Last year’s closing statement included the following expenses:
$11,229.26 Landscaping and Maintenance (65% of annual budget)
This portion of the budget includes lawn mowing, fertilizing, weed pulling, curb edging, lawn rolling, sanding entrances in the winter, mosquito prevention, fall cleanup, tree removal, and sprinkler system start up – shut down – and maintenance.
$3,251.34 Street Lights and Utility Company Expenses (19% of annual budget)
This portion of the budget is used to keep the street lights operational and the sprinkler system operating throughout the summer.
As you can see, we are already at 84% of our annual budget with just two categories. Last year, we had to utilize the help of residents to not go negative. Fall cleanup was taken care of by our lawn contractor and one of our residents to save us some money. So I’m sure this leaves you with a question – where did the remaining 16% of the budget go?
$1,904.75 Legal Fees and Board Expenses (11% of annual budget)
The majority of this money was spent on legal fees. There was a small portion spent on a business entity report and also for facility meeting rental for the board meetings. The legal fees last year were for court costs associated with residents who have not paid their dues for 3+ years. The board saved some cost by filing court documents without paying the attorney to do so.
$1,278.43 QuickBooks/PayPal/PO Box/Postage/Office Supplies (7% of annual budget)
If you were wondering where the remaining 5% left of our budget went, well – we spent 7% of it on these things. Yup – we went over budget even trying to do things to save money. This is why we had to slightly raise dues. As a board, we truly wanted to keep the dues as they have been for years, but we didn’t have a choice. We could not continue to rely on neighbors to bail us out every year at their own expense.
I hope this helps provide some clarity on where your dues go. We as a board try to do our best in protecting your investment in our neighborhood.
Jefferson Ridge Homeowner’s Association