Condo dues pile up in San Jose tower
Delinquencies could trigger foreclosures in hundreds of units
Delinquencies for unpaid homeowners dues have topped 100 at a prominent downtown San Jose high-rise with scores of unsold condominiums, raising the specter of foreclosures at the troubled tower.
The condo building at 188 West St. James Street was constructed by Chinabased real estate company Z&L Properties, whose top boss Zhang Li has been linked to a Bay Area fraud case. The tower's owners association has filed notices of at least 190 delinquencies for non-payment of homeowners' dues for unsold units, according to documents filed on Dec. 13 with the Santa Clara County Recorder's Office.
The two-tower project totals 640 units — roughly 320 residences in each tower. The delinquencies involve the western high-rise.
A review of a 184-page document on file with the county revealed that a Z&L Properties affiliate that owns the unsold condominiums in the western tower owes unpaid assessments of more than $1.3 million, the county records show.
The 188 West St. James Owners Association lodged liens against the property. The group warned that it might force a “private sale” of condos to satisfy the unpaid dues and other expenses that have arisen from the delinquencies.
After completing the delay-plagued project, Z&L attempted sales of individual condos in the western tower at West St. James Street and Terraine Street. The eastern tower at West St. James Street and North San Pedro Street remains empty.
Residents who have bought condos in the west tower are responsible for paying the dues on the units they own. The developer is responsible for paying the dues for units that have yet to be sold to anyone.
Some of the delinquencies have lingered long enough to trigger fullfledged notices of default, the final step before foreclosure and sale of the unsold units to satisfy the unpaid debts. The homeowners' association has rescinded some of the default notices — but not all of them.
“With the avalanche of default notices hitting the project, we will have to wait and see how they will respond,” said Bob Staedler,