Two Washington
homeowners recently challenged the authority of their homeowners association to
manage well water services in their housing development. In an opinion published earlier this month, the Washington Court of Appeals affirmed that the homeowners association’s exercise of authority
was consistent with Washington law and the homeowners’ deed.
RCW
64.38.010(11) states that a homeowners’ association must be: (1) a corporation,
unincorporated association, or other legal entity, each member of which (2) is
an owner of residential real property located within the association’s jurisdiction,
as described in the governing documents, and (3) by virtue of membership or
ownership of property is obligated to pay real property taxes, insurance
premiums, maintenance costs, or for improvement of real property other than that
which is owned by the member. Since the
lot owners in this case were obligated to pay maintenance and insurance
costs regarding wells and this obligation arose from joint ownership of the
wells, the homeowners association in this case was held to constitute a valid homeowner’s
association entitled to exercise the powers described in RCW 64.38 and its
CC&Rs.
The appellate court went
on to rule that the challenging homeowners did not have the legal right to challenge
the homeowners association’s authority because they had ratified its existence and
actions. Ratification occurs when a homeowner either (1) voluntarily accepts
the benefits and obligations of the association’s actions with full knowledge
of the facts warranting rescission, or (2) accepts the benefits and obligations
imposed by the association without inquiry.
The second form of ratification - action without inquiry - was held to apply
in this case. All of the pertinent facts
were contained in the title documents, and “a party to a real estate contract will
not be heard to declare that he did not read it, or was ignorant of its
contents.”
