HOAs. Are they a law unto themselves?

[gonefishie]

Re: HOAs. Are they a law unto themselves?

It's true that nobody forced anybody to live in area with HOA. I don't know about the rest of the country but here only the old developments before the mid-90 boom don't have HOA. The majority of developments in the suburb have them. If you moved to the burb you're stuck with HOA.

 

[Vlad D Impeller]

Re: HOAs. Are they a law unto themselves?

Why all the complaints about "they"??

When you buy into a HOA (Home Owners' Association) community you agree to abide by the rules and you have a vote on any new rules. You, as a home owner, become part of "they".

You sign a contract to abide by the constitution and laws of the Association.

If you decide later that you don't like the rules it is you, not "they" who screwed up.

BAM! Absolutely square on the nail-head.

 

[cheburashka]

Re: HOAs. Are they a law unto themselves?

It's true that nobody forced anybody to live in area with HOA. I don't know about the rest of the country but here only the old developments before the mid-90 boom don't have HOA. The majority of developments in the suburb have them. If you moved to the burb you're stuck with HOA.

Again, I don't get the "stuck with" aspect of it. I thoroughly appreciate my HOA. HOAs are there to protect property values. They ensure uniformity of build quality, upkeep of property, etc. I live near a development that's almost identical to mine except that it has no HOA. Half the lots were sold to out-of-towners who show up on weekends with tents, trailers and mobile homes and have huge loud parties. No one wants to buy property there now because of the rowdiness, and the people who built homes are upset because they can't sell due the neighborhood having a bad reputation now. I've seen neighborhoods fall apart due to a lack of HOA (and a lack of common sense.) In a world where people were courteous and respectful, they wouldn't be needed. Sadly, I don't see enough courtesy and respect from my neighbors and it's nice to be able to say "that's against the rules" instead of just "that's incredibly rude of you."

 

[moonfish]

Re: HOAs. Are they a law unto themselves?

It's true that nobody forced anybody to live in area with HOA. I don't know about the rest of the country but here only the old developments before the mid-90 boom don't have HOA. The majority of developments in the suburb have them. If you moved to the burb you're stuck with HOA.

I've heard that before. The developers start the thing before houses are sold so when you buy in that area you are automatically in the thing. It can come down to new houses you can afford are all in associations. It helps resale by keeping things looking uniform. All the colors match, cars are put away, lawns are mowed. I'm too redneck for that but it looks nice when you are driving by.

If the people on the board don't like you they can be pretty petty. The only think you can really do is get on the board and try to change things. If you bought the 4 stall garage and have someone mow the lawn for you, it might be easier to get along with.

I've seen a lot of townhouses in them along with the nicer houses with a couple of acres.

 

[achris]

Re: HOAs. Are they a law unto themselves?

... In a world where people were courteous and respectful, they wouldn't be needed. Sadly, I don't see enough courtesy and respect from my neighbors and it's nice to be able to say "that's against the rules" instead of just "that's incredibly rude of you."

Maybe that's why we don't need them here. I have never had to live with any sort of association to tell me to do the right thing. All the neighbours around me get on well and property values are rising just as well as anywhere else. We have owner-occupiers, rentals and even a halfway house in our neighbhood. Some of the houses are well maintained some could do with a little work, but hey, it's a free country where nobody tells you how to keep your house (or that you can't open your garage door!!! ) or gets miffed if you don't mow the lawn this week...

Everybody here lets everybody else live their lives, and we respect each other enough to keep it friendly, without some group of Nazi storm troopers barking orders at us.

If the weather was nice for a weekend on the boat, but I had to stay home to mow the lawn, or re-arrange the pebbles on the street, I'd be more than unhappy.

I think it's quite sad that there are some people in society (or by the sound of this thread, whole groups) who need to be constantly hounded to do the right thing by other people, and without that hounding they show no respect to others... Pathetic! (maybe that's why we don't have them here)

Chris.......

 

[bassman284]

Re: HOAs. Are they a law unto themselves?

BAM! Absolutely square on the nail-head.

What JB and Vlad said. If you didn't have the sense to read the HOA document before you bought, I have no sympathy for you. If (as sometimes happens) your real estate agent didn't let you know that there was an HOA then sue the agent.

The articles of the association are drawn up before the first unit is built and are supposed to be presented to each buyer prior to closing. They do have the force of law so it is generally a waste of time to go to court arguing "fairness" or "reasonableness". It's a contract. If you don't like it, buy somewhere else.

I really don't understand people who sign up for something with a previously established set of rules and immediately decide they will make their own rules. I live in a condo and spent 6 long, painful years on the board of said condo association. Most of the members are no problem but you always have one or two jerks who think they are too "special" to abide by the rules. If you don't like the rules, get lost. There are plenty of dumps out in the country where you can fill your yard with junk and nobody will complain.

 

[LadyFish]

Re: HOAs. Are they a law unto themselves?

Bottom line is that I don't think many of us read the fine print. We are so exited about moving into a new home, and a new neighborhood that we find attractive because it is so well kept, that we didn't read the contract carefully. Or, maybe at the time, we did read it and felt that it was a small price to pay to live where we wanted to.

 

[skargo]

Re: HOAs. Are they a law unto themselves?

Maybe that's why we don't need them here. I have never had to live with any sort of association to tell me to do the right thing. All the neighbours around me get on well and property values are rising just as well as anywhere else. We have owner-occupiers, rentals and even a halfway house in our neighbhood. Some of the houses are well maintained some could do with a little work, but hey, it's a free country where nobody tells you how to keep your house (or that you can't open your garage door!!! ) or gets miffed if you don't mow the lawn this week...

Everybody here lets everybody else live their lives, and we respect each other enough to keep it friendly, without some group of Nazi storm troopers barking orders at us.

If the weather was nice for a weekend on the boat, but I had to stay home to mow the lawn, or re-arrange the pebbles on the street, I'd be more than unhappy.

I think it's quite sad that there are some people in society (or by the sound of this thread, whole groups) who need to be constantly hounded to do the right thing by other people, and without that hounding they show no respect to others... Pathetic! (maybe that's why we don't have them here)

Chris.......

Chris, it's the same in my neighborhood, and in many neighborhoods. Please don't think all of us need, or want HOA to keep our values rising. My town has some of the strongest real estate values in the state of Maryland, and there are hardly any HOAs in this area.

 

[skargo]

Re: HOAs. Are they a law unto themselves?

What JB and Vlad said. If you didn't have the sense to read the HOA document before you bought, I have no sympathy for you. If (as sometimes happens) your real estate agent didn't let you know that there was an HOA then sue the agent.

The articles of the association are drawn up before the first unit is built and are supposed to be presented to each buyer prior to closing. They do have the force of law so it is generally a waste of time to go to court arguing "fairness" or "reasonableness". It's a contract. If you don't like it, buy somewhere else.

I really don't understand people who sign up for something with a previously established set of rules and immediately decide they will make their own rules. I live in a condo and spent 6 long, painful years on the board of said condo association. Most of the members are no problem but you always have one or two jerks who think they are too "special" to abide by the rules. If you don't like the rules, get lost. There are plenty of dumps out in the country where you can fill your yard with junk and nobody will complain.

See people, this here is the attitude you get from holier than thou HOA people, and they are just wrong. I'd put my "dump" against any HOA cookie cutter ugly development any day. It's this attitude though, that would make me NEVER consider an HOA, full of people who think they know what's good for others, and people who think non-HOAs are dumps.

This thread has about run it's course IMO, all we're hearing from pro HOA people is how their little neighborhood is better than non HOA, which is insulting and rude in itself.

 

[LadyFish]

Re: HOAs. Are they a law unto themselves?

Skargo, I think the perfect scenario is when you buy property, you REALLY own it and no one tells you what you can/can't do with it. Property ownership in master planned communities is different is all. Some rules are good, others are ridiculous. Like I said, its the price you pay to live there.

 

[skargo]

Re: HOAs. Are they a law unto themselves?

Skargo, I think the perfect scenario is when you buy property, you REALLY own it and no one tells you what you can/can't do with it. Property ownership in master planned communities is different is all. Some rules are good, others are ridiculous.

I agree 100%. It is about choice, plain and simple. Some yearn to be told what to do, and when and how to do it. Some like to do it on their own. People just need to choose what works for them and not complain about either if it doesn't meet their expectations.

 

[LadyFish]

Re: HOAs. Are they a law unto themselves?

Maybe.

Eighteen years ago, we chose to live on the water in a boating community. The HOA guidelines never entered into our minds since the subdivision had the amenities we wanted. Besides, the last neighborhood we lived in had them and we only had one occassion that really made us mad.

Suffice it to say, we moved here to serve our own purpose to live and fish these waters. Our prior home was chosen because the schools were highly rated and it was a safe and protected neighborhood and a great place to raise our daughter.

When we retire, we'll find about 5 acres on a lake somewhere that won't mind us parking our RV next to the house. So, the next time we purchase, we will be much more concerned about the limitations. And you know what, we'll probably still complain about something.

 

[skargo]

Re: HOAs. Are they a law unto themselves?

Maybe.

Eighteen years ago, we chose to live on the water in a boating community. The HOA guidelines never entered into our minds since the subdivision had the amenities we wanted. Besides, the last neighborhood we lived in had them and we only had one occassion that really made us mad.

Suffice it to say, we moved here to serve our own purpose to live and fish these waters. Our prior home was chosen because the schools were highly rated and it was a safe and protected neighborhood and a great place to raise our daughter.

When we retire, we'll find about 5 acres on a lake somewhere that won't mind us parking our RV next to the house. So, the next time we purchase, we will be much more concerned about the limitations. And you know what, we'll probably still complain about something.

Your retirement plan sounds like ours, although we'll be looking for a place on the Chesapeake.

 

[kenmyfam]

Re: HOAs. Are they a law unto themselves?

Had a lot of rules where we used to live around 12 years ago. Not to begin with but it was brought in after we had lived there for around 3 years. Some of the rules were very petty and very annoying to the local residents. We were told to remove a hanging flower basket outside the front door, I was reported for performing extensive car repairs when in reality I was checking the fluid levels of both of our vehicles and left the hood up while I went to the bathroom. We were denied permission to paint our front door and window frames anything other than white and also to dig a small flower bed along the pathway from the driveway to the front door.
Guess what ???
We sold the place and moved to where we currently live. Great neighborhood, no stupid restrictions and so far very good common sense by everyone around here.
Hope it never changes !!!

 

[Vlad D Impeller]

Re: HOAs. Are they a law unto themselves?

This is such a retarded thread at this point, how complicated is it to understand that the choices we make in life comes comes at a price. Don't sign an agreement then bi*ch about it later.

 

[Philip_G]

Re: HOAs. Are they a law unto themselves?

Around here it's very difficult to find a neighborhood NOT in an HOA.

I think most of it is just a racket for the management companies, I read the financial reports, they're making 60-80k a year per community and you know they have more than one.

My HOA used to be $20 a month, I paid my own trash service at $13 a month.
The HOA decided to contract out trash service to "save everyone money" Now I pay $0 for trash and pay the HOA $38 a month for the SAME COMPANY TO PICK UP MY TRASH, so I'm paying $18 for the service I used to pay $13. Ugh.

I get letters for retarded "infractions" like pulling down my xmas lights and leaving a hook or two up, or having tires around the side of my house, or leaving my trash can out an hour too late on trash day, it's all retarded. All they do is encourage your neighbors to be passive agressive ______'s and call the HOA to whine rather than walk across the street and talk to their neighbor face to face.

we had this conversation at work the other day, what would they do if you refused to sign the HOA agreement at closing?

 

[JRJ]

Re: HOAs. Are they a law unto themselves?

Can you target shoot in your yard there in Perth?

 

[Bigprairie1]

Re: HOAs. Are they a law unto themselves?

We looked at a few homes in a new/newer subdivision that had this kind of rule and we immediately dumped the option and moved on to homes/property that didn't have this kind of constraint....simple.
I'm no scrapyard hillbilly but I do like being able to do what I want on my property...and I am respectful of my neighbours on this regardless.
That said, usually the places that have to put this in place and enforce it have 'space' issues with small lots or have had people or tenants who can't keep their place decent.
Regardless, its pretty simple...check out the rules and move on if they don't suit you. You would say the same thing to some one who did not want to play by your rules on your property....thats the beauty of freedom baby!!
All Good
BP

 

[Fly Rod]

Re: HOAs. Are they a law unto themselves?

"Caveat Emptor" Let the buyer beware.

They are not laws of the city or commwealth, they are by-laws set by the association

When purchasing a home in a Home Owners Association you had better read the association doc's before signing. You want a copy a few days before signing the P&S so that you could read and understand what you are getting yourself into. Home buyer's just sign on the dotted line not knowing what they are signing, the lawyer says sign and they sign, not reading before they sign. If a person purchasing real estate really took the time to read every piece of legal paper that they are going to sign, the closing would last about three hours instead of the normal one hour that most everybody does.

In the HOA you may be required to pay a monthly or yearly fee, paint your home a certain color, can only park in the garage, can not have a clothes line, no commercial vehicles, no kids, no pets, no dogs over a certain size or breed and the list could go on and on.

Every person that owns property should have the Homestead Act. go to your county deeds department.

 

[bruceb58]

Re: HOAs. Are they a law unto themselves?

At my vacation house in Lake Tahoe, my HOA says I can't put my boat trailer in my driveway...not even for a day. Parking it on the street is no problem since they have no jurisdiction. Does not make sense at all. My HOA is a bunch of old retired folks that have nothing better to do than make up new rules...gets ridiculous at times.