Comments from friends and neighbors in Oak Hills:
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"Ken and I support the 5-year proposal for homeowner assessments. We will vote in favor of the ballot measure when voting opens on August 8th. The 650 homeowner families in Oaks Hills vary widely in their perspectives in how HOA financial arrangements best serve our community. We appreciate the Board's proposal; it allows homeowners to actively participate in decision-making."
​-Jane and Ken Gravel

"Over 30 years ago we moved from Spokane to Beaverton.  We had to find a house to rent that would suit our family of 2 little girls and a newborn little girl.  We found a house to rent in Oak Hills which was outside our means, but it seemed perfect for our family who was making a huge change with a newborn.  We have never looked back since.  We have owned 3 houses in Oak Hills and each one had its own unique features.  Our current house #3 we have been in for 20 years and have no plans to move anytime soon.  We raised our 3 girls in Oak Hills.  They grew up being on swim team, playing soccer on the greenbelt fields, playing at the rec center, taking tennis lessons, and attending the Oak Hills School. Rarely did we miss the Fourth of July activities and almost always participated in the parade.  Watching Washington County’s largest display of fireworks year after year was always a highlight.  Our girls loved growing up in Oak Hills and now each of them is raising their families in Oak Hills.  Oak Hills is a community that you can’t find anything even close to with all the amenities that it has to offer. We have found that the value of living in this community is well worth the amount we pay in HOA fees each year.  We whole heartedly support the proposal by the HOA Board to incrementally increase our annual assessment by a nominal amount, rather than a much larger amount every few years."   
 -Dawn and Gary Peront

"As long time residents of Oak Hills, we would like to express our support of the annual homeowners dues increase proposed by the board. We look forward to being able to support Oak Hills by maintaining and improving our beloved community!"
-Jenn Gabriel and Family

"We love and appreciate our community but choose to vote no because we oppose the way the funds will be raised."
-Tony and Sharon Ivanov

"I support the fees increase as proposed by the OHHA board. Dues revenue pay for service and maintenance. If dues were assessed in line with property values  on equal terms a $200,000 house bought in 1994  is worth over $600,000 today would equal dues in 1994 of $500.00 per year to more than $1500.00 today…......We still will have a really good deal!!"
-Tom Brewer 

THE BOARD IS PROPOSING A CHANGE...AND HERE IS WHY

​The Board is proposing to change homeowner assessments from a large increase every 3-5 years, to a much smaller incremental increase every year.

Homeowner Summary

The purpose of this proposal is to increase our annual assessment in line with the increase in our expenses. Inflation increases our expenses every year. Our revenue increases every 3-5 years, which causes all kinds of problems. Knowing the scheduled increase for the coming years will make planning much easier for both the homeowners and the HOA. This plan is not permanent; the schedule is for 5 years. At the end of 5 years, the homeowners will have the opportunity to extend a similar schedule or vote to revert back to the “cliff adjustments.”

Discussion

I have now been the treasurer of Oak Hills for 2+ years. I addressed a number of issues immediately, which have largely been resolved. We have changed our property manager and completely changed our accounting system to make our financial reporting much easier to understand. One big issue needs to be addressed to assure the HOA is on a sound and manageable financial path. 

Smaller Annual Adjustments Versus Large Cliff Adjustments 

Traditionally our assessments have been managed and implemented on what I would call a “cliff basis.”  Our assessment remained at a constant level, while our expenses increased every year. The increase in those expenses was almost solely because of inflation. We would have an assessment increase and then for the next 3-5 years we would have no increase in assessments, while inflation increased our expenses. In the HOA world that disparate revenue/expense stream causes a plethora of problems. Last year, on July 28 (I follow this very closely,) I called the then HOA president and told him we were out of cash dedicated for paying our monthly bills and would only be able to pay bills in August and September by using monies that we held in reserve. It was not a pleasant call.

To address this problem of expenses increasing annually, while revenues increase only every 3-5 years, there are only 2 options. The first is to control the increase of expenses. I can assure you that every attempt is made to rigorously examine expenses.  But the truth is that 75% - 80% of our expenses are utilities and related expenses. We have very little control over these costs. The second option is to manage the revenue stream. The most direct approach is to have small revenue increases annually rather than a large increase every 3-5 years, and to target that increase to align with the increase in our expenses. 

15 years Of Experience To Draw Upon

In 2006, the annual assessment for an Oak Hills homeowner was increased by $25 to $425. If we had invoked an annual increase of 3% for every year after 2006, the assessment for our fiscal 2021, 15 years later would be $662.  Our actual assessment is $670.  We would be exactly where we are now and have avoided all of the problems associated with passing an assessment increase every 3-5 years. 
There is a very short time frame to replace the cliff adjustment with smaller annual increases. It must be done within one to two years after the last cliff adjustment. If it is not initiated in this time frame, expenses will have increased and we will not be able to catch up without another cliff increase.  We are now within the time frame to initiate the change to a smaller annual increase and avoid the larger cliff increase we have always used.     

Sunset Clause

Last year a proposal was put forward to give the Board the authority, without need for a homeowner vote, to increase the annual assessment in any given year by no more than 3%.  A 75% favorable vote was required to pass that proposal. We had 65% voting in favor and were about 50 votes short. Several homeowner comments indicated hesitance to give the Board that authority in perpetuity. This new proposal has been structured so the Board has no authority to invoke any assessment increase. It specifies a schedule of increases for the next 5 years and then sunsets. In 5 years, homeowners will have the opportunity to vote on another schedule or simply revert back to the cliff adjustments. This proposal continues to leave the power of the purse where it belongs, in the hands of homeowners. 

Conclusion

It becomes all but impossible to effectively address our responsibilities without stable, predictable financial resources. This proposal is straightforward and simple, I would call it elegant (in a financial structure sense) and I am encouraging all homeowners to vote in favor.  

The ballot proposal will require a yes or no vote, and reads:

Shall the annual homeowner assessment be increased over 5 years by using an annual incremental increase of $5.00 for 2021, and then an increase of $25.00 per year for each of the next four years?

The increase will be effective immediately upon being passed with the first increase due November 15, 2021, and each November 15, through 2025.

Assessment Increase Schedule
November 2021 assessment - $675 (a $5.00 increase)
November 2022 assessment - $700 (a $25.00 increase)
November 2023 assessment - $725 (a $25.00 increase)
November 2024 assessment - $750 (a $25.00 increase)
November 2025 assessment - $775 (a $25.00 increase)