SUNSET BAY VILLAS. CONDO ASSOCIATION NEWSLETTER: December 2017

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1 FUTURE COA BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETINGS: At the November Association meeting, the board established the following schedule (to facilitate residents planning) for the remainder of the board s tenure. ALL OWNERS ARE WELCOME TO ATTEND Monday (6:30pm) January 22, 2018 Monday (6:30pm) March 19, 2018 Monday (6:30pm) May 21, 2018 Saturday (2:00pm) July 23, 2018 (Annual Meeting) [All Board of Directors meetings will be conducted at the Sunset Bay Villas Pavilion] FINANCES: DELINQUINT DUES RECOVERY We have made a lot of progress. In the August Newsletter, the Association reported over $35,000 in delinquent owner dues. As of this December Newsletter, delinquent owner dues are down to $13,600 (of which just $6900 is past due by current owners, the remainder a forwarded balance from former owner). Approximately 90% of all owners are now paying their monthly dues on time (before or on the 15 th of each month). The Board is aggressively pursuing this. DID YOU KNOW? That 60% of revenue from COA dues goes to pay our annual insurance bill! MAINTENANCE: REPAIRS and PREVENTATIVE MEASURES AGING FACILITIES and INFRASTRUCTURE: Sunset Bay Villas construction was started in 2001 and completed in The construction sequence of each building is basically identified by the building numbers. Over the past 11 years, the Association has spent thousands of dollars in repairs, and we continue to do so. However, given budget constraints, the Association is currently focused on major repairs and preventative maintenance programs such as: the weather sealing of exposed wood in stairways, landings and rails (labor paid by owners, supplies paid by COA). Infrastructure deterioration being addressed currently includes asphalt fatigue (e.g., cracks in pavement and sinking areas) and amenities such as the pool and pier walkway. Some metal

2 roofs are beginning to leak and building siding falling off; all the roof plumbing vents (roof jack boots) need to be replaced, roof ridges secured, and our streets need to be seal coated or resurfaced in the near future. As such, our maintenance/repair budget needs to be increased in the future, without which we risk decreasing both our quality of life and lowering the property values. We have a lot work to do over the next few years; the good news is that the complex looks better than ever before and our buildings are structurally sound! WEATHER SEALING EXPOSED WOOD: LEFT: AFTER WEATHER SEAL FAR RIGHT: BEFORE WEATHER SEAL TREATMENT The Association BOD unanimously passed a motion at the September 2017 meeting to allow owners to weather seal their front-facing wood staircases/landings and private balconies with a standard Sherwin Williams solid stain (SuperDeck) using a standard tan color. The common areas (staircases/landings) are the responsibility of the Association, therefore the weather sealant will be provided by the Associate at no cost to the owners who want to paint their own or have it contracted out. The limited access balconies are the responsibility of the owners who must use the same product/color ($36/gallon discount price). At present, five owners (buildings #17, 12, 5, 4 and 11) have completed their staircases/landings which look great; buildings #9 and #16 have received sealant to do theirs; buildings #3 and #2 will probably follow suit. The complex has 28 buildings; only ten have covered staircases/landings; but eighteen have totally exposed wood these are the buildings that desperately need weather sealing. Resident owners who care about their properties have readily embraced this self-help program; weather sealing (pressure washed) wood extends the life of the wood and greatly improves the appearance of the building increases unit condo values 10%. It s the type of preventive maintenance that saves the Association more expensive wood replacement costs in the long term. Please contact the Association board if your building owners want to participate in the program. To date, some owners are doing the work themselves while others are contracting the labor. The Association BOD can recommend contractors.

3 WATER LEAKS: Water leaks fall into two categories exterior and interior. The Association pays for exterior leaks, the owners pay for interior leaks. The exterior leaks are normally from roof leaks and balcony leaks. Hopefully, all the balcony leaks have now been abated with the installation of proper flashing. The roof leaks are typically roof jack boots that need to be replaced or roof metal ridges that need to be secured with new screws. In the past year, the Association has repaired eight buildings with such leaks. The interior water leaks come from a multitude of sources (e.g., unit water lines, hot water heaters, shower drains, refrigerator water lines and washing machine hoses). If you discover an interior water leak, call a plumber immediately, not the Association. If it is an exterior leak from the roof or flashing on a balcony, the Association will repair it. If it s an interior leak, it s owner responsibility to repair. OTHER, RESIDENT SELF HELP REPAIR PROJECTS: Our self-help program is saving the Association a significant amount of money while enhancing the value of our properties. As mentioned above, numerous residents are embracing the weather sealing initiative to protect their exposed wood and improve the appearance of their building. Since the November Newsletter, some of our residents have repaired the hurricane damage to our walkway/pier on the bay, installed new boards /weather sealed the fishing dock on the pond, replaced wood on several building staircases/landings, and repaired the water fountain (with new blue lights) in the detention pond. These resident projects have saved the Association thousands of dollars in contractor labor costs. Many of these projects would have had to be delayed (or not done at all) without the selfless efforts of these residents. Future resident self-help project are: Paint parking stripes on the asphalt parking lot across from buildings #10 and #15; install a light on the bay fishing pier; replace wood/weather seal the little bridge on the detention pond, repair all the bad wood on the walkway/ pier on the bay; weather seal our mail box posts.

4 SVBCOA SALES & RENTAL NEWS: CONDOMINIUM SALES: To date in 2017, twelve units have sold i.e., #2, 5, 13, 21, 24, 54, 84, 134, 138, 168, 184, and 192. The following units are currently under contract to be sold: #78, 94, and 180. Units #19, 90, 142, and 204 are for sale. The real estate market in Sunset Bay remains very robust. As we continue to improve the appearance of the buildings/grounds/ amenities, improve our financial stability, and reduce our rentals to the 20% level, our properties will continue to increase in value. RENTAL CONDOMINIUM STATUS: The Association is currently at the 26% level for rentals. With the sale of the three rental units (currently under contract) this number could decrease to 24%. These percentages do not include the two illegal rental units. We will eliminate one of our two illegal rental units (at the end of December); the owner agreed to pay the monthly penalty fee. We still have one illegal rental unit that appears will remain this way until the end of June 2018; this owner refused to ask the tenant to leave and is incurring monthly penalty fees pursuant to the regulations; to date this owner is not paying the penalty fee. The goal is to get to the 20% level of rentals. Achieving this goal will help potential buyers get mortgages, increase the value of our units, and could help decrease our insurance rates. The 20% level remains a major objective of the board. RESIDENT DIRECTORY: The Association is slowly getting the requisite Information Sheets completed by residents necessary to complete our Resident Directory. At present we are still missing 33 resident information sheets i.e., 21 from owners and 12 from renters. The Resident Directory is necessary to be able to contact residents in emergencies and to properly address residents regarding delinquent dues and rules violations. The resident information sheets are private and will not be distributed to anyone outside of the Board of Directors, but it is essential to enable the Board to conduct business. If all the resident information sheets are not completed by the end of December, board members will go to the units requesting the information. If residents refuse, the BOD will have no alternative but to pass a regulation stipulating that a penalty fee be imposed for withholding information. THE NO-GUILT LADIES BOOKCLUB IS UNDERWAY! This informal group has met twice, and is on its second recommended book. All are welcome to join even if you are not able to read the book! Currently, we are reading Alexander McCall Smith s No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency and we will convene again on Monday, Jan. 29, 6:00 pm at Unit #80. If you would like to join the group or have questions, please Barb (barb6542@aol.com) or Deborah (veldersd@gmail.com).

5 RULES & POLICIES RESIDENT COMPLAINT POLICY: The BOD passed a new policy outlining a process for resident complaints/disputes. The new policy/process is posted on the website and attached to the November BOD meeting minutes. Getting along with neighbors is paramount to having a peaceful/civil community. The new policy is an attempt to give residents the opportunity to present complaints and disputes between neighbors that they are unable to resolve for possible board resolution. RULES VIOLATIONS: Association rules/regulations are listed on the website, attached to the minutes of the September and November BOD meetings, and were included in the August and October Newsletters. The board is exerting every effort to enforce the rules for the benefit of all residents. The number one violation of the rules continues to be residents placing garbage, trash, furniture, house hold goods, mattresses and a multitude of other unwanted items on the ground around the dumpsters. This creates an unsanitary and unsightly mess for caring residents to clean up and the bulk items cost the Association money to be hauled to the City disposal area. The dumpsters are routinely emptied on Monday and Friday mornings. During the past few weeks the board has issued penalty fines to three residents who abused the dumpster rule. In addition, the board will finally place a camera in the dumpster area to more closely monitor abusers. On a final note, the board requests that no pet waste or wet garbage be placed in the pavilion trash cans; this causes a sanitary/odor problem. OTHER NEWS... LAKE FOREST YACHT CLUB MEMBERSHIP: At the September 11, 2017 SBVCOA BOD meeting, the board approved a motion to pay the LFYC annual corporate fee of $240 for any of our Association unit owners to join the LFYC for half price ($120/year) starting 1 January The agreement was made with the General Manager of LFHOA. However, he is no longer working for the LFHOA. When we recently contacted the new General Manager to pay the corporate fee, he told us he would have to take it to the HOA board. Unfortunately, the LFHOA has now deferred the previous decision to a later date i.e., cancelling the previous commitment for now. If the situation changes, the board will inform the twenty residents who had indicated they wanted to join.

6 HAPPY HANUKKAH HAPPY KWANZAA MERRY CHRISTMAS BE SAFE! HOLIDAY DECORATIONS/ LIGHTS POLICY: The board encourages residents to celebrate the holiday season with festive decorations/lights. Decorations/lights displayed on building entry common areas (staircases/landings) should have the consent of all the residents in the building. No decorations/lights can impede the access to a unit or present a safety hazard. No decorations/lights can be placed on the grass, street, driveways or gravel areas. The board requests that all decorations/lights be removed within two weeks of the end of holiday season. FROM THE COA BOARD OF DIRECTORS : President Douglas Turney Vice President Mark Wilson Secretary Treasurer Directors Evelyn Wallace Barbara Lewis Tori Adams; Weston Hawkins; Matt Heater; Gerlinde Turney; Deborah Velders HOW DO I COMMUNICATE WITH BOARD, FIND INFORMATION OR REPORT MAINTENANCE ISSUES & CONCERNS? sunsetbayvillas@gmail.com In case of a maintenance emergency impacting the community, please contact Douglas Turney (President, Board of Directors)