I managed this type of life-style myself until there was just me. So, imagine my shock and awe to meet with things most adults already know about. It really is an eye-opener. I KNOW. I was not stewpid either. I just knew what I'm good at dealing with and bills and the payment of them and rules and the following of them, were not subjects I dealt with. Now I deal.
I was taught that you don't do today what you could possibly do tomorrow or some months or or years later if I remember and can even be bother to eventually maybe in the log run or at another future time possibly :(
I don't understand. The letter stated that they expected you to clean out the creek? Or the letter was to inform you that they were going to clean it out, but then never did so?
It is an governing group for a group of houses (normally in a subdivision) that makes rules that the home owner is forces to follow.
The purpose is protect the property values of said houses.
Rules can be very strict.... Approval of any outside modification of the house (colors, materials, decks, pools, size of fence, etc) Can order that a repair be made on a house Specification grass height What may or may not be allow in a yard What type of vehcile can be parked outside on the street/driveway If recreational equipment is allowed outside (boats, jet ski, trailers, old cars etc) If an owner is even allowed to work on their car in their own driveway What trash company to use Ages of residents (retirement villages) Number of pets What kind of pets allowed
I will never make that mistake again. We were buying and were told there was no HOA in place but would be later and we would have input.
Then all of a sudden there were rules already filed at the courthouse years earlier. So that was a big fight. We had a boat and a concrete fountain (I make those) and had installed a pool. All of which he claimed had to go. We got out of that for breach of contract on his part.
Commiserations, my2cents. It sounds like a form of hell to have so much of one's freedom and lifestyle stripped away by petty rules.
This post was edited by inky at December 2, 2019 12:10 PM MST
What you say sounds quite unreal.....are you sure your living in the Land of the aFree and not Russia, China or North Korea ... Unless you buy a Grade one listed building in England and don't live at the top of a sky scraper ,you can generally park your car or boat anywhere on YOUR OWN PROPERTY
Oh they are very real. And some HOAs are worse than what I listed. But I personally have been subject to every rule I listed with the exception of the age of residents. The no boats outside really ticked us off. We told the seller we would have a boat that summer. And did not plan to buy a lake slip or for storage.
I also know a contractor who had a camper shell on his truck to lock his tools up in overnight. And they told him no camper were allowed overnight on any property. These people are crazy with this stuff.
I would not live in a communist place like that, your lives must be like hell and to think you fought the Natzi's with such vigour to get away from that kind of control over your general public...Do your neighbours grass you up to who ever enforces those anal imposed conditions, To me it looks like you are all living in an open prison.... Im just so shocked . Can I ask why you don't just up and move away...or is like like that in every American state ?
I agree. And I did run away. We moved to a house not in a HOA so we do not have to put up with that crap. But sadly some do...they are in a 30yr mortgage. Or are renting a home in one of these subdivisions. Most subdivisions in every state have some sort of HOA involved. We did once and said never again.
Homeowners associations are quasi governmental, in that they must follow the Constitution when dealing with members.. In other words, you are entitled to due process of law in your dealings with them. They cannot just act arbitrarily with you..
In terms of their makeup, they're usually busy bodies who've never had any authority before, and now they do. Some go nuts with that kind of power..
If you tell me specifically what kinds of problems you're having with them, I can give you a better answer.
excon
This post was edited by excon at December 2, 2019 8:34 PM MST
Yes. I belong to one, and am the Secretary / Treasurer. It is not a very difficult job because there are only 12 properties. It probably takes up about 30-60 minutes a month, with an extra 2 or 3 hours preparing for the AGM in October and typing up the Minutes afterwards.
Nope, never have, never will. I live in the country with very few neighbors around me. I can do what I want to do without kissing ass to do so. I have a ham license, so I can put up a tower and dipole antennas without permission. I like to shoot guns, and I have to go no farther than my porch to shoot, no permission needed.