pb4uski
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Having served on two HOA boards, here is the lesson I have learned: problems happen when people don’t read the rules or they feel the rules do not apply to them.
+1
Having served on two HOA boards, here is the lesson I have learned: problems happen when people don’t read the rules or they feel the rules do not apply to them.
I could only laugh at a recent newpaper story in Kona. An elderly woman who owned a condo that she legally rented to long term rentals had written into her lease agreement that the tenants were required to feed the feral cats. Now, I can understand why this could be a problem.
Unfortunately the HOA has become a small dictatorship. Any thoughts?
... I truly get annoyed with entities telling me how to live.
Well that's the good thing about associations, if you do your homework then you know what the rules are before you buy and if you aren't willing to follow the rules then just don't buy there.
^^^ But all you need is one jerk a$$hat to buy in your neighborhood and go against the grain and do bad things... as long as what they do are not illegal then there isn't much that you can do... see marco's post earlier in this thread.
I find it difficult to look to HOA'S as the solution to this fear and yes I said fear because fear makes people do irrational things like give total strangers the power to dictate to them what they can and can't do in their own home environment.
Hah, that's gonna be me one day. My feral's are 100% the reason I've not moved. If I won the lottery, then I'd move, but I'd only rent to folks who agreed to feed the cats, and I'd check up on them! (they are all over 10, and spayed/neutered, so I'll move either way, one day).
^
I often wonder what the "my freedom! No hoa!" crowd wants to do, that a most counties country or city would also let them do, which would also then not be a stick-in-the-eye to their neighbors.
Paint your house a (by all reasonable accounts) alarming color
Keep 3 to 7 cars in various states of disrepair jacked up in your driveway
Let your lawn turn to dust or yard-high weeds
Put up a 10 foot chain fence all around
Turn your home into a weekend party rental
I know these are extremes, but I think the fear of HOAs in a SFH area are more based on myth than fact. It's almost entirely about maintaining property values and not being "that guy" to your neighbors.
I’m guessing the people who object to HOA’s live in areas with no common amenities. Our HOA maintains our golf course, swimming pools, tennis and pickleball courts, gym, Clubhouse, and many acres of common area landscaping and grounds. I can’t imagine how these amenities could be managed without an HOA overseeing it all.
The HOA also plans and holds social activities for the community, as well as maintaining the appearance of the neighborhood by regulating the freedom of homeowners to modify their homes or grounds.
^
I often wonder what the "my freedom! No hoa!" crowd wants to do, that a most counties country or city would also let them do, which would also then not be a stick-in-the-eye to their neighbors.
Paint your house a (by all reasonable accounts) alarming color
Keep 3 to 7 cars in various states of disrepair jacked up in your driveway
Let your lawn turn to dust or yard-high weeds
Put up a 10 foot chain fence all around
Turn your home into a weekend party rental
I know these are extremes, but I think the fear of HOAs in a SFH area are more based on myth than fact. It's almost entirely about maintaining property values and not being "that guy" to your neighbors.
Any new neighborhood in my town pretty much has to have an HOA to maintain the green space required by the local planning commission. We're lucky to be in an older neighborhood that doesn't have one. The city has general rules against junk cars, out of control lawns, etc and non-HOA neighborhoods can be established with covenants to limit things not covered by the city. Typical covenants could be no trailers in driveways, fence type/height, max shed size, etc. Covenants are enforced by a city Code Enforcement department but they don't go out looking for things - they'll only step in if someone complains. What's nice about this model is the rules can't change over time. I've noticed that people don't tend to call Code Enforcement unless there's an egregious issue. Instead it's live and let live for the most part.
Assuming your landscaping plans were approved by the HOA, I don't understand how they can make you change them at your expense. If the HOA erred in approving them, changing the bushes should be on the HOA's dime.The HOA representative gave us a visit stating that someone complained that the bushes were not tall enough. We bought larger bushes to appease these commies.
Assuming your landscaping plans were approved by the HOA, I don't understand how they can make you change them at your expense. If the HOA erred in approving them, changing the bushes should be on the HOA's dime.