Nottingham Country Newsletter

August 2007 …

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NCCIA BOARD NEWS

A LETTER FROM THE NCCIA LEGAL LIAISON:

As of June 20, 2007 there are approximately 50 Nottingham Country homeowners who have not yet paid their 2007 annual assessment which was due January 31, 2007.  Late fees and a $30 certified letter fee have already been added to the balances owed by each homeowner.  During the month of August, if the past due fees are not brought current, the Association will be filing liens against the delinquent properties.  The cost of the recording and future release of said liens is $100 so that amount will also be added to the balance due bring it to approximately $350.

When a lien is recorded against a property, the property cannot be sold, refinanced or a new mortgage obtained without first paying off the lien.  The recording of a lien may also jeopardize the credit score of the delinquent homeowner and that could have long term effects on the homeowner’s ability to obtain credit.

Our annual assessment of $200 is one of the lowest of any subdivision in Harris County.  It is hard to understand why a few homeowners, every year, chose to not make their payment on time and end up paying almost twice as much in penalties and other legal fees.

I noticed that a number of homeowners who are past due for 2007 moved to Nottingham Country within the last 12 months.  If you are in that category, please be advised that mortgage companies DO NOT typically escrow and pay homeowner maintenance fees. Those fees are your responsibility.

If you are one of the homeowners in this category, we strongly urge you to make your payment or contact SCS Management at 281-463-1777 and make arrangements for future payment.

Don Mach

NCCIA Vice President and Legal Liaison

NCCIA BACK TO SCHOOL POOL PARTY

PART 2!

Nottingham Country's Second Annual Pool Party is scheduled for Monday, August 20, 6:30 - 9:30 pm.  We will provide pizza and drinks as well as having the pool to ourselves.  Plan to come and enjoy the last bit of summer before the kids go back to the books!

ALL residents and their children are welcome.  If you have a child(ren) under 12, you MUST stay to supervise them.  Mason Creek Community Center pool rules state this and NCCIA cannot violate that mandate.  Besides, it is a great way to have some fun and meet your neighbors.  We might even hit up the adults to serve on the NCCIA board!!!

We had a great turnout last year and everyone was excited to kick off the school year with a "splash"!

See you there!

Shanon Hole

Social Committee Director

TRASH PICKUP ISSUES

The Board has recently received complaints from a few Nottingham Country homeowners who have been cited by the management company for having trash at curbside before 6:00 a.m. on the day of trash pickup.

The Nottingham Country guidelines do state that any trash which needs to be placed at the curb should not be placed there before 6:00 a.m. on the day of trash pickup.  Keep in mind that we do have backdoor pick up in all sections and the trash is picked up in the alleyways in Sections 1, 2 and 3.  The only type of trash that needs to be placed at curbside is, of course, the recycling bins along with heavy trash items.

This matter was recently discussed at a Board meeting. We recognize that many homeowners work during the weekends on their yards and shrubbery and then tie the limbs, grass clipping bags, etc at the curb rather than have to move it twice.  The thought here is that probably very few homeowners have objections about their neighbors occasionally placing this type of trash at the curb a day or so before trash pickup.  On the other hand I think most of us would object if a broken commode or some other type of appliance, or trash cans was left at curbside for a day or two before trash pick up.  As a result, the management company will be using a “common sense” approach when issuing citations regarding trash left at curbside before the trash pick up day.

We all want our community to reflect a positive image so if you are wondering whether to place trash items at the curb before 6:00 a.m. of the day of trash collection, consider how it will look to your neighbors and other visitors to the subdivision.  If it looks bad, most likely you will be cited by the management company if they happen to be monitoring the subdivision that day.

We have noticed that many homeowners are in the process of doing both interior and exterior home remodeling which is a great thing. With remodeling comes construction debris and materials.  Contractors are normally responsible for hauling away all debris and materials when the project is completed.  Our trash service company WILL NOT haul away construction materials.  So if you contract with a remodeling company, make certain the contract states that the contractor is responsible for the proper clean up of materials. 

Hopefully this will clear up any questions residents may have.  Also please watch for the next heavy trash pick up date which will probably be in September 2007.  That will be your chance to get rid of the really big trash items!  For new NC residents, we generally have one of these twice per year.

Don Mach

NCCIA Vice President

The Nottingham Board  attempts to provide consistent and accurate communication about events of concern and criminal activity.  Recently, however,  inaccurate accounts of some events have been distributed on-line resulting in unnecessary apprehension on the part of some residents.  “Gatherings” appropriately disbursed by the constables, were rumored to be fights, which were then exaggerated into gang issues.

If you hear of an event that concerns you, get the facts before spreading alarm.

To get the facts contact the Board via email or Sgt. Deborah Potter at 281-492-3600.

This is different from the number to report any suspicious activity or to request deputy assistance is 281-463-6666.

Web Site Report

Thanks to all of you who visited http://www.nottinghamcounty.org/ and offered suggestions and comments on the web site content.  IMPORTANT NOTE:  If you were one of the “Everyone’s Internet” (EV1) customers who had to change your provide or otherwise change your email address, please go to http://www.nottinghamcounty.org sign up again for our email list, as you were removed from the list if your email bounced back to me.

If you haven't visited our web site lately, let me remind you that the latest happenings in Nottingham Country are posted on the Website first.  Items like Heavy Trash Pickup dates, Election Results, Lost Pets and Safety/Security Incidents in our neighborhood are posted on the site.  We also have applications and forms posted on the website – we will have our General Meeting and Election of Board Members coming up in November.  If you think you might be interested in serving on the Board of Directors for the Nottingham Country Community Improvement Association, please visit our web site and download an application form.  The forms can be found by clicking on the "Forms & Maps" link on the Nottingham Country Home Page: http://www.nottinghamcountry.org/.

Also, as a reminder, we do have a link to Sex Offenders on our site called Predator Check.  Please check it out if you haven’t already.  It’s good information especially for all parents and grandparents.

Please take a moment to visit our web site and Click on the “Suggestions” Link to offer your comments or suggestions or email the webmaster directly by sending an email to: WebMaster@NottinghamCountry.org.

We appreciate any and all ideas from our neighbors as to how we can improve our Internet presence and make our web site a useful tool for our neighborhood.

Remember, the “NEW STUFF” Button always denotes where the latest information is.

As a reminder, the Deed Restrictions for All NC sections, as well as, the By-Laws, are posted on the web site.