Elderly Los Angeles couple may lose home after termite infestation

LOS ANGELES - Robert and Betty Bivins have lived in their View Park Estates townhouse in Los Angeles since 1987. Now in their 80s, they fear they could lose the home they worked all their lives to keep.

"Some of the balconies started to collapse. They started coming down, and it was like, ‘uh oh,’" Robert recalled.

The collapsing balconies revealed more than structural flaws. They exposed a widespread termite infestation affecting all 74 townhomes in the complex.

"When you’re paying into an HOA, you kind of expect them to take care of business, do the right thing at all times and keep us informed," Robert said.

The couple says their HOA fees jumped from $385 to $525 three years ago. They were told the increase would go toward critical repairs, including balcony retrofitting, but they claim the work was never done.

"The homeowners dues were supposed to go to this," Betty said. "And all they did was take the money. I don’t know what they did with it."

Now, the Bivins say the HOA is demanding more than $52,000 from each homeowner to cover emergency termite repairs. For the couple, that’s money they simply don’t have.

"You know, we’ve worked hard all these years, thinking that we’d be able to relax when we retire," Betty said. "And then all of a sudden this comes up, and you’ve got to give the money now. It’s had my blood pressure up. I’ve been very nervous, because I just don’t understand why this is happening."

Robert says it’s not just the immediate financial strain.

"If they don’t get the money that they want, whatever it is, whether it’s enough or not enough, they can own your house," he explained. "And they’ll essentially have a house that’s anywhere from $500,000 to $800,000 for nothing. That’s the way the law is stated right now."

FOX 11 reached out to the HOA for comment. The response was: "The board has no comment."

For the Bivins, the future remains uncertain. Betty says they had hoped to finally enjoy retirement.

"I don’t want to work until I die," she said. "We had it planned that we would retire and enjoy life."

A GoFundMe has since been launched for the couple. Those looking to help can click here for more information.