Fw: Community Updates 4-22-16 - Merchant

Hey Neighbors,

As you can see from the email below we have a couple of meetings coming up.  The first is our next Condo HOA meeting on Monday at 7pm.   I will get more into the agenda in second so you all know what I may be asking for at the meeting and could use your support on.  The second is we are finally going to be able to get a better understanding of how our budget works at a workshop.  That will be on May 9th.

For the HOA meeting several items I had to request twice to be included so appear on the agenda and one was not added.  The one not included was the separation of the HOA.  I found out after she did the agenda that she put that into the workshop discussion.  As I just emailed her while I get the separation of the HOA can be discussed at the workshop it should have been on the HOA agenda as well and have asked her to amend the agenda to add it.  We shall see if that gets done or not.  For those that care about this matter it may be good to send her an email asking about this subject matter and requesting it be added to the agenda.

I wanted to get all your feed back on some items.  I want to create a couple of sub committee made of homeowners.  The first is people have expressed interest in use some of the common spaces for community gardens so I am thinking we should create a committee to explore this and possibly create a policy on how it would work.  So if you are interested in serving on this please let me know.  Ideally I would like to have at least one person who would not do the community gardening to make sure that anything that may be done takes that opinion into consideration.  So if that fits you please let me know that as well.  

Second would be more for Merchant owners and that is how do we want to use the community room on the ground floor.  Originally Natalie proposed that she wanted to come up with options but I think the owners should be part of the discussion from day one on this with help and input from Natalie.  Then present this to group for approval.  So I will be asking to have a group created to look at this as well.  If you are interested in serving on this group please let me know or come to the meeting and speak up.

Third and this one may be able to role into item second item above, is several people have asked me about how they can reserve the roof top or community room for a get together.  I think we should create a policy and procedure on how this can work.  I want to avoid an future conflicts where multiple people have a roof top get together so have a reserve the space policy that allows for the occasional  party while respecting the rest of those in the building would be good. 

Finally just as an FYI several items request may not appear to be on the agenda, such as Pest Control issues and schedule of completion of our building, but Natallie will be including as part of other items so they will get disccused. 

Hope to see you on Monday and if you can't make it but are willing to serve on a committee please let me know.

Jason

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From: natalie.valdez-smith@fsresidential.com <natalie.valdez-smith@fsresidential.com>
Sent: Friday, April 22, 2016 7:25 PM
To: jasonlfried@hotmail.com
Subject: Community Updates 4-22-16 - Merchant

 

Condominiums at the Shipyard C/O FirstService Residential, California - San Francisco 50 California Street Suite #3550 San Francisco, CA 94111-4620 Ph: 877-391-3955 Fax: 415-391-1344

 

April 22, 2016

JASON FRIED
451 DONAHUE ST # 411
San Francisco CA 94124

 

RE: Community Updates 4-22-16 - Merchant

451 DONAHUE ST # 411 / Customer ID #: COSHIP-0046-01

 

Dear JASON FRIED:

 

Board of Directors Election Results

The election held for The Condominiums at the Shipyard Owners Association on April 14, 2016 resulted in the election of the following Directors:  Caroline Cooper (Merchant) and Jason Fried (Merchant).  Caroline and Jason join the developer Board members Randi Gerson, Sean Sullivan and Anthony Sangervasi.  Congratulations Caroline and Jason and thank you very much for your interest and dedication to The Condominiums at the Shipyard community.

 

Upcoming Board Meeting

The next board meeting for The Condominiums at the Shipyard will be held on Monday, April 25^th at 7pm.  The agenda is attached here for your review.

 

Garage Cleaning

Deep cleaning in the garage is schedule on May 5^th and May 6^th.    Please remove your car from the garage on these dates between the hours of 8:30am and 3:30pm.  All personal property stored in the open areas of the garage must be removed.  During this time, access through the common areas to the building may be restricted.  Please let me know if you have any questions.

 

Save the Date:  Shipyard Budget Workshop will be held in the Welcome Center on Monday, May 9^th at 7pm.  More details will follow soon. 

 

Sincerely,

Natalie Valdez-Smith (CM)
Regional Director

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Thank You and your suggestions are welcome

First I wanted to thank you for your support in my election to the HOA board.  Natalie will be sending around official results soon.

I have already sent Natalie a request to add several items to the next HOA meeting, see list below.  These are in no particular order but if I missed something please let me know in the next few days so I can try to get it on the agenda.  Please keep in mind these are issue for the HOA and not issue you are having with Lennar.

I will be using the old google doc to help me keep track of matters to bring up at HOA meetings.  I have added some tabs so that Thayer folks can track there items.  Merchant group we need to clean up our list as some items I think have been completed and finished.  Thayer group I have it set up for one tab but you have 2 current building open and 2 more under the Thayer name to open so let me know your thoughts on being all together or as separate tabs for each building.  

For those new and as a reminder to those who have been around for a while this list and information is not to be shared with Lennar, First Service or anybody who else who contact info is not listed in the document.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1GQAaZU5oYm0fSMkSrQg0xODGwH89uTt8y6F7ed82ljQ/edit?ts=568ca4d4#gid=0

Finally don't forget our next meeting is Monday April 25th at 7pm.  I am guessing it will be at the welcome center but not sure on that.

Jason Fried

#411 and your HOA Board Member (thank you again for that).

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1. The creation of a community garden policy.

2. Pest Management plan.

3. Start a process to review if Solar on our roofs is a viable option.

4. Merchant Community Room usage and plans for future.

5. Policy for reserving either roof top deck or community room

6. Building Maintenance and Cleaning 

7. Schedule of construction on the buildings, when should we expect completion and what is left.  

8. 2nd bike spots per unit.  Current HOA rules only allow for one.  

9. Understanding of the HOA budget and what we are being charged for.  Also what is the process as new building are added to how the HOA budget gets approved and how are people informed about increases or decreases. 

10.  Additional Meeting of the HOA.  (Given all these issues it may bee needed to meet more then once a quarter.)

11. A discussion about the separation of the HOA so that each building has it own separate HOA then all building would fall under the Master HOA .

Lennar response to homeowner concerns

Group,

I'm writing because I wanted to share the response I got from Sean Sullivan regarding some of my concerns about the information I received during the sales process. My concerns were essentially:

1. We were not educated or properly notified by the sales team about the HOA dues increase.

2. We were all told we would be in an HOA that consisted of Merchant alone, not all of the condominiums (but also in a master HOA).

3. We were told we would get Bosch washer/dryers.

4. We were told we could not use lenders outside of their preferred lenders (but many of you more savvy than I disregarded - kudos to you all).

5. The anti-speculation agreement was a sham.

He responded with lawyers (in red):

Hi Sean,  

 

Thanks again for the email you sent last week. The content did not allow for me to respond personally, below is from corporate counsel.

    

 

Mr. LaRrett,

 

This is in response to your email regarding various issues and problems you claim to have suffered in connection with your purchase of your Unit from our client, HPS1 Block 51, LLC. We will respond to your issues in the order presented in your email.  We are sorry that you may not have understood what you were buying, however, as you will see below, we make every effort to ensure that our buyers are well informed before they decide to purchase a home within the community. 

 

1. You state that you were not informed of the phasing of the community and that the increase in the homeowner assessments upon annexation of an additional phase was a surprise.  It should be noted, that the Final Subdivision Public Report for Phase 1, covering your Unit, as well as the HOA Budgets, and the Disclosure Statement clearly describe the community as phased, as do the CC&R's.  Also, the amount of the assessments for the first phase, as well as the assessments at build out, are set forth in the Budgets and the Final Subdivision Public Report.  The CC&R's provide that the assessments will change each time a new phase is annexed into the community upon the first closing of a unit in that phase.  More importantly, prior to your signing of the Purchase Agreement and Joint Escrow Instructions ("PSA"), you were provided with copies of the documents referenced above for your review.    

 

2. You state that you were told that only your building would be in its own separate homeowners association.  Again, the CC&R's for The Condominiums At The Shipyard, the Final Subdivision Public Report for your phase, the Budgets and the Disclosure Statement all outline that the community and the two homeowners associations would include many phases and many other buildings. 

 

3. Regarding the washer and dryer, it is true that the seller had intended to install the Bosch brand, however, Bosch had discontinued the specific models that would have fit the requirements of the space within the units and alternative appliances had to be installed.  As stated in the PSA, seller has the right to make changes, alterations and substitutions in the home as it deems appropriate or necessary.

 

4. Regarding the option to use "preferred" lenders, it is the seller's right to require buyers to submit a loan application to a lender selected by seller, in order for seller to obtain a timely evaluation of buyer's ability to obtain a loan and close the purchase transaction, however, there is no requirement that buyers use that "preferred" lender or any of the preferred lenders for the community.  Preferred lenders are selected by the seller so that the lenders can perform the project approval process of the community so that the buyer's qualifications are the only criteria necessary to make a loan.  As provided in paragraph 3 of the PSA:

 

"BUYER may make application to Universal American Mortgage Company of California ("UAMC") or any lender of BUYER'S choice.  Regardless of lender selected by BUYER, SELLER requires BUYER to submit to UAMC, an affiliate of SELLER, for its own purposes, a preliminary assessment of BUYER'S ability to qualify for a mortgage loan to purchase the Property, such information and authorizations requested by UAMC to perform the preliminary qualification assessment.  BUYER is not obligated to use UAMC to obtain a loan to purchase the Property.  If BUYER chooses to obtain financing through a lender other than UAMC, BUYER agrees to provide SELLER with the name, address and phone number of such lender, the loan officer and loan processor, all within the same five (5) day period."  

 

5. Regarding the termination of the use of the "Anti-Speculation Addendum" that was part of your purchase documents, the seller had the right to impose such a condition and it also had the right to terminate the rights of the seller to prevent buyers from competing with sellers sales activities.   

 

Per discussions with the sales staff, the sales staff has a very clear understanding of the community and the project documents.  We do not believe that any misrepresentations were made by the seller or its sales staff.  The issues you raise and are concerned about were well delineated in the project documents outlined above and that you were given in connection with your home purchase.  The Final Subdivision Public Report for your phase of The Condominiums issued by the California Bureau of Real Estate ("BRE), was reviewed and approved by the BRE as providing information about all material facts regarding the structure of the community, the sales documents, and the finances of the homeowners association that you would become a member of, so that you could make an informed decision regarding the purchase of your home. 

 

  

If you have any further questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me.  

 

Regards,

 

Sean Sullivan 
Sales Director

One Sansome Street, Suite 3200
San Francisco, CA 94104

 

Office Phone: 415-344-8844
Mobile Phone: 415-439-3375

 

This e-mail is intended only for the use of the person to whom it is addressed and contains information which may be confidential or priviledged. If you are not the person to whom this email is addressed, or an agent authorized by such person to receive this email, you are hereby notified that any examination, copying, distribution, or other unauthorized use of this e-mail is prohibited. If you receive this e-mail in error, please notify me immediately at the e-mail address referenced above.

I have come to the conclusion that in order to make any progress on these issues we need to consult lawyers of our own. For what it's worth I called up our sales person (having since left Lennar due to, among other things, "ethical concerns") and she was shocked about the HOA dues increase and phasing increases to come, which makes the assertion that the sales staff "has a very clear understanding of the community and the project documents" laughable. For the record, I do not hold her accountable, but her superiors.

It's not all doom and gloom - I still like where we live and the community we are forming but I feel that Lennar will absolutely not budge on this unless we take up counsel of our own. I feel that we all really were misrepresented about the HOA dues and that Lennar should be responsible. And I do not appreciate Mr. Sullivan responding in no other way than to put Lennar's lawyers on me and my wife.

Thanks to anyone who read this far!

Sean LaRrett and Jewel Robinson (Merchant 510)

seanlarrett@me.com

415.572.7326

Up for sharing internet?

Hi Merchant neighbors!

I recently came across a company called Tsunami Blu which is basically "AirBNB for wifi." (disclosure- my friend just started this company) Their service allows you to share your wifi signal with your neighbors and effectively cut your internet bill in at least half.  Ping me back if you are interested in testing out our router.   If there are multiple units interested, I can help coordinate getting a few routers set up.

Have a great week!

Heather Watkins

#318

Taxes Update

Hey Gang,

Wanted to update you all on the tax question I have raised with them.  I got the below email with some follow ups.  I did not include the attachment mentioned since it has personal info.  The top of the pages involved has a logo on it with a bird holding what looks like wheat on it.  The logo also has "First Service" above the bird.  If you can not find in all the documents stop by and I can show you what they look like.

So in all the closing documents you have something that may be close enough to use and my tax person is going to use it if I don't get anything else.  The one thing I heard from somebody at Olympia 

 

Heads up: Many may already know this, but for those that don't; you can only take CFD#8 as a deduction. Not CFD#7.

CFD#8 is for maintenance which is deducible according to IRS rules. 
CFD#7 is for infrastructure and improvements and cannot be deducted

Double check this with your tax person.

Should I get more I will let you know.

Jason

3411

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From: Sheryl McKibben <Sheryl.McKibben@Lennar.com>
Sent: Wednesday, April 6, 2016 5:35 PM
To: Jason
Subject: Re: Follow-Up and Follow-Through

 

Hi Jason,

I completely understand.  I will check with my CFO,  and the Title Company.  I promise, I'm doing the best I can to get your answers.   I will be back in touch.

All the best,

Sheryl

Sheryl McKibben

Chief Marketing Officer

Sheryl.McKibben@Lennar.com

www.lennar.com 

One Sansome Street, Suite 3200 
San Francisco,  CA  94104

Office Phone: 415-247-2930

This email is intended only for the use of the person to whom it is addressed and contains information which may be confidential or privileged.  If you are not the person to whom this e-mail is addressed, or an agent authorized by such person to receive this e-mail, you are hereby notified that any examination, copying, distribution or other unauthorized use of this e-mail is prohibited.  If you received this e-mail in error, please notify me immediately at the e-mail address referenced above.

From: Jason <jasonlfried@hotmail.com>
Date: Wednesday, April 6, 2016 at 2:26 PM
To: Sheryl McKibben <sheryl.mckibben@lennar.com>
Subject: Re: Follow-Up and Follow-Through

Sheryl,

Thank you for this.  I understanding that during the process we sign documents, one session alone I signed over 200 pages of documents.  The problem as you noted is that this process lasted over a year and the document I have and you resent is for FY 2014/2015 which to me means from July 1, 2014 through June 20, 2015.  I am looking for information for when I closed which did not happen till the end of November 2015 so that does not necessary mean the number in the document you sent are exactly correct and the last thing I want to do is present numbers to the IRS that are not exactly correct.  The other concern I have is on page 4 of what you sent it states that a couple of the line items are estimates.  Once again the IRS like exact numbers and not estimates.

Now when I closed as part of escrow there was an exact amount that was listed but it did not have the breakdown of each line item that makes up my total property tax.  So since somebody, I am guess on the Lennar team, did that is it possible for you to send me that breakdown so I have current year non estimates amounts?

Jason Fried

Merchant #411

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From: Sheryl McKibben <Sheryl.McKibben@Lennar.com>
Sent: Wednesday, April 6, 2016 4:23 PM
To: jasonlfried@hotmail.com
Subject: FW: Follow-Up and Follow-Through

 

Hi Jason,

I would like to ensure you that Kofi does receive every email, and reviews each response.  Hopefully this correspondence will clarify the answer to your question.  

During the sales process, CFDs are discussed as part of the presentation.  All buyers receive a tax disclosure for their individual home purchase and are required to review and sign the tax disclosure reports issued for their respective units.  Additionally, when each buyer sits with their new home consultant to review and sign their purchase agreement, they go through the actual tax report once again, in detail, and sign the report at the time of signing the Purchase Agreement.  Since the escrow for Merchant lasted over a year, we amended the hazard and tax reports to reflect the 2015 tax bill.  As the buyer for unit #411,  you signed a report for 2014 and 2015.  You have your copy with your original purchase agreement.  For your convenience, I have attached a copy.

All the best,

Sheryl

Sheryl McKibben

Chief Marketing Officer

Sheryl.McKibben@Lennar.com

www.lennar.com 

One Sansome Street, Suite 3200 
San Francisco,  CA  94104

Office Phone: 415-247-2930

This email is intended only for the use of the person to whom it is addressed and contains information which may be confidential or privileged.  If you are not the person to whom this e-mail is addressed, or an agent authorized by such person to receive this e-mail, you are hereby notified that any examination, copying, distribution or other unauthorized use of this e-mail is prohibited.  If you received this e-mail in error, please notify me immediately at the e-mail address referenced above.