help with HOA

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badatmath

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I have a letter here from the management company last Nov that states having a tree is not in the CC&Rs it was a request. I requested to not have one and she said sure.

As of yesterday they seem to have decided it is an actual "rule" thought I have not been provided "proof" of this rule.

I really don't want the damn thing as I do not have space but of course I am not going to sue the HOA either. (The last nursery I had refused to plant one - so it will be a hassle - I was trying to be "nice" by going along with the "request").

Any suggestions? I am rather upset over this as I thought it was long since settled. It is far too hot to plant right now (in AZ) by my way of thinking.
 
In our condo association the rules are published and are on the association website. If they haven't provided you and other owners with written rules, then there are no rules.

Sounds like they are making stuff up. Are there other properties in your HOA that do not have a tree?
 
badatmath said:
As of yesterday they seem to have decided it is an actual "rule" thought I have not been provided "proof" of this rule.
Click to expand...


That's a strange one, requiring that you have a tree (where, what kind?), especially in Arizona. It's either in the CC&R's (or addendum) or it isn't, I assume you have a copy. I would hold off and do nothing, it's up to them to show that it's required.
 
pb4uski said:
Sounds like they are making stuff up. Are there other properties in your HOA that do not have a tree?
Click to expand...

Yes.

They just replied to me that all properties look better with trees. They apparently want me to have the lines marked again and shop around until I get some fool to dig a hole . . . where I have been told is not enough room. I would guess its like 12 inches between electric and cable. I guess I will need to get stakes and have it marked in a way that does not wash off.

Whole thing seems ridiculous.
 
I mean sure the marking is free but I DID THIS ONCE. The lines probably not running around down there playing games so I would think it would be sufficient that I reported the verdict of the nursery who would not do it. . . I don't want to argue every 6 months over this.
 
It would be best if you read the CC&R's yourself. They are a pain to read but extremely important. Do you have a copy?
 
Blooming Late said:
It would be best if you read the CC&R's yourself. They are a pain to read but extremely important. Do you have a copy?
Click to expand...

+1

If you need a copy, it should be available on your community web site or from the management company.
 
The CC&R just state all dead plants must be replaced. Which they been. Just with other things. . . .

And the current board just showed up last year - i been here 20 and its not been a problem.
 
I don't think there is such a thing as an inspector who will come out once lines are marked and say yep it won't fit.
 
Yep there is no plant list or "all yards must have 1 tree and 2 bushes" or anything like that. It is mostly about being free of weeds, trash, pink flamingos, removing dead plants . .
 
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Screw 'em then. If they want a tree, they can put it in.
 
badatmath said:
Yep there is no plant list or "all yards must have 1 tree and 2 bushes" or anything like that. It is mostly about being free of weeds, trash, pink flamingos, removing dead plants . .
Click to expand...

in that case i'd, politely at first, [-]demand[/-], er, ask, your board to show you chapter and verse. it's their burden to prove the rule, not yours. absent that i wouldn't do a thing.
 
As far as I can tell they hope I will give in if they nag long enough. But I can't do anything about the stupid lines besides re-mark them and tell them the same thing I already told them. Which seems foolish for something that is only "requested". Thanks all for letting me vent. I am tired of summer 2020.
 
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Sounds like you need to reach out to your board and not the hired manager. Ask for clarification on where in the HOA docs it says you need a tree. You may have to attend the next board meeting as well. They may be referencing a landscape plan created at the time of construction.
 
Just stick a dead branch in the ground. Tell them you have a brown thumb.

j/k. Ignore them and make them come after you officially. They won't.
 
If there is no rule about the size of the tree, you can plant a small 2 foot tree, that will grow in 10 years to be a nice size.

You can always buy a tree from here:

https://www.directgardening.com/94-tree-sales#/price-3-8

They are cheap and small, so easy to plant, come with a 1 yr warranty (last time I bought some stuff , just keep the actual mailing label from the package).
 
Sunset said:
If there is no rule about the size of the tree, you can plant a small 2 foot tree, that will grow in 10 years to be a nice size.

You can always buy a tree from here:

https://www.directgardening.com/94-tree-sales#/price-3-8

They are cheap and small, so easy to plant, come with a 1 yr warranty (last time I bought some stuff , just keep the actual mailing label from the package).
Click to expand...

thanks I will look and see if anything looks likely to grow in the desert.
 
COcheesehead said:
Sounds like you need to reach out to your board and not the hired manager. Ask for clarification on where in the HOA docs it says you need a tree. You may have to attend the next board meeting as well. They may be referencing a landscape plan created at the time of construction.
Click to expand...

I don't have the slightest idea who is on the board. They only meet once a year so far as I know. Less than 50 houses - it has never been very formal.
 
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This happened when our AC went out a few years ago. We had just put in wood floors and didn't have the repair funds to fix the AC immediately, so we were just going to get a window unit to tide us over. I asked the HOA if that was going to be a problem, and they promptly said it was "against the rules" of the HOA - similar to your situation. I asked them to show me where in the rules it said that, and I never got a response. I put the window unit in and it lasted a few months until we were ready for a repair - no problems! If I were you, I would go with @harlee 's advice first - do what you want, and if they nag again or you get a nasty letter from them that is when you take @rk911 's advice and ask for the verbatim words from the community rules.
 
badatmath said:
thanks I will look and see if anything looks likely to grow in the desert.
Click to expand...


Being in the desert does limit the type of tree (low water) you should use but even a native tree like a mesquite will require a supplemental water source for the first few years. Do you have a watering system installed in your landscaping?
 
If its not mandated in the CCRs or another HOA governing document, I would say you are within your rights to refuse and make them provide evidence to the contrary. Normally to make a change to the CCRs most boards cannot do so without a proxy vote by a majority of members, so its doubtful they could have updated the CCRs to cover a tree without your knowledge.
 
badatmath said:
I don't have the slightest idea who is on the board. They only meet once a year so far as I know. Less than 50 houses - it has never been very formal.
Click to expand...

You should probably educate yourself more on the board. They can be helpful or not. The manager is just a hired hand of the board.
You were required to be given the HOA docs when you bought. I would reference back to those. There may also be a website for your HOA. Who do you send payments to? Ask them how to contact the board.

No offense to you, but when I served on HOA boards, the problems always arose when 1. Residents didn’t know or care to take time to know the rules or 2. They didn’t think they applied to them.

I would figure out who is on the board and reach out to them.

All this makes me worry that your HOA probably also doesn’t have a reserve study which is a hidden time bomb for special assessments.

You live there, I would get up to speed on the doings of the HOA or more surprises may be in your future.
 

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