HOA! GRrrrrr

[igator99]

I'm glad HOA's can foreclose on a house in Texas. Otherwise, we could have dues scoffers who lived in their houses for thirty years without paying anything and the HOA would be powerless until they tried to sell.

HOAs can be good, or bad, or mixed. No one likes being told what they can do or not do with their property until their neighbor wants to do something with his property which diminishes or ruins your enjoyment or the value of yours.

Keeping on track, the one thing HOAs cannot do is impose something contrary to state or federal law on you, like these dish restrictions. Yet, they try.

Well meet with the HOA guy. He was unaware of until the other day of the otard rules. Very nice guy. They are going to have revise their satellite dish rules. I offered to plant a bush and that is that. I hope the neighbors that reported me are happy and feel real good about themselves.

 

[dishcomm]

I understand your position. I also understand that you don't understand Florida law. Here any HOA with more than ten properties, by law, must have a certified property manager that is licenced by the state, to manage the property. Along with the board, the property manager decides what to do about this kind of problem. In accordance with the laws of Florida, this property has had a lien on it for over two years now and the property is going down hill fast. It is not only becoming an eye sore it is becoming a danger to the community. The owner is refusing to pay any bills to anyone including his mortgage except to the point of having the home taken away. He's a deadbeat. In this scenario in NC the owner could just go on for YEARS and the HOA and all the other debtors would be on the hook until the owner did sell or died. THAT is not what is supposed to happen.

Your analogy of the contractor is not even close. The contractor doesn't live next door.

As for HOA dues being trivial....no they aren't. If everyone decides that then the HOA can't function. Many HOAs pay utilities, do lawn service and pave roads. What happens to YOUR property values when the road in front of it crumbles or the private sewer line continues to leak in your front lawn?

your case is extreme. I was waiting fo you to quote chapter and verse on FL law in this area..The you sort of let the cat out of the bag...Twice..First , you mentioned a lien..I will assume that lien was placed by your HOA for non payment of dues..Then you mentioned mortgage..In this case it is actually not the HOA but the bank holding the note on the house that is going through foreclosure proceedings, now isn't it?..

Now as far as the HOA is concerned...Our HOA provides the amenities only..Plus the maintenence of landscaped common areas such as the entrances to the subdv and around the pool and tennis courts..The HOA also pays utilities for the amenities..The state mainatins the roads ,the streetlights are maintained by the power co, water, sewer and gas are public utilities.....If you live in a developemnt where the uilities are private that is a different story..These type developments do not exist in NC or SC where so much of the very existence of the properties is dependent upon the development..In other words, there are very few if any subdivisions where the above conditions do not exist..If they do, they are in very very high end communtities....
HOA dues in the grand scheme of things are trivial..Not in the sense that they should be an option. No. They should be paid..But foreclosing on a home for not paying them is like using a shotgun to kill a house fly. I was refering to HOA dues only. You loaded a whole bunch of other stuiff inot your story besides HOA dues. Anyway, our HOA can place a lien. That is why I used the contractor as an example. A contractor may place a "mechanics lien" for non payment of services..I get the feeling that you are on one your HOA board and it also looks like you like having this power..So be it...I think HOA's for the most part have gotten out of control...That assertion is confirmed by the NC state govt passing laws to reign in HOA's...
If I don't understand FL law, why don't you tell me what I am missing. Property managers notwithstanding ,that still does not address the issue of whether or not your HOA has the legal authority to foreclose on a property for simply not paying HOA dues. Or at least provide me a link so I can see for myself...
One thing you are incorrect on is your assumption that in NC this could go on for years..Not true..The condition of the property is subject to the covenanats of the subdivision and town ordinances. The fact that the owner isn't paying his bills is none of our concern..Our HOA simply places a lien on the home..If the taxes are delinquent, the home goes to auction on the courthouse steps..If thr mortgage is not paid the house goes into foreclosure and the bank retains the deed and sells the house..Most likey the home will be sold as a distressed property or at auction.
Bottom line is the bank holding the note has sole authority to foreclose. The HOA has the power to place a lien..When the property is sold the lien must be satisfied before the property can change hands.

 

[JosephB]

My problem with HOAs is that they have the power in many jurisdictions that only governments have had in the past, but they are not held to the same standards.

When you elect an HOA board, who oversees the election? Who gets to vote (how many people per house)? What happens if someone challenges the election? What happens if its proven that there is fraud in the election?

What accountability is there for the dues? Can you go see the books at any time to see how much money the HOA has? Can you see where the money is going? Is there any recourse if someone in the HOA steals or misappropriates the money? What if they just flat out waste it? Do you have any say in where the money is spent other than trying to get a seat on the board? Do new expenditures require a vote by the homeowners?

What's to stop the HOA from making up just crazy ass rules because 51 out of 100 people don't like the other 49. Something crazy like you can't have a car less than $30,000 parked on the street, or you can't paint your house white or some other reasonable color.

Now I now most of those questions will be different depending on state, city, county, and specific HOA, but those are all issues that I would ask when confronted with an HOA. This is why we have city governments. Now if a developer and a community wanted to have an HOA to keep up a private road or a private sewer system, then ok. But rules and restrictions on what you can do with property you legally own should only be placed by a legal governmental authority.

 

[igator99]

What's to stop the HOA from making up just crazy ass rules because 51 out of 100 people don't like the other 49. Something crazy like you can't have a car less than $30,000 parked on the street, or you can't paint your house white or some other reasonable color.

Now I now most of those questions will be different depending on state, city, county, and specific HOA, but those are all issues that I would ask when confronted with an HOA. This is why we have city governments. Now if a developer and a community wanted to have an HOA to keep up a private road or a private sewer system, then ok. But rules and restrictions on what you can do with property you legally own should only be placed by a legal governmental authority.

That is the problem with HOA's. The president of my lane told me that only about 20% of the people show up and these are the jerks crying about everything under the sun. He encouraged me to start showing up and I am going to do just that. My neighbors little power trip came crashing down. I feel better about my HOA after talking to the guy in charge of everything. He was a kind older gentleman that couldn't believe the nosy neighbor. I want to thank everyone on this board again for your input and guidance. Scott you have a heck of place here. I forced my HOA to change their crazy laws! :up

 

[dishcomm]

My problem with HOAs is that they have the power in many jurisdictions that only governments have had in the past, but they are not held to the same standards.

When you elect an HOA board, who oversees the election? Who gets to vote (how many people per house)? What happens if someone challenges the election? What happens if its proven that there is fraud in the election?

What accountability is there for the dues? Can you go see the books at any time to see how much money the HOA has? Can you see where the money is going? Is there any recourse if someone in the HOA steals or misappropriates the money? What if they just flat out waste it? Do you have any say in where the money is spent other than trying to get a seat on the board? Do new expenditures require a vote by the homeowners?

What's to stop the HOA from making up just crazy ass rules because 51 out of 100 people don't like the other 49. Something crazy like you can't have a car less than $30,000 parked on the street, or you can't paint your house white or some other reasonable color.

Now I now most of those questions will be different depending on state, city, county, and specific HOA, but those are all issues that I would ask when confronted with an HOA. This is why we have city governments. Now if a developer and a community wanted to have an HOA to keep up a private road or a private sewer system, then ok. But rules and restrictions on what you can do with property you legally own should only be placed by a legal governmental authority.

the hOAs are for the most part unregulated. SOme operate in a virtual vacuum. Borad memebers somethimes get very arrogant about their power and very secretive on their dealings wiht Association business. Our Board does not l;ike being questioned. I was at our anual meeting and we were going over the budget. I noticed there was $1200 budgeted for a telephone at the pool. I inquired about this and said I thought it was excessive. One of the memmebers asked why I thought this and I told them that a public pool does require a telephone for emergencies but there was a more economical; way to do it. I told them of the phoine at another public pool that if the phone is picked up it auto dials 911...I also said that I had seen lifeguards allowing pool guests to make calls on that phione. I said it was not my busines to provide a phone for personal use. One of the board members screamed at me, "It's only a hundred doaalrs a month!"..I shot back 'well it's easy to spend other people's money isn't it.."I got an applause for that from about 2/3's of the 300 or so people in the meeting...
Anyway.. These HOA boards are being reigned in all over the country. People are being shown the light on these little clubs and the power they appoint for themselves..I believ in HOA's but their power should be limited ot subdivision business. They have no right to confiscate property because a homeowner had ther nerve to defy them.....I read a story about 15 years ago about a woman who added French Doors to the front of her condo. The HOA tols her that because she didn't get there apporval, they had the right tell her to restore the unit..They went to court and the HOA won. The woman had to restore the unit and pay th fines..Well, she appealed and she won..According to the story the appeals court was unsatisfied with the reasons wy the modifications could not be done..Basically the judge didn't like the HOA's decision because it seemed to him it was based on a whim rather then good solid reason..
Many times my Dad who was the head of the Architectual Review Committee in the neighborhood where my parents used to live would get requests for things that he would approve as long as they looked good and fit the character of the neighborhood..This is a good thing..But a couple of the board members were pissed becuase my Dad, well within his authority , did not consult with these two particular board members..These two people got their panites in a wad because nobody kissed their ass. And many times thta is what it is all about. Ass kissing.
Oh yeah about car value...One place where my Parents lived on Hilton Head Island did not allow motorcycles....Didn't matter if it was a $40,000 road bike...They also at one time banned pick up trucks. But that rule got kicked out.. Some places do not allow the garage door to be left open if no one was in the garage..I know of one neighborhood that does not allow the homeowners to park in their driveways overnight..This is way over the top...

 

[dishcomm]

I'm glad HOA's can foreclose on a house in Texas. Otherwise, we could have dues scoffers who lived in their houses for thirty years without paying anything and the HOA would be powerless until they tried to sell.

HOAs can be good, or bad, or mixed. No one likes being told what they can do or not do with their property until their neighbor wants to do something with his property which diminishes or ruins your enjoyment or the value of yours.

Keeping on track, the one thing HOAs cannot do is impose something contrary to state or federal law on you, like these dish restrictions. Yet, they try.

Be careful on your terms..Foreclosure is a very specific function . It is a right held by lending institutions..HOA's have to the right to place liens but IMO should not have the right to take property. Removing power form HOA's is a national trend People are fed up not with having nice communties to live in but are fed up with the bullcrap these HOA's try to get away with.
BTW be careful what you wish for..One day you could be found in violation of some obscure rule and lose your house..Then you'd be singing a different tune...This is so outrageous..I don't think homeownership should require having an attorney on retainer.

 

[nickg420]

YEah well my HOA isn't even ran by people who live in my neighborhood.....it's a bunch of young punks who work for a management company. They drive by once a week noting down things to complain about and then either stop by or like the punks they are send you a "screw You Nicely" letter.

One instance that comes to mind is I was eating my cereal one Saturday morning after an a long work week, when my doorbell rang and it was the HOA rep. He had this chastizing eat sh*t grin on his face as he proceeded to tell me "Sir your herby kirby is visible from the street". So my first question as I held on to my cereal bowl and continued to eat my Capn Crunch was "WTF is a herby kirby?" But I was polite and stated I'm not sure what that is. He proceeded to let me know I was in violation because my trashcan could be seen from the road. I kind of chuckled a bit and sat bowl down real slow.

Then I proceeded as follows: *ahem* First of all where do you suggest I put it? Oh right in my garage so I can smell my trash every time I decide to go somewhere or do something in my garage. No thank you I think it's fine where it is. As I attempted to close the door he stops it with his hand and gets out Half of a but sir........Then I follow with a barrage of foul language and explain to him that him nor anyone else ever knock on my door to say anything about my trash can or anything else about my house again......and guess what....they haven't...

I still pay my overly expensive dues for a pool I never swim in and a tennis court I'm to lazy to use. I keep my landscaping very nice and have one of the nicest homes in the neighborhood, but I refuse to be treated that way over something so stupid, and so should everyone else. Regardless of FCC or any other federal law,

OK off my soapbox

 

[lou_do]

My problem with HOAs is that they have the power in many jurisdictions that only governments have had in the past, but they are not held to the same standards.

HOAs are governed by state laws. If they are not being followed the HOA is in violation the same way as if you broke a law.

When you elect an HOA board, who oversees the election? Who gets to vote (how many people per house)? What happens if someone challenges the election? What happens if its proven that there is fraud in the election?

Every HOA I have ever seen allows 1 vote per household. Any HOA I have ever been involed with has a procedure for voting, just like a minicipal election. Each person is checked off and credentials verified and is allowed to turn in 1 vote. In our community the election committee, is made up of volunteers from the community along with people from the property management company. If someone is concerned about fraud, all they have to do is volunteer to be on the election committee.

What accountability is there for the dues? Can you go see the books at any time to see how much money the HOA has? Can you see where the money is going? Is there any recourse if someone in the HOA steals or misappropriates the money? What if they just flat out waste it? Do you have any say in where the money is spent other than trying to get a seat on the board? Do new expenditures require a vote by the homeowners?

Most states require annual meetings and at that time annual budgets and reports are given to the homeowners showing all income and expenses for the previous year. Also records of the HOA are available to any homeowner upon request, within so many hours.

What's to stop the HOA from making up just crazy ass rules because 51 out of 100 people don't like the other 49. Something crazy like you can't have a car less than $30,000 parked on the street, or you can't paint your house white or some other reasonable color.

What is there to stop a city or county commission from passing the same thing? If any HOA did any of the above things, I would say your community has a serious problem. Something like this would be really far fetched.

Now I now most of those questions will be different depending on state, city, county, and specific HOA, but those are all issues that I would ask when confronted with an HOA. This is why we have city governments. Now if a developer and a community wanted to have an HOA to keep up a private road or a private sewer system, then ok. But rules and restrictions on what you can do with property you legally own should only be placed by a legal governmental authority.

In many cases it is apparent that having these rules enforced through a governmental agency is useless. Take a ride through any community that has Code Enforcement rules and look at all of the junk cars, in yards, overgrown lawns and unkept lawns, next to a nice manicured lawn, and I could go on forever with items. The big problem with governments handling it is the fact that they have to few code enforcement officers and 2 or 3 people are expected to handle a large city, which is just impossible.

You are correct that laws governing HOAs varies from state to state, and my answers are for Florida.

 

[scotsmanron]

your case is extreme. I was waiting fo you to quote chapter and verse on FL law in this area..The you sort of let the cat out of the bag...Twice..First , you mentioned a lien..I will assume that lien was placed by your HOA for non payment of dues..Then you mentioned mortgage..In this case it is actually not the HOA but the bank holding the note on the house that is going through foreclosure proceedings, now isn't it?..

Yes we placed the lien for non-payment and now we are going through forecloseure as the home owner refuses to acknowledge the HOA at all. And no the back is not doing it...at least not yet. The owner makes JUST enough payments to keep the wolf away from the door. On the other hand the bank has notified us that if we do foreclose that they will be a party.

Now as far as the HOA is concerned...Our HOA provides the amenities only..Plus the maintenence of landscaped common areas such as the entrances to the subdv and around the pool and tennis courts..The HOA also pays utilities for the amenities..The state mainatins the roads ,the streetlights are maintained by the power co, water, sewer and gas are public utilities.....If you live in a developemnt where the uilities are private that is a different story..These type developments do not exist in NC or SC where so much of the very existence of the properties is dependent upon the development..In other words, there are very few if any subdivisions where the above conditions do not exist..If they do, they are in very very high end communtities....

In that case you don't understand how Florida is/works. Here we can have an HOA that pays EVERYTHING out of the dues...garbage, water, gas, electricity and even the roads and sewers. And they don't even have to be close to being high end. My previous HOA was that way and all the properties were townhouses of middle class type. If the HOA didn't make absolutely SURE that the members paid their dues EVERYONE was in danger of losing some portion of their utilites or the property could fall into disrepair. We charged late fees and after a certain amount of time issued a lien. If after ONE YEAR they didn't pay the lien we started foreclosure proceedings. In some cases it was the only way that we could get the owners attention. It was amazing how once a foreclosure notice showed up that we tended to get a check almost immediately...

HOA dues in the grand scheme of things are trivial..Not in the sense that they should be an option. No. They should be paid..But foreclosing on a home for not paying them is like using a shotgun to kill a house fly. I was refering to HOA dues only. You loaded a whole bunch of other stuiff inot your story besides HOA dues. Anyway, our HOA can place a lien. That is why I used the contractor as an example. A contractor may place a "mechanics lien" for non payment of services..I get the feeling that you are on one your HOA board and it also looks like you like having this power..So be it...I think HOA's for the most part have gotten out of control...That assertion is confirmed by the NC state govt passing laws to reign in HOA's...
If I don't understand FL law, why don't you tell me what I am missing. Property managers notwithstanding ,that still does not address the issue of whether or not your HOA has the legal authority to foreclose on a property for simply not paying HOA dues. Or at least provide me a link so I can see for myself...

http://www.myflorida.com/dbpr/lsc/hoa/index.shtml

Our HOA laws are TOTALLY different. For instance, our election of officers is audited and verified by the State EVERY TIME, none of this "appointing" officers crap. We are very heavily regulated because of the "Condo Nazi" stuff that has gone on in South Florida. Now we can't do the things that you seem, rightly, to be worried about.

One thing you are incorrect on is your assumption that in NC this could go on for years..Not true..The condition of the property is subject to the covenanats of the subdivision and town ordinances. The fact that the owner isn't paying his bills is none of our concern..Our HOA simply places a lien on the home..If the taxes are delinquent, the home goes to auction on the courthouse steps..If thr mortgage is not paid the house goes into foreclosure and the bank retains the deed and sells the house..Most likey the home will be sold as a distressed property or at auction.
Bottom line is the bank holding the note has sole authority to foreclose. The HOA has the power to place a lien..When the property is sold the lien must be satisfied before the property can change hands.

Unfortunately, here, things coud go on for years before the laws were changed. A person living in my old townhouse association could live almost free, except for his mortgage, because all we could do was assign a lien and we couldn't even report to a credit agency. Think how much you could save each month if you didn't pay any utilites or outside maintenence. A lot isn't it? The problem was some owners just didn't care if you put that lien on or not, houses were going up so fast that it was better for them to pay it out of the future sale.

 

[scotsmanron]

Be careful on your terms..Foreclosure is a very specific function . It is a right held by lending institutions..HOA's have to the right to place liens but IMO should not have the right to take property. Removing power form HOA's is a national trend People are fed up not with having nice communties to live in but are fed up with the bullcrap these HOA's try to get away with.
BTW be careful what you wish for..One day you could be found in violation of some obscure rule and lose your house..Then you'd be singing a different tune...This is so outrageous..I don't think homeownership should require having an attorney on retainer.

Now who is using extreme examples?

I've lived in four HOAs in the past 25 years and except for the problem with my D* dish I've not had ONE problem with ANY of them. All of these, "car in the driveway", "garage door open", "value of the car" thing are VERY extreme examples and for the most part are what winds up in the local papers and then on national news....and they need to, just like the guy in S. Florida that had the HOA bitch about his US flag.

In Florida you can't foreclose by HOA except for non-payment of dues...NO OTHER REASON.

 

[scotsmanron]

HOAs are governed by state laws. If they are not being followed the HOA is in violation the same way as if you broke a law.


Every HOA I have ever seen allows 1 vote per household. Any HOA I have ever been involed with has a procedure for voting, just like a minicipal election. Each person is checked off and credentials verified and is allowed to turn in 1 vote. In our community the election committee, is made up of volunteers from the community along with people from the property management company. If someone is concerned about fraud, all they have to do is volunteer to be on the election committee.


Most states require annual meetings and at that time annual budgets and reports are given to the homeowners showing all income and expenses for the previous year. Also records of the HOA are available to any homeowner upon request, within so many hours.


What is there to stop a city or county commission from passing the same thing? If any HOA did any of the above things, I would say your community has a serious problem. Something like this would be really far fetched.


In many cases it is apparent that having these rules enforced through a governmental agency is useless. Take a ride through any community that has Code Enforcement rules and look at all of the junk cars, in yards, overgrown lawns and unkept lawns, next to a nice manicured lawn, and I could go on forever with items. The big problem with governments handling it is the fact that they have to few code enforcement officers and 2 or 3 people are expected to handle a large city, which is just impossible.

You are correct that laws governing HOAs varies from state to state, and my answers are for Florida.

Good post. As I stated above, in Florida HOA elections are audited by the State. We don't need no stinkin' hangin' chads!!!!!!

 

[JosephB]

HOAs are governed by state laws. If they are not being followed the HOA is in violation the same way as if you broke a law.


Every HOA I have ever seen allows 1 vote per household. Any HOA I have ever been involed with has a procedure for voting, just like a minicipal election. Each person is checked off and credentials verified and is allowed to turn in 1 vote. In our community the election committee, is made up of volunteers from the community along with people from the property management company. If someone is concerned about fraud, all they have to do is volunteer to be on the election committee.

But what if there IS fraud? Is there any recourse? What's to stop 51% of the homeowners from taking over the board and shutting everyone else out and running away with all the money?

Most states require annual meetings and at that time annual budgets and reports are given to the homeowners showing all income and expenses for the previous year. Also records of the HOA are available to any homeowner upon request, within so many hours.

What say do you have in how the money is spent, other than electing representatives to the board? Like one previous poster said, what's to stop them from spending $2k a year on a phone in the pool house?

What is there to stop a city or county commission from passing the same thing? If any HOA did any of the above things, I would say your community has a serious problem. Something like this would be really far fetched.

County comissions and city councils are bound by the US constitution, State constitutions, and state and federal laws. HOAs are only bound by state laws in the states that regulate them. And, I'm not saying that local governments are perfect either. I have disagreed with several zoning and ordinance decisions made by some of the localities where I live.

In many cases it is apparent that having these rules enforced through a governmental agency is useless. Take a ride through any community that has Code Enforcement rules and look at all of the junk cars, in yards, overgrown lawns and unkept lawns, next to a nice manicured lawn, and I could go on forever with items. The big problem with governments handling it is the fact that they have to few code enforcement officers and 2 or 3 people are expected to handle a large city, which is just impossible.

Then that is an issue you need to take up with the city. That's no excuse for a non-governmental body to take over governmental responsibilities.

 

[dishcomm]

YEah well my HOA isn't even ran by people who live in my neighborhood.....it's a bunch of young punks who work for a management company. They drive by once a week noting down things to complain about and then either stop by or like the punks they are send you a "screw You Nicely" letter.

One instance that comes to mind is I was eating my cereal one Saturday morning after an a long work week, when my doorbell rang and it was the HOA rep. He had this chastizing eat sh*t grin on his face as he proceeded to tell me "Sir your herby kirby is visible from the street". So my first question as I held on to my cereal bowl and continued to eat my Capn Crunch was "WTF is a herby kirby?" But I was polite and stated I'm not sure what that is. He proceeded to let me know I was in violation because my trashcan could be seen from the road. I kind of chuckled a bit and sat bowl down real slow.

Then I proceeded as follows: *ahem* First of all where do you suggest I put it? Oh right in my garage so I can smell my trash every time I decide to go somewhere or do something in my garage. No thank you I think it's fine where it is. As I attempted to close the door he stops it with his hand and gets out Half of a but sir........Then I follow with a barrage of foul language and explain to him that him nor anyone else ever knock on my door to say anything about my trash can or anything else about my house again......and guess what....they haven't...

I still pay my overly expensive dues for a pool I never swim in and a tennis court I'm to lazy to use. I keep my landscaping very nice and have one of the nicest homes in the neighborhood, but I refuse to be treated that way over something so stupid, and so should everyone else. Regardless of FCC or any other federal law,

OK off my soapbox

Oh yeah...Read this..I once got a notice about my trcuk having a ladder rack on it while it was parked in my driveway...I rea dthe covenants very carefull and discovered that there is no prohibition for this demonic activity...SO sent the letter back to the HOA with the very polite request to find in the covenants where ladder racks were a no no..Never heard back...But the best part is this: One of the board members uised to live right down the street...He had to pass my house to get home. I stopped him one day when he said helo and I told him thta I appreciated the job the board was doing to keep thngs nice..I asked abou the rack ..His contention was thet rack violated the policy on commercial vehicles..This was a Ranger Pickup. No commercial markings of any kind..Per the restrictions...So I told him in no unceratin terms that I thought it was in very poor form that I be singles out because a board member was a neighbor o fmine..He tried to deny the obvious ..I told him that the rules need to be enforced totally and equally or they meant nothing..I went on to say that if he could prove to me that at least once a week he and the other board members toured the entire neighborhood and cited every single violation including the ones by their friends, he could come and talk to me..Never heard from them or him again...A little side note..This guy's wife was an arrogant snooty bitch..She hated us because of an incident involving her daughter and my son..They were real little..Like 5 years old..They were playing in my yard with other kids and the girl fell. She rang my doorbell and complained to my wife that my son had knocked her down..MY wife was watching the kids and my wife told the girl that tattling was not very nice and she needed to go home now...After that the HOA guy's wife always gave us dirty looks...Yes I know this is a long read..But it typifies the crap that one puts up with when dealing with HOA's and petty neighbors...

I ike your appraoch with the bowl of Cap'n Crunch..Nice touch..The only thing that would have topped that was you answering the door with a half closed bathrobe and knee high black old guy socks...LOL!!!!!

 

[dishcomm]

But what if there IS fraud? Is there any recourse? What's to stop 51% of the homeowners from taking over the board and shutting everyone else out and running away with all the money?

What say do you have in how the money is spent, other than electing representatives to the board? Like one previous poster said, what's to stop them from spending $2k a year on a phone in the pool house?

County comissions and city councils are bound by the US constitution, State constitutions, and state and federal laws. HOAs are only bound by state laws in the states that regulate them. And, I'm not saying that local governments are perfect either. I have disagreed with several zoning and ordinance decisions made by some of the localities where I live.

Then that is an issue you need to take up with the city. That's no excuse for a non-governmental body to take over governmental responsibilities.

"What is there to stop a city or county commission from passing the same thing? If any HOA did any of the above things, I would say your community has a serious problem"....That is a very poor comparison...Elected officials are duty bound by law and the penalties for fraud and graft are severe....HOA board members can and sometimes do go of the deep end..And no one can stop them....The only rscorse is through the civil courts ..And that process is very slow. Meanwhile the residents have to endure the indignance...
I am not opposed to HOA's..I am opposed to out of control, over zealous and self important HOA members

 

[igator99]

Oh my a ladder rack! You worker you. How terrible that your community must suffer seeing that day after day. I'm a country boy so this level of being petty and childish is new to me. I wish these things were the biggest problems in my life. Some of those people are simply sick.

 

[digiblur]

If only people appreciated the neighborhoods they were living in. You ought to see some of the BS in other neighborhoods I see day in and day out.

 

[dishcomm]

If only people appreciated the neighborhoods they were living in. You ought to see some of the BS in other neighborhoods I see day in and day out.

As I said.I am not oposed to HOA's..We chose our neighborhood because it had one..I do oppose HOA board members who think they are landlords.....

 

[igator99]

If only people appreciated the neighborhoods they were living in. You ought to see some of the BS in other neighborhoods I see day in and day out.

Not sure what you mean by BS. HOA's started out insuring property values. Any person would agree junk cars, not mowing your grass, not keeping up your house like painting it are all things that decrease the value and desirability of the neighborhood. They have moved from the sane to the crazy like having a ladder rack on your truck, not putting your garbage cans outside, satellite dishes etc... I wonder what Thomas Jefferson would think about what HOA's have evolved into.

 

[RVD420]

I live on a 30 acre hobby farm, so I dont have to deal with a HOA. But I used to live in a highend suburb. We didn't have an HOA, but the township had strict ordinances that the township closely followed (i.e grass not taller than 3.5 inches, no vehicles in the driveway that didn't have current registration, ect...)

The whole township was nice and clean.

I myself don't think HOAs are nessarry, just good local ordinances that are followed and enforced are all that are really needed.

 

[JosephB]

Not sure what you mean by BS. HOA's started out insuring property values. Any person would agree junk cars, not mowing your grass, not keeping up your house like painting it are all things that decrease the value and desirability of the neighborhood. They have moved from the sane to the crazy like having a ladder rack on your truck, not putting your garbage cans outside, satellite dishes etc... I wonder what Thomas Jefferson would think about what HOA's have evolved into.

Honestly he would be appalled at the idea of an HOA at all. But then again he'd be appalled at 98% of the US Code as well.

You know, there's nothing in the constitution or the law that says you're guaranteed to have a house that is as valuable as it was when you paid for it.