If your HOA is considering signing with Verizon FIOS, PLEASE READ THIS !!!

[itsGREGSWORLD]

I am LOCKED into a contract with Verizon FIOS as a result of my HOA agreeing on my behalf to add service to my townhouse for a five year period. THANKFULLY, this has nothing to do with the quailty of service and everything to do with your rights as a consumer. 

Two issues...

#1 As a new Verizon FIOS customer, you are entitled to certain discounts. Verizon bombards you via USPS each week. Rates that are far lower than you will pay in subsequent years. IF your HOA has a contract in place, you can say goodbye to any negotiation rights you have. And while there is a SMALL (and I mean minute) discount to having a group deal, it is no where near the amount of money you would save on that first year or even second year negotiated deal with Verizon FIOS. Verizon knows this and makes a ton of money on not giving you a first year deal.

#2 (and this one is BIG.) HOA contracts ARE NOT eligible for premium online services. If your HOA has worked HBO and Showtime into their contract, you may kiss incredible online features such as HBO GO goodbye. You may call Verizon FIOS customer service until you are blue in the face, but you will not be getting these features. Features ALL of their individual customers are entitled to. Yup, you are paying for services you will not be receiving. Further, it isn't just HBO GO that you are missing out on. It is apps like The History Channel, A&E, etc. ANYTHING online that requires you to prove you are paying for even basic services will allow you no access. 

PLEASE, if you have the ability to present these issues to your HOA community, do so. The sales team from Verizon FIOS will not be. This information is left out of any presentation. The sales reps come in, make their commission, and then leave your community with a long term contract that takes away more of your rights as a consumer.

[armond_in_nj1]

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@itsGREGSWORLD wrote:

I am LOCKED into a contract with Verizon FIOS as a result of my HOA agreeing on my behalf to add service to my townhouse for a five year period ... IF your HOA has a contract in place, you can say goodbye to any negotiation rights you have ... you have the ability to present these issues to your HOA community ...

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The situation you describe has little to do with Verizon directly, and everything to do with how you and your fellow residents allow your community to be governed.  The first thing you might want to look into is a qualified HOA attorney(and there are many) to determine if you still have a legal leg to stand on.

Unfortunately you have not provided details about the relationship you have with your HOA , in particular details on the Public Offering Statement (POS) you signed when you acquired your home.  The entire (in the legal sense) agreement between you and the HOA is contained in the POS.  Typically the  POS cannot be changed without consent of a super majority of the association residents  (usually 66+%).  Therefore, either the right of the HOA and its board members to negotiate a utility contract for all residents was in the original document, or somewhere along the way the residents voted for such a situation.  The third possibility is that the board simply overstepped their authority.  However if the agreement meets the POS requirements, you will have to go along with the POS terms or face the consequences.

In  my view your situation appears to be a typical example of HOA board members not exercising due diligence.  This is far from common, and usually occurs when the residents themselves don't actively participate in the governing of their communities.  Depending on the age of the HOA, it usually happens that a select few assume the duties (and the work) of  the association and other members are content to let them do so.  They remain in office far longer than their actual utility, and of course eventually this results in less than optimal performance.

Each and every community member who attends the association meetings for my community has heard my "participation" speech more than once, and I'm sure they're pretty tired of it.  However I continue to emphasize that it's up to individual members to get involved, pull  their weight, and learn what it's like to be on both sides of the argument.

And unfortunately, it's often an argument.

[walt178]

Armond_in_nj is exactly right.  I once had the misfortune of being in that situation. When I started attended meetings I was quickly  asked to join the board of directors.  Then became chairman of the board because no one else would take the job.  One of the things I learned was that management had instituted a lot of association rules that violated the documents.  Fortunately, I was able to use my position to stop enforcement of them.  But the problem arose because no one wanted to be involved. 

[britishrich]

All the stuff about the HOA from the replies above may well be true - but then, if VZ simply offered the same services it does to everyone else for the comparable price this original post would not be here. So they are hardly faultless.

[Unhappy2018]

I’m soooo unhappy.  HOA STUPID STIPULATION 

[LawrenceC]

As this thread is now over two years old, it will be locked in order to keep discussions current. If you have the same or a similar question/issue we invite you to start a new thread on the topic.