’s no fun because you’ve just won a lawsuit against your neighbors and yourself,” he said.

As he commiserated with others in HOA communities around the state, Hinds said he found people in the “HOA World” fell into one of three categories: the “learners” who for whatever reason want to know more about HOA laws; the “fighters” who are fighting on behalf of homeowners against HOAs; and the group he calls the “reformers.”

“The reformers are fighters who realize the game is rigged and something needs to change,” he said.

As a result, Hinds formed the North Carolina Homeowners Association Law Reform Coalition to unite homeowners and work toward more oversight for the state’s HOAs.

Earlier this year, homeowners in HOAs across the state expressed their support for a bills aimed at increasing protections for those in the state's HOAs. One of those bills, House Bill 311, was introduced by Rep. Frank Iler of Brunswick County, and sought to create a division of the Attorney General’s office that would have jurisdiction over the state’s community associations to ensure they were complying with applicable state laws. But the bill never became law.

“Rep. Iler’s office was really candid with us that they didn’t get the votes to get it through, and they managed to salvage it with the study bill,” Hinds said.

Instead of voting on the bill, members of the house adopted House Resolution 311, which will create a House Select Committee on Homeowners’ Associations. The committee will consist of nine members of the House of Representatives appointed by the Speaker of the House with one of those members designated as its chair.

Hinds hopes the Coalition can work closely with the house select committee. One of the things he hopes to accomplish is establishing concrete definitions for “financial records” and "contracts" and ensuring the members of the community associations have access to these documents.

Like many across the state, Hinds said he and his wife were not aware of the issues within the HOA when they purchased their home. Until there is more reform and oversight for the state’s HOAs, Hinds said it is "buyer beware" for those shopping for homes in these associations.

“We’re a lot more aware than we were before,” he said.

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This article originally appeared on Wilmington StarNews: Oak Island homeowner fighting HOA on lack of oversight