HOA Battle

[tifjohnson]

What is the name of your state? North Carolina

THere is apparently a blockage of some sort in the sewer line leaving my Townhome. Since this is a Townhome, and I don't technically own the property where the blockage is, and I still responsible to have it repaired, or shoudl this be done by the Home Owners' Association, or is this typically a city sewer thing? My property boundary is only about 5 feet beyond my structure, and the community owns the rest. The blockage is somewhere beyond that and I am told by the plumber that my HOA may have to fix it, but that the city could also be responsible. How does this work in a townhome community, and who do I call to find out? I have already incurred a lot of cost in a plumber, and really don't want to pay for my driveway to be torn up, pipe repaired and holes all refilled and paved, if I don't have to. The plumber seems to think it may be a tree root that has grown through the pipe.

 

[seniorjudge]

Ask the HOA to clean it up; you didn't cause it and it's on their property (or maybe on the city's property).

 

[HomeGuru]

I agree. Also read your CC&R's.

 

[tifjohnson]

The CC&R's don't address this situation, unfortunately. They address the fact that they have set backs and right of ways and that there are common areas. The confusing thing is that my townhome community is one of about 15 different communities in one big large community. So, there are CC&R's for the country club/golf community and there are also CC&R's for my smaller section/community. I personally don't have anything other than info on the county GIS map to tell me who owns what. When I mentioned my problem to the HOA president, he immediately made a comment about the previous owner maybe putting some kind of construction debris down the drain and now it has resulted in a blockage. He would never directly answer my questions of who's responsibility it would be to do repairs, if it were under my driveway (owned by the HOA). If there is some kind of blockage and it is not on my property, but the HOA's, can they try to throw it back on me if there is a blockage that came from inside the unit?