Re: property lien (south carolina)
sterling wrote:The clowns that oversee my homeowners association sited me $60.00 for a parking fine yet I didn't know this until I was served with a certified letter today that had taken the $60.00 fine up to $342.37 due to attorney fees because they placed a lien on my home. They claim to have notified me 4 times prior but could not provide me any copies of such notification.
Where do I stand on this? I was told by the paralegal for the attorney to send in a written letter of my dispute. If you have any helpful information, Please HELP!!
First, check the condo association's by-laws to see if the amount of the fine is specified and the procedures for notifying owners of unpaid fines. If the association is required to notify owners in writing, then demand to see copies of the notices (often, in these kinds of cases, a written notification is slipped under the door or dropped in a mail slot or even sent by e-mail rather than sent by regular mail). If the association cannot substantiate that it notified you of the fine, then you could probably contest both the fine and the lien.
Unfortunately, the cost of contesting the fine and the lien would most likely exceed the cost of the fine and the lien. And as long as there's a lien on your title, you won't be able to sell or refinance your unit. It might be easier to pay up now, run for the association board in the next election on the "Actual Notice" party platform, and then pass a resolution reimbursing owners like yourself who failed to get proper notice of fines.
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