Money from Developer

Question for everyone. Has anyone tried and had some success obtaining money from the Developer for a project after the subdivision is complete? Our subdivision is two phases and just completed, originally when I bought two years ago there was talk and some people say they was written material about placing a sidewalk around our pond. No one can produce any documents or drawings advertising a sidewalk and our developer said it wasn't wide enough to put one in.

Fast forward two years to now, I have gotten quotes from three different companies who say it is possible to put a sidewalk around the pond, they will have to relocate a couple of trees to get it done. We don't have the money in our reserve or budget for it, and I don't want to handicap the association's future by trying to phase it in. I am going to present it to the homeowners at our annual meeting to see what interest their is in having a special assessment to get it done. It would cost about $200 a home, and I am going to propose the association taking out a 3-4 year loan and the assessment being spread out over that time frame.

I would also like to approach the developer and ask for his financial contribution of some kind. Are there any suggestions for an approach that is more likely to gain results, any success stories out there?

BradP,

I'd recommend you write a letter to the Developer, attach a community petition to show support, and any documentation which could substantiate the residents expectation of a sidewalk. Lisa is correct, it does not hurt to ask.

FYI, often there are settlements reached btwn an HOA and Developer so the Developer can make good on deficiencies and sub-par construction. These settlements can be reached after the HOA hires an engineering firm to perform a Transition Engineering Study, and Capital Reserve Analysis (T.E.S.C.R.A.). Your lack of a sidewalk MAY be a deficiency, I doubt it but you never know. Do you have a copy of the original site plans showing the sidewalk around the pool? If a change eliminated the sidewalk mid construction, why was it changed? Site plans should be on file with your borough code department or engineering office. Of course this is all hypothetical.

In the course of our study, my HOA and COA have uncovered various deficiencies that could cost upwards of hundreds of thousands to remedy. As well, our Capital Reserves were not adequately forecasted according to our analysis. This has resulted in our bumping up monthly maintenance and re-allocating funds within our budget to adequately fund reserves.

GeraldT1