Delinquent HOA fees may begin affecting credit scores

Sometimes when money is tight, a homeowner might have to make a decision which bills are urgent and which might be able to be put off.  A thought that might cross one's mind, is to delay paying the HOA fees, thinking that they won't affect credit scores.  Well, that may be soon to change. 

Sperlonga, a credit data aggregator, is the first company to provide HOA payment and account status data to Equifax, which is one of the three major credit-reporting agencies. A full rollout of the new HOA reporting to Equifax will go live in October.

Homeowner associations and property management companies collect about $70 billion in HOA payments yearly among at least 333,000 community associations, according to the Community Association Institute.

For property owners who are late or delinquent on their HOA payments, they will likely see a negative effect on their credit score, just as if they had missed a mortgage payment.

“Introducing new sources of data beyond what has traditionally been found on credit files can provide additional insight into a consumer’s financial behavior and help deliver expanded credit access,” says Mike Gardner, senior vice president at Equifax.

Source: NAR, Sperlonga and “Your HOA Payments May Now Affect Your Credit Score,” Credit.com (May 4, 2016)

Hurricane Season Begins June 1 - Nov 30!

Can you believe it? We haven't had consistent spring weather and yet, here we are already talking hurricane season!  Having spent the 1st half of my life in the Midwest where tornadoes were our largest violent weather threat, I quickly found out that with hurricanes you have some time to prepare. Here are some tips that might be helpful.

Some items recommended by the Virginia Dept of  Emergency Management:

• Check your insurance coverage, damages caused by flooding are not covered under normal homeowner’s insurance policies.
• Create an emergency communication plan with your family before a hurricane.
• Have emergency supplies in place at home, at work, and in the car.
• Download the Ready Virginia mobile app, an interactive tool that makes it easier than ever to be prepared for emergencies.  The free app for iPhone® and Android™ devices provides emergency planning and guidance and other robust features.
• Know your local community’s evacuation plan and evacuation routes and how to receive alerts.

Learn more about hurricane and flooding preparedness at the Virginia Department of Emergency Management website.