Dear Florida Homeowners and Condo-owners,
There is a long way to go to achieve the final goal of creating the protection homeowners and condo-owners in Florida need and deserve. Even more so since the Florida legislature in the 2009 legislative session failed to pass one single bill to solve the many problems owners are facing in community associations. This is unbelievable -- considering the daily headlines in the media.
The economy and the bad real estate market finally delivered the proof for what we had claimed all along: Community associations are NOT protecting property values!
This claim was just a sales gimmick to lure families into buying into these communities. So was the so-called safety claim that gated communities provide more security! That was just another fairy tale.
Developers go bankrupt, dragging families into a financial chaos, making them lose their life savings. The mistake of the homeowners? They bought a home at the wrong place at the wrong time. And despite paying all their bills on time, they end up bankrupt and without a home due to the fact that our government officials would rather protect the guilty parties!
Associations go bankrupt, dragging down owners who always paid their dues. This is caused by many homes and units in foreclosure, owners not paying their dues or homes that are just plain empty. In many associations the financially responsible owners can't make up for the budget deficits and lose their homes as well when association bills are not paid and utility companies cut off services.
Lured to Florida with the false advertising claim of "Carefree Living in the Sunshine," retired folks can't keep up with the steady increase of association dues – not to mention all the special assessments levied -- and lose their homes to foreclosure!
OUR SOCIETY SHOULD BE ASHAMED!
During the 2009 legislative session Florida 's legislators were more interested in protecting the banking industry than their constituents. Obviously, it doesn't matter to the legislators that many families lose their homes and life savings, as long as special interest is protected. Don't forget, it was the banks and the mortgage industry that got us all in the mess in the first place. In one word: GREED! But the guilty parties get stimulus packages from our government, while homeowners' financial problems are being ignored!
In the 2010 legislative session (or even earlier!) we will be asking our Florida legislators to enact the following changes to the laws that govern properties in mandatory deed-restricted communities:
Hold Banks And Mortgage Holders Liable For Unpaid Association Fees
Stop Abusive Liens & Foreclosures In Associations
Hold Renters Liable For Unpaid Association Fees
Create One Government Agency With Strict Enforcement Power For ALL Associations
Create Ombudsman Office For Homeowners’ Associations
Give Ombudsman Office More Power To Enforce Demands
Enforce Fair Elections In Associations
Reduce Costly Litigation -- Create Easy Arbitration Provision
Stop Frivolous Litigation
Strengthen Disclosure Provisions In FS 190 – Community Development Districts
Protect The Vested Rights of Florida’s Mandated Property Owners
We have complete bill proposals for legislation for all the above issues.
And not to forget two important issues that bankrupt Florida's homeowners and condo-owners:
Property Insurance Reform
Property Tax Reform
All over Florida, citizens are suffering from abuses because of LACK OF ENFORCEMENT of existing laws. The Florida Statutes specify certain rules, but enforcement is totally lacking
Jan Bergemann, President
Cyber Citizens For Justice, Inc.
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