Seniors at a Sunrise community were furious Wednesday after learning their homeowners association approved a special assessment fee despite overwhelming opposition.
Sunrise Lakes Phase II — a 55 and older community in the heart of Sunrise — is at a crossroads and in crisis. The HOA board held a special assessment meeting Wednesday before a packed crowd of residents who say they’re feeling the financial strain.
"Where is all this money going to?… They mismanaged the books," resident Paul Rabyne said. "Where's all this money been going to?"
"We're not uncaring. We just don't have any choice anymore," said Patricia Khurshid, and HOA board president. "They didn't do it for so many years. And now the law says if you don't do it, you know, we're going to take it away from you.
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Over the past year, residents have faced multiple assessments, paying hundreds of dollars from fixes to the elevators to overdue bills.
“Fifty-five and older community. And the majority of the owners here ... they don't have the financial need able to pay for this additional special assessment that they're adding," said Aracelis Rivera Cohen, a relative of a resident.
While residents struggle with the financial burden, the HOA board said it inherited a legacy of mismanagement.
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“The roofs were never fixed in a timely manner from previous boards that were supposed to do it … If we don't pay for the roofs, we wind up in the same thing," Khurshid said. "The insurance company will not cover. We won't have anything.”
Khurshid said insurance costs went up because past boards didn’t fix the roofs, meaning they not only need to issue a new round of assessments to cover insurance but for the costs of actually doing the work.
While there’s money in the reserves for some of the roof, she said the insurance company gave them a deadline -- so they need the next round of payments in the next few months.
The company gave us a deadline, that if these roofs are not fixed by June 2024, they will not renew us," Khurshid said.
However -- in Wednesday’s meeting -- the new charges for insurance were approved but the assessments for roof costs were not, which Khurshid said puts them at odds with the insurance company and roofing contractor.
“I mean, the ideal solution would be, OK, we need to pay the special assessment but maybe spread it out for a longer term … I don't think there is a really simple answer to that," Cohen said.
But motions to do that didn’t pass board votes, hence, the crossroads the community faces.
“There's a lot of people here who are on fixed incomes. They can't afford this," Rabyne said. "I'm fortunate I got a space coast credit union. I got a $5,000 credit limit. But how long is that going to cover things?"
