Lord, spare me from Homeowner's Associations! It seems that they are all powerful and that you are guilty until proven innocent.
Did you know that your Homeowners Association can fine you for each stork that a relative plants on your lawn to celebrate the birth of your child. Or that you can be fined for planting TOO MANY rosebushes?
You can be fined for hanging out your laundry, or hanging a cute little swing by your doorway. You can also be fined if you paint your house the wrong color! AND you can be fined for a fence that is the wrong height, or for having foster children, or for disturbing the new fallen snow!
Wanting to be an officer in a Homeowner Association is the first signal that you may be an incipient petty tyrant. It seems that in an Association, you do it the manager's way or you are wrong. And if you are wrong, you could loose your house.
If your condo fees are not fully paid, or if you dare make an error and step out of code, you could be setting yourself up to loose your house and have to pay court costs and legal fees for the Association.
It seems that in terms of court cases, even when the homeowner has tried their best to redress the situation, the court usually sides with the Association.
So, buyer beware! If you are moving, and you've considered living in a community that has a Homeowner's Association, be sure that you read the fine print before you buy. Don't assume that the "nice" man who tells you all about the Association won't become a raging tyro when he feels you have stepped over the line. One little infraction will put you on their list for life, and you could be seriously hurt financially if one of these dogs gets his teeth into you.
These associations almost seem un-American. What person in their right mind wants to let someone else tell them how to live their life, and manage their home? I hope I'm NEVER faced with the need to live where someone has that kind of power over the details of my life.
Comments (9)
...foster children???...I mean, I once looked into buying a house in celebration (disney's town) and realised that I couldn't survive in that sort of structured world...but foster children???...maybe I didn't get as far as the 'only two children of aryan descent' clause :^(...
Posted by billy | August 22, 2003 4:27 PM
Posted on August 22, 2003 16:27
The flip side of the Home Owner Assoication ~ you have to pay fees to be a member ~ if you don't pay your fees you are not considered a member and they can not fine you as you have posted. Hense why our household is not a member of our "Homeowners Association". The people who are on the association are petty and childish. I attended one meeting and felt like I had gone through a tunnel back to high school jealious tactics. I don't need anymore drama in my life, my kids provide enough of that for me.
Posted by Jamie | August 22, 2003 5:49 PM
Posted on August 22, 2003 17:49
The flip side of the Home Owner Assoication ~ you have to pay fees to be a member ~ if you don't pay your fees you are not considered a member and they can not fine you as you have posted. Hense why our household is not a member of our "Homeowners Association". The people who are on the association are petty and childish. I attended one meeting and felt like I had gone through a tunnel back to high school jealious tactics. I don't need anymore drama in my life, my kids provide enough of that for me.
Posted by Jamie | August 22, 2003 5:49 PM
Posted on August 22, 2003 17:49
To be sure there are some Associations such as you mention. I am the treasurer of ours (150 homes) and I can assure you we don't have any of the problems you allude to. There are two issues: 1) Associations serve a purpose and are good solutions for those who understand the benefits and obligations of joining, and; 2) Associations are "run" by volunteers selected by the members from the membership so everything that can go wrong when unqualified people are given power does, in fact, go wrong. Note that the "fine print" is the CC&Rs. I suggest before buying a home in an Association you attend a monthly meeting to get the "flavor" of what goes on in the Community. And also, get a qualified opinion about Reserve Funds and the Reserve Liability.
Posted by Ron | August 23, 2003 12:20 AM
Posted on August 23, 2003 00:20
I'm with Jamie... Don't join if you don't like whats going on.
Posted by Mad Bull | August 24, 2003 11:37 AM
Posted on August 24, 2003 11:37
The other downside is paying your dudes, yet the HOA let mouthy parents and their kids run the neighborhood. (kids in your yard, basketball court in the street, cars parked anywhere, etc)
You call HOA, they say call the police. You call the police and they say call the HOA. I suggest never buy a home in the winter, unless you've been able to gather information or seen the neighborhood during the summer. I found the perfect house, but it came with neighbors from hell that don't mind driving down the property value of homes less than 6 yrs. old.
Posted by Aaron | June 2, 2004 6:01 AM
Posted on June 2, 2004 06:01
I'm having a problem, sort of harassment. I received a letter detailing a set of rules and regulations for my community. I pay no dues and was not even aware of a homeowner's association. I have lived there 2 years. I went over my closing papers and there is no mention. I think it may be the neighborhood busybody dreaming up a dummy association to have things her way. I guess what I am looking for is information. Have any?
Posted by Samantha | June 2, 2004 8:18 PM
Posted on June 2, 2004 20:18
To Samantha: If your community has a homeowner's association, it should be listed with your city. Some cities actually require C.C.R.'s with new developments. If she's making it up, there will be no record with the city.
Posted by Dawn | June 11, 2004 1:08 AM
Posted on June 11, 2004 01:08
My HOA has made a special rule just for my daughter. She is not allowed to swim after dark. The pool is open until 10p.m., but she is not allowed to go in it.
My daughter is thirty-two years old. Of course this is not the first 'pool problem' we've had. She had to get an injunction against one of the neighbors who lives next to the pool. Every time she went to the pool he would come out and say insulting things to her. The injunction has kept him from harrassing her, but now the HOA president has stopped her to tell her she can't swim after sundown. Input or advice welcome.
Posted by Joyce | July 1, 2004 2:19 AM
Posted on July 1, 2004 02:19