Neighborhood association/Garden club ???

[W2R]

I was struck by that too.

pb4uski had some good ideas in post #19, but it sounds to me like a lot of groundwork would need to be done before the neighbors in this community would comply.

 

[Lewis Clark]

we just moved to an hoa neighborhood.

After years of putting up with neighbors' inconsideracies, large commercial trucks left idling in driveways for hours, junk in yard, clotheslines, clothes hanging out windows to dry, rvs blocking everyone's view, junk boats that will never float again, cars blocking driveways, police coming by at 3am every few days, fences thrown up wherever the will dictates and lawns 2 feet deep in grass, etc.....we love where we are. Oh! That was all just one house in a million dollar neighborhood ... But we'd had enough.

At least it's clear what is and isn't allowed and before you move here you know what to expect. It may not be for every one but for us....heaven.

+ 10,000

 

[dirtbiker]

We just moved to an HOA neighborhood.

After years of putting up with neighbors' inconsideracies, large commercial trucks left idling in driveways for hours, junk in yard, clotheslines, clothes hanging out windows to dry, RVs blocking everyone's view, junk boats that will never float again, cars blocking driveways, police coming by at 3am every few days, fences thrown up wherever the will dictates and lawns 2 feet deep in grass, etc.....we love where we are. Oh! That was all just one house in a million dollar neighborhood ... but we'd had enough.

At least it's clear what is and isn't allowed and before you move here you know what to expect. It may not be for every one but for us....heaven.

There are two types of people in this world. Those who like HOAs, and those that despise them. If it works for you, more power to you. I'll take a neighbor's blight for freedom to do what I'd like on my own property. I understand the draw to HOAs, I really do, but I can't stand mine.

 

[dirtbiker]

Just curious... have either of you ever actually lived in a HOA? Yes or no?

Unfortunately, yes. Six years and counting in my HOA. My wife talked me into it, and I've hated every minute of it. I'm just not an HOA type of person. We've been keeping our eye out for something on acreage in the country, but the right opportunity hasn't presented itself yet. Although I hate having neighbors dictate what I do with my property, I'm only going to make a move when it makes financial sense.

This being said, I knowingly moved into the HOA. That is COMPLETELY different than moving to a place and then having an HOA thrust upon a person. Either start a neighborhood with an HOA, or never have one.

 

[Aerides]

There are two types of people in this world. Those who like HOAs, and those that despise them.

Absolutely. And on this board, it's like...
FA or no FA
SS at 62 or FRA

Etc - binary responses, and those who think differently are insane and cannot be trusted.

But on this I agree: converting a non-HOA development to HOA is a non-starter. Or vice-versa. HOA is a decision to make before you buy, not to impose after. It's probably more needed/helpful in closer smaller-lot communities than more spread out ones. And one's personally tolerance level for riff-raff.

 

[pb4uski]

I was responding to the general hate for HOAs.

I was NOT responding to the notion of an HOA being set up for existing homes simply because I've never heard of such a thing and I think in order to do it that ALL homeowners would need to agree to it.

 

[Amethyst]

For 29 years, we lived in a section of 3 to 5 acre lots. The builder was supposed to organize a HOA once the lots were all sold, but sales slowed after a few of us had bought in, and he never bothered. So, no HOA.

We were on a shared driveway with 2 other homes. All three owners took care of our lots, which were beautiful, way nicer than anything you could buy in the county.

Unfortunately, the people who built on the lot next to our triad, were junk collectors. While the street face of their home was always kept up, the side facing our shared driveway slowly became a junkyard. He favored old, nonrunning military vehicles. We had moldering APVs and tanks from the Korean War and Vietnam facing us every time we drove in and out. They never painted the wood frame or garage doors on that side of their home, so those rotted out and rusted out. Of course they parked multiple cars on that side - two working adults, one teenage son, never less than 5 cars. They stored his kit cars and hobby equipment in the garage.

The eyesore, perpetrated by these neighbors, seriously affected the resale value of our home and the other one that was resold twice while we lived there. It never fetched what it should have, and neither did ours.

 

[Badger]

I can tell you what my response would be if I lived in a free neighborhood and got a letter asking to form an association that costs X dollars per household. It wouldn't be friendly to say the least. A garden club is one thing, but once you're talking about an association where everyone pays money, it turns into a group of Karens dictating what others should do. No thank you. And I'm sure most start with honest intentions, but I think HOAs are akin to communism.

+100

I don't live in a neighborhood with a HOA and don't ever intend to. I have no intention to be told what to do with my property unless it is some legal issue with the city. A good friend of mine lives in a condo and is the president of their HOA. He is pretty fed up with some of the people (Karens) and the stupidity of people who pressure to frivolously spend money intended for future capital expenses and/or maintenance .



Cheers!

 

[Yoheadden]

Sooo, that would be a no the the HOA idea. Lol

Seriously though, I know I used Neighborhood Association in the title, but it was more to categorize the thread. I suppose I could have just used neighborhood beatification project, which is really more along the lines of what I was thinking. Sending out a letter once or twice a year, only asking for their consideration in donating X amount of dollars, based on actual quotes, to help maintain the islands that we and our families see every day. I would feel guilty trying to organize any type of community cleanups because I work on the weekends, so I feel outsourcing the cleanup and maintenance would be the next best thing. Of course once you do send 60+ letters out there, I’m sure there will be at least 15/20 different ideas, but that can be dealt with then.
Thank you for everyone who took the time to respond and as always, the spirited discussion. This is why we ask ?s, because everyone brings something to the conversation.

 

[pb4uski]

Just curious... have either of you ever actually lived in a HOA? Yes or no?

Yes or no is all that I'm allowed to say? What, scared that I might actually say something intelligent? Don't worry, I'll just babble on like I usually do.

Your question is completely irrelevant to my post. I agreed to what dirtbiker was saying, because the residents of that neighborhood had ALREADY BEEN LIVING THERE for years, presumably because they like it there just the way it is. And then someone comes in and says, "Hey, how about forking out a bunch of unplanned landscaping dough, and by the way you need to send me the same amount every month for the rest of your life whether you want to or not"? It's only human nature to resist that sort of approach, which of course is completely opposite of moving into a community that already had an HOA that you agreed to.

The OP needs to do the groundwork, get a majority of residents willing to get out there and do the hard work of regularly cleaning up (for free), and then organize an ongoing community cleanup. At this stage that is really all that can be done.

The fact that there have been community cleanups over the years and nobody was interested enough to keep working on it, doesn't bode well for this approach. But charging the other (presumably uninterested) homeowners years after they bought their houses? That is not going to be well accepted by those like dirtbiker and forum members who agreed with him in this thread.

First, where did I even suggest that responses were limited to yes or no? Second, my question was more related to living in an HOA than an after-the-fact HOA.

Strange that you read that I was expecting solely yes or no into a simple request of whether you or dirtbiker had an actual experience that informed your opinion.

Third, you never did answer the yes or no question.

I agree that an after the fact HOA is unfair. I had originally thought that it couldn't be done but after a little research I guess it can be done in some states even if all residents don't concede to it.

 

[marko]

For 29 years, we lived in a section of 3 to 5 acre lots. The builder was supposed to organize a HOA once the lots were all sold, but sales slowed after a few of us had bought in, and he never bothered. So, no HOA.

We were on a shared driveway with 2 other homes. All three owners took care of our lots, which were beautiful, way nicer than anything you could buy in the county.

Unfortunately, the people who built on the lot next to our triad, were junk collectors. While the street face of their home was always kept up, the side facing our shared driveway slowly became a junkyard. He favored old, nonrunning military vehicles. We had moldering APVs and tanks from the Korean War and Vietnam facing us every time we drove in and out. They never painted the wood frame or garage doors on that side of their home, so those rotted out and rusted out. Of course they parked multiple cars on that side - two working adults, one teenage son, never less than 5 cars. They stored his kit cars and hobby equipment in the garage.

The eyesore, perpetrated by these neighbors, seriously affected the resale value of our home and the other one that was resold twice while we lived there. It never fetched what it should have, and neither did ours.

I could've written this.

As I noted above, this was our exact experience.

We sold our forever home (my grandfather's homestead) which was gut wrenching and very emotional.

Plunking down $1MM+ for a house no longer guarantees that people will share your sense of self-respect and respect for neighbors. We sought out someplace that would at least have some framework of expectations.