Problems in your homeowners’ association? Discover how mediation can help resolve neighbourhood conflicts, unpaid fees, management problems, pending works and complex homeowners’ association meetings in Barcelona.

Living in a homeowners’ association means sharing much more than a building. Expenses, facilities, decisions and, on many occasions, problems that directly affect our homes and our quality of life are shared.

When a homeowners’ association functions properly, we are hardly aware of the importance of good management. Problems begin when there is a lack of information, accounts are not presented on time, approved agreements are not implemented, works drag on indefinitely or relationships between neighbours deteriorate.

In my professional activity as a conflict mediator in Barcelona, and particularly in the field of neighbourhood mediation and homeowners’ associations, I encounter very different situations. However, certain problems arise more frequently than would be desirable.

The association’s accounts must be presented sufficiently in advance

One of the common causes of conflict in homeowners’ associations is a lack of financial information.

Homeowners need to know the income, expenses, outstanding debts and financial situation of the association before deciding whether to approve the accounts.

Receiving the documentation on the same day as the Homeowners’ Meeting, not having access to it sufficiently in advance or having to approve the accounts for several financial years at the same time makes it difficult for homeowners to properly assess the management that has been carried out.

A homeowners’ association needs transparency. And transparency begins by providing the necessary information so that homeowners can make informed decisions.

Homeowners’ meetings should be held regularly

Allowing long periods of time to pass without holding a meeting can cause problems to accumulate.

Accounts pending approval, necessary repairs, homeowners in arrears, budgets, pending works or coexistence problems should be dealt with regularly.

When a homeowners’ association leaves problems unresolved for months or even years, they do not usually disappear. On the contrary, they normally become more difficult and more expensive to resolve.

Approving an agreement is not enough: it must be implemented

This is another problem that frequently arises in conflicts within homeowners’ associations.

The Homeowners’ Meeting approves works, a repair or a specific action, but months pass and nobody knows exactly what has happened.

Why has the agreement not been implemented?

Who was responsible for implementing it?

Was a quotation requested?

Were the works commissioned?

Does an issue that has already been approved need to be voted on again?

Good management of a homeowners’ association does not end when the meeting is over. Agreements must be properly recorded in the minutes, but someone must then take responsibility for carrying out the necessary steps to put them into practice.

Lifts, accessibility and people with disabilities

The installation, renovation or commissioning of a lift can be essential to the quality of life of the people living in a building.

The issue becomes even more important when elderly people, people with disabilities or neighbours with serious health problems live in the building.

In these cases, it is advisable to analyse the obligations of the homeowners’ association regarding accessibility and also to examine the possible availability of public grants and subsidies for the installation, renovation or improvement of lifts.

The property management company can play an important role here by informing homeowners, making the necessary enquiries and facilitating, where appropriate, applications for available grants.

Allowing years to pass without addressing an accessibility problem can end up seriously affecting the people who most need a solution.

The president represents the association, but does not own the building

In some homeowners’ associations, a particularly delicate situation arises: the president gradually concentrates decision-making power and, in practice, acts as if the management of the building depended exclusively on him.

The president of a homeowners’ association has an important and necessary role. However, this role must be exercised in accordance with the agreements adopted by the Homeowners’ Meeting, the rights of the homeowners and the responsibilities of the other governing bodies and the property management company.

A homeowners’ association does not belong to its president. It belongs to all the homeowners.

Participation, information, transparency and the appropriate renewal of positions can help prevent unnecessary conflicts and confrontations.

Articles of association and internal regulations: the great unknowns

Many homeowners’ associations do not know whether they have articles of association or internal regulations. Some homeowners only discover that these documents exist when a conflict arises.

However, these documents can be important for understanding certain rules governing the operation of the association, the use of common areas and other matters related to coexistence and internal organisation.

Before starting a dispute over certain community-related problems, it is advisable to check what documentation exists and what the association’s internal rules provide.

What happens with homeowners in arrears?

The existence of homeowners who do not pay their fees or special assessments can cause serious financial problems for a homeowners’ association.

When debts accumulate, it is the homeowners who regularly meet their obligations who ultimately bear the consequences.

For this reason, homeowners’ associations must properly monitor unpaid amounts and take the necessary measures to recover outstanding debts.

However, going directly to court does not always have to be the first option. Depending on the circumstances, negotiation, mediation or another appropriate means of dispute resolution may help find a solution before legal proceedings are initiated.

The property manager plays a fundamental role

The management of a homeowners’ association should not be limited to collecting fees, paying invoices and calling meetings.

A good property manager should provide information, anticipate certain problems, monitor the implementation of adopted agreements, inform homeowners about the association’s obligations and help them make decisions based on sufficient information.

The property manager can also play an important role in identifying grants and subsidies, managing works, recovering unpaid debts and coordinating with the professionals involved in the homeowners’ association.

The relationship between the president, the property manager and the homeowners should be based on cooperation, transparency and a proper definition of each party’s responsibilities.

How can a mediator help in a homeowners’ association conflict?

Not every problem within a homeowners’ association has to end up in court.

On many occasions, before initiating legal proceedings, it is advisable to analyse what is really happening, listen to the people involved, organise the outstanding issues and look for solutions that can restore the proper functioning of the association.

The intervention of a mediator specialising in homeowners’ association conflicts can help improve communication, reduce confrontation, facilitate dialogue between neighbours and seek concrete agreements.

Mediation can also be useful when the conflict involves the president of the association, the property manager, homeowners in arrears, coexistence problems, noise, works, common areas, accessibility or decisions that have remained unresolved for too long.

Preparing and accompanying a homeowner to a particularly complex meeting

There is another, less well-known possibility.

Sometimes a homeowner has to attend a meeting at which particularly sensitive issues are going to be discussed and does not know how to raise them.

They may have been trying for years to find a solution. There may be a conflict with the president or with other homeowners. They may not have sufficient information about the accounts. Or perhaps important decisions are going to be made regarding works, special assessments, lifts, accessibility or unpaid debts.

In these situations, preparing for the meeting in advance and receiving professional support can be particularly useful.

Analysing the documentation, determining the priority issues, preparing the questions that should be asked and helping to defend the homeowner’s interests in a constructive manner can prevent the meeting from turning into another confrontation without results.

Conflicts in homeowners’ associations should not be allowed to grow

Accounts that are not properly explained.

Approved works that are never carried out.

A lift that does not work.

A debt that nobody claims.

A president who makes decisions without sufficiently taking the homeowners into account.

A meeting at which neighbours are no longer able to listen to one another.

These are situations that, if they are not addressed in time, can end up causing years of confrontation, legal proceedings and unnecessary expenses.

In many cases, intervening earlier makes it possible to organise the problems, restore dialogue and seek solutions.

As a lawyer and conflict mediator in Barcelona, I work with conflicts involving homeowners’ associations and problems between neighbours, helping homeowners, presidents and associations analyse the situation and find ways to move forward.

I also offer professional preparation and support services for homeowners who have to face particularly complex Homeowners’ Meetings.

If you have a conflict in your homeowners’ association, if there are problems that have remained unresolved for too long or if you need to prepare your participation in a particularly difficult meeting, you can contact me to analyse your situation and consider the possible courses of action.

 

Daniel Sererols Villalón
Lawyer and conflict mediator in Barcelona
Tel. 661.463.306
daniel@mediadorconflictos.com