Association Bulletins

Attaining the 25% minimum quorum on 9 December 2024, the annual meeting of the members was held via Zoom. Our third-party inspector of elections, Accurate Voting, Inc., opened and counted the ballots for the three open Board seats. The results were as follows:

• Jim Hayes, incumbent, 58 votes
• Vadim Popov, incumbent, 29 votes
• Jerry Chang, incumbent, 10 votes
• Jeff Spies, former Board member, 110 votes

Effective 1 January 2025, our Association Board members are:

• President – Evan Goss (term expires 31 Dec 2025)
• Vice President – Jim Hayes (term expires 31 Dec 2026)
• Treasurer – Curt Rastetter (term expires 31 Dec 2025)
• Secretary – Vadim Popov (term expires 31 Dec 2026)
• Member at Large – Jeff Spies (term expires 31 Dec 2026)

A new landscape contractor began work on 1 July 2024.

In May 2024 the Board voted to transfer our landscape maintenance contract from Bemus Landscape to Earthco Commercial Landscape. Earthco’s reputation and vision for our community was the motive for a new contract. However, we retained Bemus Tree Care for our annual tree-trimming and tree-related response services.

During recent community inspections, Board members have observed a trend in the number of townhome residents inappropriately placing personal property, plants, outdoor equipment, supplies and other items on common area landscape bordering the walls and fences of homes.

By Article V of our Covenants, Codes and Restrictions (CC&Rs), the maintenance and management of common area landscape is the exclusive responsibility of the Board. Beginning January 2023, in the interest of preserving the appearance of our community, personal property situated on common area landscape will be removed.

The ground under our feet is always moving, and we live with a muted anxiety over the “Big One.” Your Board is seeking to educate the membership about the availability of earthquake insurance. Our HOA does not carry earthquake insurance due to its prohibitive expense. For planned unit developments such as Aegean Heights, the Association is responsible for rebuilding in the event of a damaging earthquake. However, the funding for rebuilding would likely come from assessing all property owners. This assessment risk can be mitigated through the provisions of earthquake insurance providers licensed in the State including the California Earthquake Authority (CEA). Here are some key planning points:

• The first step is to contact your current property insurance company about adding earthquake insurance.  Coverage options can be complex for owners in a planned unit development.
• The maximum assessment risk coverage under the CEA is $100,000. Coverage may be higher or lower through other carriers.
• In order to add CEA insurance, your existing property insurance carrier (HO-6 policy) must be in force with a participating CEA insurance company.
• The deductible is scalable from 5%-25%.

Aegean Heights Homeowners Association is not an advocate for any coverages or insurance carriers. Some earthquake Insurance providers may not offer the coverage available through the CEA and some providers may or may not be competitive with the CEA for the same coverage. See earthquakeagent.com for stand-alone earthquake insurance companies that might offer more coverage options than the CEA.

Our Association Certificate of Liability broker, Labarre/Oksnee, recently introduced an innovative earthquake program for residential associations. In partnership with Labarre/Oksnee, MOTUS Insurance Services offers loss assessment coverage as an Opt-In plan with the HOA carrying the master policy. Some of the distinguishing features of MOTUS Earthquake Insurance program include:

• The coverage is built on a commercial earthquake model offering far greater loss protections (e.g., foundations, underground plumbing, pools and spas).
• Participation does not require that the member have existing property insurance.
• Flexible coverage options.
• Can be written to cover household contents.
• Covers “Red Tag” (condemnation) and loss of use.
• Policy pricing is tailored to earthquake-related risk in our area.
• Annual premiums for significantly more protection can be less than those charged by CEA.
• A scalable deductible applies.

MOTUS Insurance Services are backed by insurers rated “A-” (Excellent) by the rating service AM Best. For further information, contact MOTUS Insurance Services at 833-668-8746 or info@motusins.com.

The trimming and/or topping of common area trees by owners and residents is strictly prohibited for these reasons:

• Common area trees are community property. Action by a single owner or resident affecting common area property is deemed unlawful trespass and may be made the subject of legal action by the HOA.
• The unauthorized trimming of common area trees may be treated as vandalism and may be made the subject of legal action by the HOA.
• Along with the above, an owner or resident hiring a third party to trim a tree could result in significant liability to the owner in the event of personal injury or damage to property.
• Under our current CC&Rs and By-Laws, our management company, working through our landscape contractor, is responsible for the maintenance, removal, and replacement of common area vegetation. Any and all tree matters must be brought to the attention of TSG Independent Property Management Company (949‑481‑0555 or general@tsgindependent.com).
• Specific language regarding the maintenance of trees will be incorporated in our CC&Rs and By-Laws which are currently under revision.

For the legitimate extension of services, benefits, and community security, the Association is requesting that Aegean Heights homeowners implementing new property lease agreements provide a copy to our management company:

TSG Independent Property Management, Inc.
Attn: Mr. George Gustave
27129 Calle Arroyo, Suite 1802
San Juan Capistrano, CA 92675

Although the Association has the right to request this information, it has not been our practice, since our original CC&Rs did not address this subject. However, as our CC&Rs are under revision, we anticipate adding this owner stipulation whenever a property is rented or leased or whenever a new tenant occupies a property. For owners with existing tenants, please consider notifying TSG at 949-481-0555 with your lessee’s name(s) and contact information.

For homeowners with qualifying income, the City of Mission Viejo has 0% interest home improvement loans available. These loans are available for roofing, termite treatment and repair, exterior and interior painting, plumbing, windows, flooring, and other repairs. The maximum loan amount is $25,000. Please see the Housing Rehabilitation Program flyer for more details and direct questions to Theresa Dobbs at tdobbs@cityofmissionviejo.org or 949‑470‑3026.

City Ordinance 22-343 signed by Mayor Wendy Buckman on 8 March 2022 amended the City Municipal Code for the election of council members from at-large to district representation. The City Council adopted the new ordinance in compliance with the State of California Government Code Section 34871, in furtherance of the California Voting Rights Act of 2001. Five new districts below were established by the Ordinance. Candidates for City Council must be qualified by law, must reside in the geographical area making up the district from which he or she is nominated, and must be a registered voter of the City of Mission Viejo. District voting will commence with the general municipal elections in November 2022. Existing council members will serve out their terms as district representation is adopted.

More information is available at the City of Mission Viejo’s District Voting News.