What Are the Benefits a Residents Committee?
Have you ever questioned the rules at your park or marina? Have you wondered if the last time the parking lot was paved was in 1859? Have you wished the landlord would offer additional services to your community?
Have you asked these types of questions of your landlord but received little or no response?
If you wish for more positive tenant-landlord experiences and communication at your park or marina, or you feel that your landlord isn’t holding up their end of the bargain and you want to do something about it, OSTA recommends starting a Committee of Seven. We have seen Committees of Seven improve communication and resolve issues for our members countless times over the last two decades the law has been in effect.
The Law Establishes and Protects a Residents Committee
A Committee of Seven is a group of seven or fewer tenants elected by a majority of park or marina residents to represent their interests in meetings with the park or marina landlord. By law, the committee can bring any park-wide or marina-wide issue, except for rent, to the discussion. The law requires the Landlord to meet with the committee at least once, but no more than twice per year and to respond to the residents’ concerns in writing.
Unique Power of the Residents Committee
A Committee of Seven’s success lies in the following:
- Strength in numbers
- Ability to submit issues to the landlord through a group, rather than an individual complaint
- Backed by and protected by the law
Let us never negotiate out of fear. But let us never fear to negotiate.