run-covenant-and-collections-workflow

name

run-covenant-and-collections-workflow

description

Process a covenant violation, an architectural-review request, or a delinquent-assessment account by traversing the community-association decision tree (find the governing-document authority → for a violation: notice → cure period → hearing → fine/remedy, applied evenly and documented; for ARC: application vs the design guidelines → decision → record; for collections: reminder → late fee → demand notice → lien-referral / escalation-to-counsel gate), then return the processed decision, the due-process trail, and the escalation point. Reach for this when the user asks 'process this covenant violation', 'review this architectural change request', 'work our delinquency list', 'can we fine / lien this owner?', or 'what's our collections sequence?'. Even-handed, documented process is the whole point; lien/foreclosure mechanics route to counsel. Used by community-operations-specialist (primary) and association-management-lead (policy).

Skill: run-covenant-and-collections-workflow

Invoked by: community-operations-specialist (primary — processing violations, ARC requests, and delinquency) and association-management-lead (setting the enforcement and collections policy the specialist runs).

When to invoke: "process this covenant violation"; "review this architectural-change (ARC) request"; "work our delinquency / collections list"; "can we fine this owner?"; "when do we lien a delinquent account?"; "write our enforcement / collections policy"; any "how do we enforce or collect" question.

Output: the processed decision (violation outcome, ARC approval/denial, or collections step) + the even-handed due-process trail documented for the file + the escalation-to-counsel point + the 1-2 conditions that change it. Even-handed, documented process is the whole point.

Procedure

1. Find the authority in the governing documents — you enforce what they grant. For any enforcement or collection step, locate the CC&R / bylaw provision (and the state act) that authorizes it: the covenant being enforced, the fine schedule and the required hearing, the ARC's design-review authority, the late-fee amount, and the assessment-lien right. Traverse the enforcement/collections branches in ../../knowledge/hoa-community-association-decision-tree.md. No documented authority → no enforcement.
2. Enforce evenly — selective enforcement is the trap. Whatever the process, apply it the same way to every owner. A covenant enforced against one owner but not the neighbor, or a fine levied without the required hearing, is how associations lose in court (and can waive the covenant). Consistency and documentation are the shield, not an option.
3. Run the violation sequence — notice → cure → hearing → fine/remedy — and document each step.
   • Notice: a written violation notice identifying the covenant, the specific violation, and the cure period.
   • Cure period: the owner's opportunity to fix it; log whether they did.
   • Hearing: if unresolved, the owner's opportunity to be heard before the board (due process — often required before a fine).
   • Fine / remedy: the fine per the schedule, self-help/abatement where authorized, or (for serious/continuing violations) referral to counsel. Record the evidence (photos, dates, correspondence) at every step.
4. Process an architectural-review (ARC) request against the published guidelines. Log the application, measure it against the design guidelines/standards, apply the decision within any required timeframe (an un-acted request can be deemed approved in some regimes — watch the clock), and record the decision with its rationale. Approve/deny consistently — an arbitrary or undocumented ARC denial is a lawsuit magnet.
5. Work the delinquency list by the collections sequence — evenly, to the escalation gate. Apply the board's collections policy step by step to every delinquent account: payment reminder → late fee (per the schedule) → demand/intent-to-lien notice → the lien-referral / escalation-to-counsel gate. Age the receivables, apply payments per the governing-document/statutory payment-application order (often oldest-first — verify), and stop at the legal line: recording a lien, foreclosing, and the fair-housing / FDCPA / state-collection rules are counsel's terrain, not yours to advise as legal steps.
6. Escalate the policy and legal calls — don't improvise them. A borderline enforcement decision, a request to waive a covenant, or a decision whether to lien/foreclose is a board/lead policy call; the lien/foreclosure mechanics and any statute question are counsel's. Process the workflow; route the decision.
7. State the change conditions — the 1-2 facts that change the outcome (e.g., "if the covenant hasn't been enforced against others, enforcing it now risks a selective-enforcement / waiver defense — flag to counsel"; "if the account crosses the lien threshold, it leaves the workflow for counsel").

Worked example

User: "A homeowner built a shed without ARC approval and is also 90 days behind on assessments. Process both."

• Authority: the CC&Rs require ARC approval for outbuildings and set a fine schedule with a hearing; the declaration grants a late fee and an assessment lien after 90 days — cite both.
• Violation (shed): issue the notice (unapproved structure, cite the covenant, give a cure period to submit an ARC application or remove it) → if uncured, offer the hearing → then the fine/remedy per the schedule. Document photos and dates. Check first: have other unapproved sheds been let slide? If so, flag the selective-enforcement risk to counsel before fining.
• ARC path: if the owner applies retroactively, measure the shed against the design guidelines and decide consistently with prior shed decisions; record the rationale.
• Delinquency (90 days): apply the sequence already run — reminder, late fee, demand/intent-to-lien notice — and note the account is at the lien-referral gate. Recording the lien and any foreclosure is counsel's step; route it with the aging and the notice trail.
• Change condition: if the owner cures the assessment balance, the account leaves the collections track; the ARC/violation matter continues on its own process.

Guardrails

• Enforce and collect evenly — selective enforcement (or a fine without the required hearing) can waive the covenant and lose in court; consistency is the whole protection.
• Find the governing-document / statutory authority for every step — the covenant, the fine schedule + hearing, the late fee, the lien right. No authority → no step.
• Document the due-process trail — notice, cure period, hearing opportunity, decision, evidence — a violation or ARC decision that isn't in the file barely happened.
• Watch the ARC clock — an un-acted architectural request can be deemed approved in some regimes; decide within the timeframe.
• Stop at the legal line — recording a lien, foreclosure, and the fair-housing / FDCPA / state-collection rules are counsel's; process the workflow, route the legal decision. This is not legal advice.
• The enforcement/collections policy is the association-management-lead's call; running it evenly is the community-operations-specialist's — keep the seam clean.
• Volatile specifics (fine/hearing requirements, ARC deemed-approval timeframes, lien priority & procedure, payment-application order, FDCPA/fair-housing/state-collection rules) are jurisdiction-specific — carry a retrieval date, verify at use, and route to counsel. See ../../knowledge/hoa-community-association-patterns-2026.md.