New condo owners and homeowners should create quizzes and AI podcasts on NotebookLM
BlackTechLogy: Condo liens are another reason homeowners should sign up for Property Fraud Alert Notifications with their county's official website
This post is part of a series entitled “BlackTechLogy.” Click here for the archived posts.
I don’t quite remember when I logged into my official county’s website to sign up for “Property Fraud Alert Notifications.” I just remember hearing of a scam about people stealing other property owner’s deeds and how easy it was to do with inattentive homeowners. Outside of that biannual property tax bill, far too few homeowners pay attention to their property records.
This scam conversation happened several years ago. I signed up and completely forgot I’d done so until last month when I received an email with the subject line “Property Fraud Alert Notification.” My eyes widened when I saw a lien on my unit, mainly because I only vaguely knew what a condo lien was.
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I opened the email link to see what happened and glared at my screen. I recognized the amount immediately. Although my condo board’s Treasurer and Registered Agent had credited my account for paying a few thousand dollars in past-due bills while a horrendous property management company left us with $12,017.60 in unpaid bills, some board members were upset that I started using my condo assessments to pay portions of late bills instead of paying the property management company.
I refused to stop until we parted ways with this company, especially after seeing a bright orange gas shut-off sign on our lobby window and our communal lights shut off for several hours. The property manager lied about the lights and claimed it was a “power outage.” Meanwhile, I did some research and found out that our association’s electricity account had a warning that if we didn’t pay the current balance due by end of day, the electricity company would turn our power off.
I took a screenshot and forwarded it along to several owners. As far as I was concerned, this was a breach of contract with the board members and the Community Association Manager. Assessments are supposed to be used to pay for utilities and budgeted repairs, not hidden with no explanation about why.
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But because there's an ongoing rivalry with me and two board members, who I filed discrimination complaints against for being racist and sexist, my bill-paying decision was all the excuse they needed to seek revenge for my state complaints. Even though both of them knew a third board member credited me for all bills paid that the property management company was ignoring, the other board members chose to demote him from the role as Treasurer and illegally remove him from the Secretary of State site altogether under our LLC. I was livid. This was a really good guy who was getting ganged up on for defending me, and I never respond well to bullying.
Recommended Read: “Attorneys, AI may help you in the weakest area of client-attorney relationships ~ BlackTechLogy: Instead of viewing ChatGPT as Unauthorized Practice of Law, consider these eight perks”
I'd already spoken to two of three attorneys I knew beforehand — and had worked with privately — to see if these antics were worth going to court over: the lien, the bills, the board member illegally removed and those two being terrible people. I could fight against the false ledger by arguing unjust enrichment (the board wanting to keep all the money I paid for bills and still collect assessment funds without refunding bill payments) and slander of title (a false statement that is published to a third party, such as a county recorder, and causes financial harm, such as blocking a sale or refinancing).
Them being terrible? Another story entirely.
I was fully prepared to fight for unjust enrichment. The lien, however, caught me off guard. It shouldn’t have. Here’s why. I wasn’t aware that the Illinois Condominium Act gives a green light to condo boards putting a lien on your property even without a judgment first. It would be up to the owners to fight the lien in court to get a lien removal. Our association had never gone that far in the past. We worked out assessment disputes quietly without liens. These two board members chose to play dirty and act like they had no idea about the prior credit. I put my boxing gloves on and was ready to fight it out in court!
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The good news after a condo lien
The good news is the lien was removed three weeks later, my ledger was credited a second time for all bills paid and I ended up with an even higher credit — ironically from one of the vengeful board members. I was still seething about the settlement offer, which required that I agree to pay the legal fees in exchange for these credits. I felt then and still feel now that the condo board should have had to pay the erroneous legal fees for this idiotic lien to begin with, but I was not 100% sure that a judge would agree with me. Why? No matter how I felt, the Illinois Condominium Act requires paying assessments — even with terrible condo board members (and property managers).
Condo laws too often protect the board over the owners, and it made me reevaluate condo ownership altogether. No matter how much I tried to figure out a workaround, I was coming back to the same answer: settle. Even ChatGPT agreed with several human beings (attorneys and family members) that this settlement offer was about the best deal I was going to get without risking skyrocketing legal fees.
After asking a zillion questions weighing all my options — the best part of artificial intelligence is not paying exorbitant legal consultation fees to brainstorm every scenario — I sighed. I was well aware of all the legal docs I’d edited over the years confirming that settlement offers rarely make either side completely happy. Slowly, my boxing gloves came off. I wanted to fight, but even if I won, I could lose more money in legal fees (on my side and theirs). I settled.
Why Google NotebookLM can help homeowners and condo owners
There was another lesson I took from this lien fiasco: the usefulness of Google NotebookLM. Years ago, even though my real estate attorney repeatedly told me to read my condo bylaws and Rules and Regulations to make sure I agreed with everything before Closing Day, we never spoke about the Illinois Condominium Act, which outranks both docs.
I downloaded the NotebookLM app, uploaded one large legal doc I got on Closing Day and linked a few real estate websites with a massive amount of information. Then, I asked the app to create quizzes for me. This way, I could see how much information I comprehended and retained (not just read the words). Although I was pleased with my quiz results (70%), the three questions I answered incorrectly made me do a deeper dive. I created more quizzes.
Then, I found out that NotebookLM will create an AI podcast (approximately 25 minutes) to explain what the articles and quizzes are saying in simpler terms. I listened while walking my dog and doing chores. For the free AI podcasts and quizzes alone, I learned how to move smarter in the future.
I get why people have mixed views about AI, but unless you have someone who will freely listen to you complain, inquire about and ask what-if questions 24/7, I strongly recommend using beneficial apps like NotebookLM. Stop boring your loved ones to death with condo complaints about these topics. Use a platform that will gladly listen to your Kermit the Frog typing rants. It's free. Give it a chance for $0.00 alone.
Did you enjoy this post? You’re also welcome to check out my Substack columns “AAC-PACK,” “Black Girl In a Doggone World,” “BlackTechLogy,” “Homegrown Tales,” “I Do See Color,” “One Black Woman’s Vote” and “Window Shopping” too. Subscribe to this newsletter for the monthly posts on the third Friday. Thanks for reading!