Kohn-Ell Association Management Services

Kohn-Ell caused the termination of our security system contract instead of allowing it to be transferred to the new owner of our unit.On 12/20/12, we purchased a condo at [redacted] Raleigh, which was under Kohn-Ell's administration. We were told that the association had a contract with [redacted] for monitoring and home security for all the units in the HOA. This required us to have a [redacted] system installed in the condo, which we did on 1/10/13.At the time we were unaware that signing the work order for this installation would result in being locked into a legally binding contract for 5 years - however, as we discovered later, such contract verbiage was included in the fine print of the work order. Effectively we were under contract with [redacted] for a period of 60 months.From Dec 2012 through Oct 2015, we paid Kohn-Ell's HOA dues every month, and Kohn-Ell in turn paid [redacted] directly for the $36.95 monthly monitoring charges.In Aug 2015, we decided to sell our condo, and signed a purchase contract soon thereafter.On 9/16/15, we received a letter from [redacted] of Kohn-Ell, addressed to all members of the [redacted] HOA, the subject being the transition of the security systems from [redacted] over to their new preferred vendor, [redacted] As noted previously, at the time we were unaware that we were under any kind of contract with [redacted] Upon moving out we had planned to simply cancel the [redacted] service, and since Kohn-Ell were paying the monthly bill directly, we began working with them towards that end.On 9/24/15, we contacted [redacted] to begin the cancellation process, and at that time we were informed that we were 28 months into a 60-month contract. To terminate the contract we would need to pay for the remaining 32 months of service.[redacted] of Kohn-Ell also contacted CPI on 10/7/15, and was told this information as well. At this point, Kohn-Ell became aware that a termination of our contract would result in a cancellation fee.[redacted] gave us the option of transferring the existing contract to the new owner of our unit. We contacted her and asked her to take over our [redacted] contract; she agreed to do so.On 10/14/15, the new owner called [redacted] to initiate the transition of the account into her name. There was some confusion regarding the terms of the transfer, so she contacted [redacted] of Kohn-Ell for clarification. At this time, Mr. [redacted] replied to her and, in no uncertain terms, instructed her to discontinue her dealings with [redacted] and instead sign up with his new preferred vendor, [redacted]We closed on the sale of our condo on 10/15/15, and spent the next month operating under the assumption that our [redacted] contract had in fact been transferred.On 11/16/15 we received a notice from [redacted] stating that the account was no longer being paid. We contacted the new owner and were told the aforementioned information that Mr. [redacted] had forced her to sign up with a different service. We thus had no choice but to terminate our [redacted] contract prematurely.[redacted] sent us an invoice for the contract termination fee on 12/16/15, in the amount of $1,001.92. The penalty for early cancellation was $720.53, which we paid in full on 12/31/15.Without Kohn-Ell's interference, our [redacted] contract would have been transferred to the new owner, and she would have kept the [redacted] system and continued paying the monthly premium until the contract was due to expire on 1/8/17. This was our intention, as it would have released us from any financial obligations with [redacted] By deliberately interfering with our contract transition, Kohn-Ell have caused us financial damage, a result of which they were fully aware in advance of their actions.Desired SettlementWe are seeking full reimbursement of the $720.53 that was paid to [redacted] We will not accept any alternative resolution.Business Response The Security agreement between the [redacted] Condominium and [redacted] was entered and ended by the Board of Directors, not Kohn-Ell.Consumer Response Kohn-Ell's response is as insufficient as it is misleading. They are referring to the overarching agreement between the [redacted] HOA and [redacted] Security. This has nothing to do with our complaint.Our complaint is that Kohn-Ell deliberately interfered with the existing contract that we had with [redacted] for our individual unit. After we sold the unit and moved out, [redacted] of Kohn-Ell instructed the new owner of our unit to remove the existing [redacted] system and install a different vendor's system.This action prevented the transfer of the [redacted] contract to the new owner and left us on the hook for its termination.Final Business Response It is unfortunate Mr [redacted] did not read the initiai agreement more closely. Again, the association decided not to include security system expense in the monthly dues. The individual homeowners could very easily continue the security service directly with a vendor of their choice, [redacted] included.

Plumber hired by the HOA cut two large holes in my ceiling and told me to contact the HOA to get them repaired.There was a pipe which burst inside my building. The HOA plumber came out and cut two large holes in my ceiling and told me to contact the HOA about getting them repaired.I have been trying to get in touch with someone on the HOA to repair the bathroom ceiling for two weeks. I haven't received a call back.Desired SettlementI simply want the holes in my ceiling repaired.Business Response [redacted] and our company have spoken and the repair is scheduled for within 10 to 14 days.We hope this will make him happy

Failure to remove disputed chargesIn April of 2006, I moved into a subdivision ([redacted], **). In May of 2006, a supplemental[redacted] HOA disbanded due to lack of participation.On October 10th, 2013, I received a bill from Kohn-Ell relating to HOA for the above-mentioned association dues for years in which the HOA was not even in existence. Furthermore, two individuals attempted to reform the HOA without following the procedures outlined in the subdivision covenants requiring Board Members to be voted on by the members of the association which never occurred, which means the HOA has not officially been re-formed.I sent a certified letter, and emailed a response disputing all the charges and asking for the charges to be removed from my account on November 6th, 2013. [redacted] of Kohn-Ell responded to my email and acknowledged receipt of dispute.Subsequently, I contacted Kohn-Ell several times regarding this matter including Dec 19th, 2013; Dec 30, 2013; Jan 29, 2014; Feb 7, 2013; and again on Jun 25th, 2014. More than 230 days after my original dispute, Kohn-Ell continues to refuse to remove the disputed charges from my account.This is in violation of the Fair Credit Billing Act of 1974, which requires the business to respond within 90 days of a dispute. If a response is not received, the disputed charges need to be removed immediately per the spirit of the FCBA.Desired SettlementI want all the disputed charges, which constitutes all of the bills I have received from Kohn-Ell regarding [redacted] HOA, which would bring my balance to $0.Business Response There is a misunderstanding on [redacted] part. We, Kohn-Ell, is following the direction of the [redacted] HOA Board of to ask the association member for the dues. The Board, not Kohn-Ell, is asking for the money. [redacted] knows this, but refuses to talk to the Board. If [redacted] were to talk to his neighbors and tell them he is not going to pay his fair share of fixing some of the lakes in the association subdivision, and the Board says that [redacted] does not need to pay and directs Kohn-Ell to bring his account to zero, we would gladly do so. Consumer Response What Kohn-Ell is failing to acknowledge, is that they only asked me to contact the HOA after I filed a Revdex.com complaint... well over 200 days after the claimed incident. From the beginning, I have followed their instructions to interact with them, and I have been proactive in reaching out to Kohn-Ell. Each time was followed by an email thanking my correspondance and would get back to me "shortly".Furthermore, I was a board member of the overarching association (different legal entity) for more than five years. I have extensive knowledge of the governing covenants for the applicable associations. If my argument was not valid, they would have filed a lien and tried to forclose. They did not, because they knew I was in the right based on the covenants. To this day, there has been no association meetings for the Lake HOA in over two years (against the covenants), there has never been an election (against the covenants), never has been an approved budget (against the covenants) which has resulted in fraudulent billing based solely on the guidance of Kohn-Ell Management company.Their disregard for the covenents, and unwillingness and misdirection they have provided to homeowners will ultimately lead to a lawsuit. Whether it's this or another HOA, their actions will put their clients in jeopardy.Business Response Below is the timeline regarding this issue. The dispute is over so far as the assocition is concerned since Mr [redacted] did finally ay his debt to the association. Here are our timeline records regarding the dispute.Here is the time line I have regarding this situation with [redacted]: 12/14/2012 Late notice was sent to this property. (Word Document Late Notices)10/10/2013 Demand Letter was sent to the owners of the property ([redacted] & [redacted]) After receiving the demand letter Mr. [redacted] sent in a letter to our office regarding this demand letter. His response is [redacted] to Kohn-Ell-NC Lake [redacted] 11 5 2013. This letter was emailed to you and myself by [redacted] on 11/6/2013 ([redacted]-Response to Oct 10,2013 letter re: [redacted] 11/7/2013 I sent you an email asking for help regarding this since you were the manager from the start of this HOA. (Email: FW: [redacted]-Response to Oct 10,2013 letter re: [redacted]11/11/2013 you sent me an email ask me to send this information over to the Board of Directors for their response since we don't get paid but hourly for this HOA. (Email: RE: [redacted] - [redacted] - Response to Oct 10, 2013 Letter Re: [redacted]) I did that request on 11/11/2013 at 11:08 am. 12/19/2013 I asked you again about this situation cause the Board had not responded to me regarding the 11/11/2013 email (Email: FW: Response to Oct 10, 2013 Letter Regarding [redacted])12/23/2013 sent the email to the BOD again, after that I received a phone call on 12/23/2013 from [redacted] stating that they wanted to move forward from with Lien for the property. ([redacted]-FW: Voicemail from [redacted] ([redacted])Between 12/31/2013 to 1/30/2014 several emails went back and forth between myself, [redacted] and you regarding an email that needed to be sent to Mr. [redacted] regarding the collection process and to have the Board approve the email that we were to send to him. 2/2/2014 is when [redacted] and I reached out to [redacted] regarding this situation and she explained that he had done his part on reaching out to Kohn-Ell and the Board for answer regarding this situation that he explained in his letter. 2/14/2014 ([redacted]) send to the Board for approval to send the letter and never received anything regarding this. 2/24/2014 I sent another email asking the Board to approve the letter (Fw: [redacted])2/28/2014 [redacted] was happy with the letter but stated in the email to proceed with the lien (Email from [redacted] Re: Fw: [redacted]). 3/2/2014 [redacted] sent the email [redacted] explaining this situation regarding this property ([redacted]-Lien)3/4/2014 [redacted] responded to [redacted] regarding this request and explain that he would not be willing to sign the lien (Re: [redacted]-Lien)3/12/2014 [redacted] sent you an email of the explanation that we were going to send to the BOD and you had a couple of questions (FW: [redacted])In July of 2014 Mr. [redacted] sold the home, and the assessment he disputed was paid at the closing, the association collected the amount owed.

Improper and inferior common property management. Lack of resolution to a significant problem causing property damage.In approx. July, 2013, I reported water leaking from my yard and driveway to the plumber contracted through Kohn-Ell. In September, 2013, a massive leak was discovered in my yard and on the adjacent property. According to the plumber, he repaired the leak. I reported continued findings of this leak to the plumber by phone after said repair and to [redacted] of Kohn-Ell. Emails were sent to [redacted] in October and November of 2013 and in Jan. Feb. and March, 2014. I was told that the leak was residual ground water that would eventually go away when the weather became warmer. I was also given the option by [redacted] to PERSONALLY fund a drain to span the perimeter of this entire row of townhomes to remove the groundwater if I thought it was a problem. Water also saturates other yards and leaks from the road in front of this row of townhomes. Kohn-Ell has been made aware and I have emailed several pictures. In June, 2014 (after warmer weather) I reported to [redacted] that we discovered the leak again and that the yard remained very mushy. I explained that I believed the leak was still active. I offered to find vendors to identify any potential issues and I asked her if she thought is was a plumbing issue. She explained to me that she was unsuccessful at finding the leak before. She said she would send the plumber once again and that any additional investigation would have to be personally funded by me. Around June 19, 2014, it was discovered that there was a leak in the irrigation system originating in a common area. Water is draining under several homes, all on [redacted] my yard is soggy, and all of the plants and trees are diseased and/or dying as a result of being water logged for a year. My driveway is eroding at the site of the leak. I have been diligent at keeping up to date with the status of the repairs. The Board has been extremely slow at approving funding for vendors and repairs to relieve this issue. Yesterday (7/28/14) was the first attempt at finding the leak. [redacted] was unsuccessful at identifying the leak which is presumed to have resulted from a breach in a water main that supplies the irrigation system. No water has ever been at the site of the main as it is buried deep in the ground. The water is coming downhill under the properties of [redacted] and the road in front of the homes (as explained to me my [redacted] employees). However, the only method employed to locate the leak was turning on the water source and looking for water at the site of the water main. There as been a leak here for over a year originating from a common area and it is affecting personal property and causing property damage. The process of resolution is extrelemy inferior and has resulted in delays. The methods of finding the problem and repairing it are also inferior.Desired SettlementAppropriate experts and vendors need to be promptly consulted and funded by the HOA to relieve this massive groundwater leak. The Board needs to give general and singular approval for whatever needs to be funded during this dynamic process to get the leak remedied and to preserve the integrity of any and all affected properties. Business Response Contact Name and Title: [redacted]Contact Phone: XXX-XXX-XXXXContact Email: [redacted]@kohnell.comThe problem [redacted] has in her property is being addressed. Some of her statements are not quite true, since when her leaks were initially discovered plumbers, landscapers and irrigation specialists, and the City of [redacted] Water Department were dispatched to find the leaks, and repairs were made, but I agree with her frustrations; although this situation improved the problem was not solved. On July 8 the Board of Directors and Kohn-Ell met to solve the problem the board authorized expenditure up to $750 to repair the irrigation leak. The board also agreed that if the irrigation leak is not the problem and engineer might be called in to analyze the situation. It does not appear that the irrigation leak is the cause of this problem, so [redacted] met with [redacted] and an engineer on July 31. [redacted] is now getting permission from the board to have the engineer draw up plans to install drainage ditches around the entire building. Not just [redacted]'s home but another 8 to 10 homes in this building. [redacted] is aware of this.

Unable to access services paid for. Poor customer serviceI am a home owner in the [redacted]. We pay $600 a year in common charges a year which includes the community pool. I have been trying to get a pool key since last year. They have sent me back a forth wasting my time trying to get this key. I had no access to the pool last year. This year I did not pay my common charges since I had no access to the pool. That did not work either. I then paid them in full and still can't get a pool key. No one answers the phone. The pool is filty anyway. I want to be able to use the pool that I am paying for or get a refund on my common charges.Desired SettlementRefund for my common charges since I was not given access to the pool last year or this yearBusiness Response Please let me address this problem and provide you a key. From what you describe, there should be no reason you do not have a pool key.