Why residents at this Woodbridge housing development are at odds with a property management firm

Dead plants, faded shutters, and a lack of communication.

These are just a few of the things that residents in The Villages at Rippon Landing community are dealing with.

The housing development just off Route 1 in Woodbridge began construction in 2005, under D.R. Horton, according to Prince William County Director of Development Services Wade Hugh.

Traditionally, a community has a homeowner’s association (HOA) and a board made up of residents that can vote on what takes place in the community.

But according to the community’s governing documents, D.R. Horton still has control over the community, and the residents do not get an HOA or a say what happens in their own community until the developer has finished their bond agreements with the county.

And this means that the company tasked with managing the property – Sequoia Management Company – which many residents are dissatisfied with, cannot be removed, even if the community feels they are not taking care of the community.

“The board of directors is still under developer control. So that means that according to the governing documents, the developers are actually the board of directors,” said Angela Bernado, a community manager for Sequoia.

According to resident Avis Bracey, each homeowner pays $740 a year in fees that go to Sequoia Management Company – the company selected to oversee maintenance for the property. And while the community has been paying fees to Sequoia, Bracey asserts that the money isn’t being used to improve the property.

Bracey stated that she had been in consistent communication with Sequoia about various issues, including the property’s landscaping and the community clubhouse.

“I’ve been fighting about landscaping for years. [Why] can’t we have flowers at the entrance ways…Every year you’re budgeting this money, but we’re not seeing it…you’re fighting me to get furniture for the clubhouse – you’ve budgeted $15,000 – we don’t spend that,” said Bracey.

Bernado stated that the management company had put together a community board that could help make some decisions for the community, but the group had no assertive voting power, as D.R. Horton still has developer control. The community board disbanded, according to Bernado.

“We had that in place, and then about a year ago, a few of folks had transferred out of the community – they had moved – and the other folks, due to time commitments…they just said, ‘We can’t do this right now,’” said Bernado.

Documents from Sequoia stated that just recently 450 citations were sent to community residents for the appearance of their homes.

Bracey stated that this implies the management company isn’t doing their job. Bernado asserts that this is all a part of the bureaucratic process Sequoia is required to follow.

“We go out once a year and do an annual inspection, and that’s something you’ll probably see in a majority of homeowner’s associations. Those were done a month ago, and then the follow up is now occurring…we have to follow the laws of . Meaning we just can’t go right away, we can’t just go out and do something right away…we have to send a notice, then a second notice, we have to hold a hearing,” said Bernado.

Bracey said she has called Sequoia and volunteered to do several things in the community, but so far, the two have not been able to work together.

Bracey is not the only resident with concerns. Andre Taylor, a resident of The Villages at Rippon Landing for five years, has seen several things not being addressed by D.R. Horton and Sequoia in the community.

“There’s not been much outreach, in terms of giving information to us, and informing the residents of the community about things being done…Certain things haven’t been maintained the way they should…I don’t see the value [of my dues] at all. The streets haven’t been paved since I’ve lived here…there needs to be a presentation [of the community] that’s appealing. When it comes time to sell your home, the value is impacted,” said Taylor.

Why are these residents and the management company unable to work together, in a community still under “developer control?”

“Developers sign what’s called a performance agreement with the county…we know with a development it’s going to take at least two years…when the agreement is up or about to expire – usually six months before it expires – we send out notification out to them…then they either have finished the development…or they come back in and say ‘We’re still actively working on the site, we need to extend it’ and they’ll do a bond extension. Which is exactly what’s happened down at The Villages at Rippon [Landing],” said Hugh.

According to county documents, all of the bond agreements for The Villages at Rippon Landing are coming due early next year. Then, Hugh said they will work with D.R. Horton to push them to complete the work and release the community over to the residents. Then residents will be able to form a board under an HOA that could renegotiate or eliminate their contract with Sequoia, due to concerns about work not being done.

“The county’s not in the business of putting businesses out of business…we work with the developers. As long as you’re actively working, and you’re addressing citizen concerns,” said Hugh.

If D.R. Horton were to continue to be unable to complete the agreement, the county could have the bonds defaulted, according to Hugh.