MINUTES              

ROC Forum Meeting – Golden Gate ROC – February 12, 2010

The meeting was opened by President Favata at 10:00am. She introduced Mike Steiner, President of Lake Placid ROC, as the ROC Board’s candidate to fill the vacancy on the Board of Directors. Moved by Andy Lestage of Magnolia Manor and seconded by Bill Smith of Doral that Mike Steiner be appointed to the board. Approved unanimously.

Andy Lestage then made an appeal for funds to assist in the growth of FLAROC with an aim to include the majority of ROC’s in Florida, which will enable ROC’s to have a bigger influence in lobbying State Legislators in matters of concern to resident owned communities. FLAROC was founded several years ago by ROC Forum and several other ROC communities, mainly in the Sarasota area as an umbrella organization for ROC organizations such as ours.  It has grown in the past two years to cover most of the west coast and incorporated in 2009. Andy is a Director of both ROC Forum and FLAROC. Sandy Ross is a Director of ROC Forum and Secretary of FLAROC. Seed money is required to allow for continued growth, the immediate target is the East Coast and Miami areas. FLAROC is requesting ROC Communities to make a one time donation of $100 to assist in our growth targets. A lesser donation from smaller parks will be welcomed.  Checks made out to FLAROC may be sent to FLAROC, c/o A. Lestage, Magnolia Manor, 4190 71^st St. N. #34, St. Petersburg Fl. 33709.

The meeting then went into “Round Table Discussion” format with a mix of 8 persons per table, all from different communities. The following is a summary of the responses of the 52 persons in attendance:

Marketing & Sales

-          Marketing & Sales in larger communities is done mostly through real estate agents, some with exclusive agents based in the park. Others have numerous agents who list their units on a bulletin board accessible to potential buyers. Residents of smaller communities typically sell directly to buyers who make contact through window signs, office personnel, or bulletin board. Lawyers are usually involved in real estate sales, but not in direct sales. Most boards have a transfer fee. Background checks are made by the board prior to their approval and closing.

-          Most communities ensure that the seller’s documents are turned over to the buyer, are current and understood. If not available from the seller, the manager or board will provide them as required by FS719.

-          Some communities require purchasers of non-shareholder units to purchase a share at time of closing. Others do not, and this is a big problem for parks with high share prices. It becomes extremely difficult for shareholders to sell their units without taking a significant loss when they must compete with non-shareholder sales.

-          Most communities have a larger than average number of units for sale in this current market. Sales that are made are often to relatives or friends of current residents.

-          Share price does not appear to be an issue contributing to slow sales. In some cases, units are being sold at prices below the share price. In a few instances, park documents require the share

to be sold back to the community and resold to the buyer, which ensures a constant share price.

Rule Enforcement

-          Many follow the routine of two letters from the board to violators, followed by a lawyer’s letter if still in violation. Lack of consistency in enforcing rules creates problems for some parks. Some parks have committees who look for violations and sometimes provide verbal advice of violation before formal actions are taken. Some parks have applied fines for violations, others have not.

-          Most communities are active in updating their rules.

-          The main reason for amending rules is “the current rule versus reality”.

-          The main reasons for not changing a rule is “if it isn’t broke, don’t fix it” and possible legal costs

        If a proposed change proves to be too radical.

-          Many parks appoint a committee to develop rule changes, which sends their recommendations to the board for approval. Some survey the shareholders for their input, others have open committee meetings for shareholder input. Some parks implement rule changes with board approval only, others require shareholder approval depending on their documents. If a change is felt to be complicated, the park attorney will be asked to vet the change. Most parks were unaware that rule changes must be filed with the local county and the DBPR prior to implementation.

Board Meetings/Elections

-          Many attendees were concerned about lengthy board meetings. Some utilize “town hall”

type meetings to inform shareholders and board members, which speeds up regular board meetings. Others were concerned about closed work sessions and one reported their board regularly met on a closed meeting basis.

-          Most agreed that “work sessions” are not sanctioned in Florida Statutes and should be treated like any other board meeting except that shareholder input may be withheld.

-          In most cases, work session decisions are ratified at the next regular board meeting as required by FS719.

-          In most cases, committee reports are always read at board meetings and then posted.

-          Most boards follow FS719 by including the names of board members who vote for and against motions made at board meetings.

-          Traits looked for in board member candidates ranged from “God-like character” to “Must be Breathing”. In most cases, persons who regularly volunteer their services, attend meetings, and are genuinely interested in their community, are encouraged to run for the board. Some boards require all new members to attend a ROC Forum annual board member seminar and become familiar with FS719. Some also encourage new members to read Pete Dunbar’s “Resident Owned Community Guide”.

-       There was unanimous agreement that communities follow the election procedures outlined in     

         the Florida Administrative Code and Florida Statutes.

President Favata advised that CAI will holding it’s annual CAI Day & Trade Show on Friday, Feb. 26/10 at the Harborview Center, 300 Cleveland St. Clearwater, from 8:00am until 3:30pm. No fee or registration is required. CAI will also hold a “breakfast meeting” on March 11/10 at the Marriot Hotel & Conference Center, 12600 Roosevelt Blvd. (off Ulmerton). Breakfast and a talk by John Ralph CPA, on “pooling vs non-pooling” from 8:30am-10:00am and a course on “Insurance Matters” by Barry Scarr CIRMS from 10:00am until noon. The fee is $15. Call Laura Hagen at 727-345-0165 or lhagen@suncoastcai.com to register.

The next meeting of the ROC Forum will be at Four Seasons Estates in Largo on Friday March 12/10.

The meeting closed at 12:10pm.

Reminders

ROC Forum 2010 memberships are due.

ROC Forum’s “Board Member Orientation Seminar” will be held at Americana Cove on Monday, March 22/10. Registrations close on March 12/10. Please send your $10 registration fee if you or your community is a ROC Forum member, to ROC Forum, c/o Judie Birdsall, 7100 Ulmerton Rd., #2008, Largo Fl. 33771, and confirm your attendance with Judie at wenjud@tampabay.rr.com or phone

727-536-1050. (Registration form attached Click Here).

 Norman Banning – Secretary        rocforum@hotmail.com

727-734-5706