Some pay records of employees not subject to HOA disclosure

Q: If an association (HOA) utilizes the services of a Professional Management Company (PMC) and the employees who are used to manage the HOA are defined in the contract between the parties as “Dedicated Part-Time Employee(s)” and “Dedicated Full-Time Employee(s)”, and are paid directly by the PMC, can the PMC refuse to release hours and earnings records pursuant to NRS 116.31175 on the basis that they are not paid directly by the association?

I would hope this is a question that has been settled/adjudicated. If PMCs can legitimately decline to disclose this type of information on those grounds, it would render this part of the statute toothless given the relatively small number of self-managed HOAs there are in the Las Vegas Valley. I look forward to being edified.

A: NRS 116.31175 (4a) states that associations must provide the number of hours worked, salaries and benefits of the associations’ employees.

If employees at your association work under the federal employee number, i.e. tax number, of the management company, regardless of the wording in the contract, these employees would be those of the management company. The management company would not have to disclose the salaries and benefits of each individual employee.

What you would be able to request and would also be in your association’s budget is a lump sum under the category, employees. Some management companies will break out this number so the homeowner would find more detailed information.

Q: My community manager states I cannot receive copies of all accounts payable invoices because it may contain homeowner information. They kindly offered to charge a research fee to ensure no homeowner information is present. I don’t understand how a homeowner could be paid through accounts payable and still be private — that is, it is an expense paid by the HOA and should be part of the “Books, Records, and Other Papers” described in NRS 116 116.31175.

My concern is I suspect the board has approved inappropriate expenses. For example, using the HOA landscape contractor to work on a homeowner’s property without board action to assess that owner the cost.

A: Under NRS 116.31175 section 4b, the provisions requiring associations to provide records do not apply to records relating to another unit’s owner, consequently you are not entitled to obtain them.

Barbara Holland, CPM, CMCA, AMS, is an author, educator and expert witness on real estate issues pertaining to management and brokerage. Questions may be sent to holland744o@gmail.com.