I live in California and bought 4 properties in San Antonio, Texas, at the end of 2005. Three properties are under Quail Valley Home Owner Association, and other property is under Springwood Home Owner Association. Spectrum Association Mgmt LLP does the management work for both HOAs. Since both HOAs do not have their own addresses and use the same Spectrum management's address, my property management company (Patton Property Management also located in San Antonio) notified Spectrum that I live in California instead of Texas. Since I was and have been getting bills and also checks back (for over paid amount we sent) ever since 2006, I assumed everything was fine and they had already know my correct address.

Then in December 2009, a new tenant showed a letter to my property manager, we found out the Spectrum has been sending the property in Springwood HOA bills and notices to the previous tenant's address for all these years. I immediately sent them the HOA bills that I have owed which amounts to over $1000. I asked for the waiver of late charges and other additional fees with a total amount over $3000 because both my property management company and I have found the letter that was sent to Spectrum about my correct address in California.

After two month's waiting, I was told my request for waiver of those late fees and interest charges were declined by Spectrum Association Mgmt. The reason? Because 1) It was my responsibility to pay for the HOA fees; 2) They have sent the bills and correspondences to the address in Texas as they are the addresses showed up on my tax record and county's deed record; 3) the Spectrum has never received and could not find any correspondences in their file for the correct address notification, which both my property management and I have, with date stamped on the letter.

I understand it is my responsibility of paying the HOA, which was the reason that I paid it right away as soon as I found out about it. However, it was Spectrum that has chosen to ignore my notification of the correct address, by keeping on sending the bills to another address. If all credit card companies chose to do that, they probably would get huge profits because most of consumers would not keep on tracking down those bills and ask for them repeatedly. As for their reason 2, the tax and deed records showing the other 3 properties the exact same addresses which are in Texas, why would the Spectrum send the other 3 bills to the correct California address but not this one? 

For Spectrum saying they have never received our correspondences for notifying them my correct address is more ridicules, and it becomes even questionable to their professional practice. If they did not receive and could not show anything that they had received for the correct address, where and how they got the correct California address for the 3 properties?  How could they change anybody's billing address without any request or record? Is that their common business practice?

The fact that Spectrum can not provide any evidence for the address change notification but still sending 3 properties to the correct address shows that they indeed received the notification (in our files but not theirs) of my correct address but neglected to change it on one of the properties.  Therefore I do not think it is fair for me to pay for their sloppy business practice with all late fees and additional charges for their mistake of not having changed to my correct address as we requested in the letter. But now they are threatening if I do not pay for these additional fees, they will file the liens and take further legal action on my house.  Is there any fairness left in this world?