A North Carolina woman says her Homeowner’s Association sold her 3,300 square foot home for $49,000 after she missed a single HOA payment.
The buyer then flipped the house for $850,000 — and it was all legal.
Taylor Sanders admitted she missed an HOA payment for $400, but Sanders said she never received letters from the HOA.
A lien was placed on her house in 2021. Sanders’ home was sold for only $49,000, but the buyer flipped it for $850,000 just months later, according to WSOC-TV.
Sanders lived in the Weddington Hills subdivision in North Carolina. According to HOA records she owed $400 which increased to $1,200 including late fees.
In April 2021, the HOA claimed it sent her a letter, saying she owed about $1,200 and that it was going to start foreclosure proceedings.
But Sanders said she never received the letter. Sanders was surprised when notified of the sale of her house. “I thought it was a joke,” she said.
“Oh my God. It’s devastating for my children,” she said. “I don’t wish this on anyone.”
But state law is on the HOA’s side. North Carolina law allows HOAs to sell properties due to late HOA fees — even if the fee is much less than the home is worth.
Sanders is speaking out about the injustice. She wants to warn other homeowners so they take any legal threat from their HOA seriously.
“This is just the beginning. I want to make sure I educate other people. I want to make sure they know about it. I want them to know their rights,” she said.
North Carolina legislators are considering a bill to allow HOAs to put a lien on the property and start foreclosure proceedings, but it would have to meet certain criteria before selling the home. WSOC reports there hasn’t been any movement on the bill since last May.
