What is an
Amenity?
Just what is an amenity
and what is not an amenity in our Sun City Anthem
community?
That seems to a subject on another Sun City Anthem
publication and a question in the minds of some or our
neighbors.
Though some may argue with
"semantics"....
...an "amenity"...
... IS DEFINED by
NEVADA LAW.
And so...to clarify this with ALL of those who wish
to debate the meaning of the word, "amenity", there
can be only one definition as to how it applies to a homeowners
association....
THE LEGAL ONE
!
Here in Nevada there is no question
about this issue.
Many years ago our Nevada Legislature
and our Governor made that determination.
It was an important definition
because new law would make amenities in common-interest
communities (HOAs) non-taxable.
After discussion, deliberation and
debate in open hearings where the public could
express their views and make their arguments, the matter was
decided.
In a nutshell any and all recreational facilities in
a common-interest community that are limited to use and enjoyment by the members
and their guests...
are...amenities.
As such those facilities, any and all
structures housing them, and the land holding them, are not taxable.
This typically
includes pools, tennis courts, exercise rooms, meeting rooms,
etc.
Here in Sun City Anthem the developer
prepared the legally required Public Offering Statement intended to entice and
persuade perspective buyers to purchase a home.
It contains an
extensive list of the wonderful amenities of our
community....
... including
the “restaurant and
bar”.
Our boards of directors
decided to respect and honor those promises and guarantees
except for the restaurant and bar.
For better or worse our board decided the restaurant and bar areas and operations of
those facilities should be rented to and controlled by a private business entity
and open to the public at large.
This
makes those parts of our recreational facilities a commercial enterprise,
not an amenity, and requires Sun City Anthem members to pay thousands and thousands of
dollars in taxes every year.
The
net result is here in Sun City Anthem, unlike other HOAs such as Anthem
Country Club and Rhodes Ranch...
...where their restaurant
and bar areas are restricted to members only...
...we are obligated to pay those substantial taxes.
The
effect is we are all taxed twice:
First, by the taxes on our homes where the assessed value is elevated
because of the perceived desirability of the restaurant and bar.
Second, we
are then taxed again, because the restaurant and bar are controlled and operated
by a private business entity, rather then our
community.
So....is this an "amenity" as some
claim it to be ?
Based on Nevada law...we
believe...
... IT IS
NOT !
Those who
are uncomfortable with this state of affairs would seem to have at least two
options:
First, they
might approach our board of directors and try to persuade the board to comply
with the promises and guarantees in the Public Offering Statement by restricting
use of the restaurant and bar to members only like all the other amenities in
our community.
Or
Secondly, they might approach our legislators and the
Governor in the upcoming sessions early next year and try to persuade them to
change State law.
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We want to sincerely thank our valued reader, Tim Stebbins, who is considered by many, an EXPERT on Nevada Homeowner Association laws, for authoring
this excellent editorial.
He attends all Common Interest Communities
Commission meetings, Ombudsman meetings, and the Nevada legislative
sessions.
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