Q: Who are these folks and what do they do? How can I meet with them? How are they chosen?
Q: What do my homeowner’s dues cover? How do I benefit from membership in the HOA?
Q: How often do my homeowner’s dues increase? Why do they increase? Who has the authority to increase my dues?
Q: How is our HOA managed? Who is in charge?
Q: The BOD seems to pay a lot of attention to mailboxes. With so many other issues to address, why are mailboxes a seemingly significant issue?
Q: Does the BOD have a plan for using our homeowner’s fees or do they simply react to issues as they arise?
Q: Who is responsible for snow removal in our community?
Q: Has the BOD ever considered installing speed bumps to help control speeding throughout the community?
Q: What is our community’s guidance on storage sheds?
Q: Why are the tennis courts locked and how can I use them?
Q: Is the HOA involved with trash removal and/or recycling services?

Board of Directors (BOD)

Q: Who are these folks and what do they do? How can I meet with them? How are they chosen?
A: The BOD’s general responsibilities are discussed in the FAQ titled “HOA Management.” The BOD meets once a month on the last Wednesday of the month. Unless otherwise published, the meetings are held in the Community Recreation Center at 7:00 P.M. Each meeting is open to all members and the agenda always begins with an input session where homeowners can discuss any HOA-related subject. The HOA President presides over the meetings and minutes are maintained by an employee of the management company. A routine meeting agenda includes: an initial community forum, approval of minutes of past meetings, the management company’s report, unfinished business, new business, and finish with a closed session to discuss enforcement issues.

The BOD itself is made up of five homeowner volunteers who are each elected to a three year term of office. Elections take place at the annual meeting, usually scheduled in May. A solicitation for volunteers is conducted prior to the meeting. At the meeting, each candidate is introduced and asked to speak to the assembled group to explain why they want to be a member of the BOD followed by a brief question and answer session. Once elected, the BOD elects their officer positions which include president, vice president, secretary, treasurer, and a member at large. See the Board of Directors section of this website for a listing of the current BOD and the Bylaws section for a complete listing of the powers and responsibilities of the BOD.

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HOA Dues

Q: What do my homeowner’s dues cover? How do I benefit from membership in the HOA?
A: The HF HOA was created for the purpose of “protecting the value and desirability” of the Hampton Forest community and to maintain the permanent open spaces and common facilities for the “benefit of the community and to provide for the preservation of the values of the community.” In general terms, this describes the benefit that each HOA member derives from their membership in the Association. See the Bylaws section of this website for the documents governing the creation of the HFHOA. Various sections of these documents provide insights into the original benefits anticipated to be derived from Association membership.

In specific terms, the HOA manages the appearance of the common areas and enforces the covenants which include architectural guidelines governing the appearance of each lot and house. The end result is intended to be a well maintained community whose appearance provides a positive contribution to the value of the property within. Additionally, the manner in which these responsibilities are carried out can promote a strong sense of community amongst the Association’s members.

The dues collected by the HOA provide for the products and services necessary to carry out the purpose of the Association. Major categories within the annual budget include the following (not an exhaustive list):

­ Administrative Expenses:

• Management
• Legal
• Office Expenses
• Postage
• Newsletter & Website
• Social Programs

• Grounds Contract
• Tree Removal & Replacement
• Snow Removal
• Lighting
• Drainage & Erosion

• Electricity
• Insurance
• Income Taxes

• Asphalt Footpaths
• Tennis Courts
• Tot Lots
• Basketball Courts
• Footpath Bridges
• Entrance Monument & Signage

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HOA Dues Increases

Q: How often do my homeowner’s dues increase? Why do they increase? Who has the authority to increase my dues?
A: According to the HFHOA bylaws, the BOD has the authority to increase homeowner’s dues a maximum of five percent once a year. Each year, the BOD establishes an annual budget to address the community’s needs for that year and ensure funds are available to address future large capital expenditures such as refurbishing the tennis courts. The BOD must balance the cost of meeting these requirements with the availability of funding. The BOD considers the wisdom of delaying a project against the need to raise additional funds. If the situation warrants, the BOD conducts a formal vote before deciding to increase dues. A record of these proceedings is captured in the BOD minutes for each monthly BOD meeting.

During the early years of the community’s existence, dues rarely increased. However, the community is now at a stage where facilities are beginning to show their age and significant repairs are needed. As a result, homeowner’s dues have increased each of the past few years. These increases have been primarily due to the need to fund major capital projects such as the tennis courts and bike paths and the impact of inflation which, over the years, has continually increased the cost of the products and services used to maintain our community. The increases have been approximately $1 per month per home which adds about $6,600 to the budget to fund inflation and cover shortages in the reserve accounts. Without these increases, rising operations costs (due primarily to aging of the development and inflation) would continue to erode our reserve accounts to an unacceptable level.

For a more detailed explanation of how the BOD manages its budget, see the FAQ titled "Planning for Success."

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HOA Management

Q: How is our HOA managed? Who is in charge?
A: As a community association, all homeowners living within the established boundaries of the association are equal participants in its management. However, in practice there are five distinct elements responsible for HOA management functions:

- Board of Directors (BOD): A group of elected homeowner volunteers, the BOD is responsible to the members for the overall management of the HOA. The BOD ensures the association’s covenants are followed, establishes and manages an annual budget, selects the companies to support the HOA, establish policy in accordance with the covenants, and enforces the policies and guidelines of the community. For additional details, see the FAQ titled "Board of Directors" or the Board of Directors section of this website.

- Architecture Review Board (ARB): Comprised of homeowner volunteers appointed by the BOD, the ARB is responsible to the BOD for recommending architecture-related policies, conducting periodic assessments at the direction of the BOD, and approving homeowner requests for property modifications that fall within the purview of the HOA. Visit the Forms section of this website to find the form used to request permission for such modifications.

- Management Company: As a group of homeowner volunteers, the BOD is not capable of performing the daily management functions of the community. For this purpose, a management company is selected by the BOD. This company is responsible to the BOD for daily management and enforcement of the community’s covenants. They coordinate upkeep of the common areas, respond to homeowner complaints, represent the community in enforcement actions, and generally assist the BOD ensure the covenants are followed throughout the community. This role is currently filled by The Cardinal Management Group. See the Management section of this website for contact information.

- Maintenance Company: A professional landscape company is contracted by the BOD to maintain the common areas within the community. They provide functions such as cutting grass, removing and replacing trees, planting flowers at the entrances, and other landscaping functions. They are supervised by the management company and accountable to the BOD. This role is currently filled by Valley Crest Landscape Management.

- Homeowners: We must never forget that we are an association of equally empowered homeowners with a common desire to maintain the appearance and value of our community. As such, virtually all aspects of HOA management are open to inspection and participation by all members (this website is designed to promote such transparency). Also, many of the community’s policies are the result of active homeowner participation in the community. Whether complying with architectural guidelines, following posted speed limits, offering ideas for community activities, cleaning up after their pets, volunteering to participate in support of the community, or voting for BOD members, our HOA is no better or worse than the effort our members put into following our covenants. Like any democracy, the power of our HOA lies with the people it is designed to serve.

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Mailboxes

Q: The BOD seems to pay a lot of attention to mailboxes. With so many other issues to address, why are mailboxes a seemingly significant issue?
A: The BOD has a goal of eventually having all mailboxes meet the community’s standard design criteria for mailboxes (these criteria can be found in the Policies & Guidelines section of this website). The purpose of these criteria is to create a standard appearance and reduce the profile of mailboxes. The intent is to encourage the focus of a property to be the house. A brightly colored mailbox or one of unusual design draws attention away from the house itself. When taken as a whole, a line of differently designed mailboxes presents an extremely cluttered appearance. The houses in our community are beautiful structures and should be shown in the best possible setting. The policy on mailboxes is intended to promote such a setting.

To understand how the BOD intends to achieve this goal with minimal disruption, a brief explanation of the history of our community’s mailboxes is necessary. Our neighborhood was built in phases by more than one developer - each one using different mailbox designs. By adopting a single standard, the BOD caused a significant number of mailboxes to be in violation of the covenants as soon as they were emplaced by the original builders. This situation made it difficult to enforce the architectural standards for mailboxes. While the BOD supports the idea of eventually achieving a single standard for the entire neighborhood, they also want to address the fact that almost half of the mailboxes were originally installed based upon a different standard.

To that end, the BOD has adopted guidelines to permit both dominant styles until the less desirable version requires replacement. At that time, the replacement is required to conform to the style originally supported by our guidelines and advertised each month in our newsletter. In this way, we will eventually achieve the clean look and functional design originally intended while being fair with all homeowners. In the meantime, mailboxes that remain in violation (e.g., white posts, incorrect box shape, etc.) should be replaced with the approved version.

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Planning for Success

Q: Does the BOD have a plan for using our homeowner’s fees or do they simply react to issues as they arise?
A: The BOD uses a planning tool known as the Reserve Fund Plan. The purpose of the fund is to help protect property values by maintaining common areas to a standard in keeping with the nature and standards of the community. The Reserve Fund is the pool of funds from which the BOD draws to pay for the maintenance of common areas. The goal of the BOD is ensuring that there is enough money in the account to pay for the maintenance when it is needed.

The key to managing the Reserve Fund is to have an accurate inventory of all the common areas and a detailed understanding of the frequency and cost of anticipated maintenance and repairs. This information allows our management company and the BOD to plan routine maintenance expenditures well into the future and develop a plan to even out expenditures over time. To ensure we have the best professional advice possible, the BOD contracts specialists to develop a Condition Assessment and an associated Reserve Fund Plan. The last study was completed in May 2003 and can be found in the Documents section of this website. The study is updated every five years with the next version scheduled for the spring of 2008.

The study contains an inventory of our common property; assessment of its condition; a schedule for routine maintenance, repair, and replacement; and financial cost estimates for the next twenty year period. Each year when the BOD reviews the annual budget and prepares the next year’s budget, it studies the expenditure patterns to determine if they are staying in line with the Reserve Fund Plan. The BOD earmarks funds from annual dues for the various categories within the plan to ensure they are keeping the fund replenished, thereby avoiding an unforeseen crisis that would require a precipitous increase in dues or a significant decrease in the appearance of the community. The plan is divided into categories of maintenance including such areas as asphalt trails; tennis court surface; tot lot equipment; landscape lighting; tree trimming, removal, and replacement as well as a number of other categories.

Without such a management tool, the BOD would be at the mercy of every good idea that happened to come along. With this tool providing long-term discipline, the BOD is able to address near-term issues with its discretionary funds, without having to constantly worry about their long-term ability to maintain the community. The use of a Reserve Fund Plan is instrumental in ensuring that our community will be properly maintained well into the future.

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Snow Removal

Q: Who is responsible for snow removal in our community?
A: The Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) is responsible for snow removal on all roads throughout the community. As such, we are subject to their prioritization system that logically services major interstates and larger roads before residential streets. The HFHOA is responsible for snow removal on the pathway leading from Heatherford Place to Willow Springs Elementary School. The BOD has historically budgeted for this service as a safety precaution for our children. You can find out more about VDOT’s snow removal policies by visiting their website at: http://www.virginiadot.org/info/faq-snowremoval.asp

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Speed Bumps

Q: Has the BOD ever considered installing speed bumps to help control speeding throughout the community?
A: Yes. Periodically the subject of speeding arises within the community. The stop signs placed throughout our road network were the BOD’s first action to help curb speeding. In addition, radar speed signs are periodically placed at various locations – especially along Hampton Forest Way and Ashleigh Road. Finally, reminders are published in the community newsletter.

The county has a specific protocol governing the installation of speed bumps which includes gathering signatures and measuring traffic speed. In the past, such efforts have failed to garner the support necessary to pursue the issue. Another consideration is the negative impact that speed bumps have on snow removal. For details of the referenced protocol, see Section II B of the VDOT Traffic Calming Guide which can be found at: http://www.virginiadot.org/programs/resources/TrafficCalmingGuideOct2002.pdf

Recent BOD positions have supported local home owners who may want to solicit local support for speed bumps. Should the necessary level of support be garnered, the BOD would again address the issue.

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Storage Sheds

Q: What is our community’s guidance on storage sheds?
A: As with all architectural policies, the intent is to maintain the appearance of the community in accordance with its original design while respecting individual homeowner’s desires. Over the past few years a number of homeowners have inquired about the use of prefabricated sheds, often made of plastic. As the number of requests mounted and the BOD became aware of a number of sheds that had been installed without approval of the ARB and placed a moratorium on approval of sheds. This action was taken to allow the ARB time to fully review the options and update, if necessary, the architectural guidelines. The updated architectural guidelines can be found in the Policies & Guidelines section of this website and represents the community’s desire for sheds to remain as unobtrusive as possible while still supporting the homeowner’s desire for functional storage. This is achieved by following the guidelines for size, color, materials, and placement. As much as possible, the design should be similar to that of the house with which it is associated and placed in a location where it is not a major focal point. Each request for approval will be evaluated on its individual merits and sheds that were approved before September 2005 will be grandfathered. Any sheds that were not previously approved will be considered in violation unless an ARB approval is obtained. The form for submitting requests to the ARB are found at the Forms section of this website.

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Tennis Courts

Q: Why are the tennis courts locked and how can I use them?
A: Our tennis courts are a major capital investment for the community. Based on past experience, the BOD decided that the only way to confront vandalism and ensure the tennis courts were properly maintained was to secure them. Every member of HFHOA is welcomed to use the tennis courts. Upon request, a key will be provided. The procedures for requesting a key are found in the Forms section of this website. Over the years, this policy has proven successful at maintaining the community’s investment and ensuring full access to those who wish to use the facilities.

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Trash Removal

Q: Is the HOA involved with trash removal and/or recycling services?
A: No. While some HOAs provide trash removal as a service (and increase dues accordingly), our community has elected to maintain trash removal as an individual homeowner responsibility. Over the years there have been some privately-led efforts to persuade the majority of homeowners to switch from one service provider to another, but there has never been enough interest to cause the BOD to seriously consider changing the current approach.

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