This law firm was retained by my HOA to collect $642 in past due fees. Their original letter to me included the notice of lien and stipulated I must contact them within 30 days to make payment OR request an itemization of the $1040 they claimed I owed on the lien notice.
I contacted the office to request an itemization and received this itemization approximately a week later in mid-December. The itemization and accompanying letter arrived outside the original 30 days from the first notice, specified only the original $1040 and did not specify a new time frame, nor did the information specify when or what additional charges that may occur.
The itemization included my $642 in HOA assessments and fees in addition to $400 of legal fees.
I contacted the office today to pay this bill and I've been informed my bill now includes an additional $463 of legal fees because I didn't respond within the "timeframe specified." But I did respond when I requested the itemization.
I understand that I owe the HOA bill and, per my CC&Rs, reasonable attorney fees for the collection process. But I can hardly believe that $863 in legal fees to collect at $640 bill is reasonable.
Without notice of timeframe the attorney's office has filed a lawsuit against me originating from $642 in back assessments, late and demand fees from the HOA. Their legal fees now come to $863 to collect $642.
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