Get Premium
Dark mode theme is available exclusively for premium users. Learn more about the benefits of subscribing.
No fees, cancel anytime.
Dark Mode 
No fees, cancel anytime 
then open in external browser
and click "Open in External Browser" 
30 People Share Their Absolute Worst Homeowner Association Stories
Interview With Author
The entire purpose of a Homeowners' Association (HOA) is to make our lives easier — to keep neighborhoods neat, safe, and welcoming. In theory, if you move into a new residence within its jurisdiction, you should sense a host of perks straight away, from strikingly manicured lawns to exclusive amenities and community-wide 4th of July celebrations. But far too often, board members go on power trips to keep residents under their heels, and even charge for the pleasure.
Small wonder, then, that many people are sick and tired of these organizations that spiral out of control. So when Redditor Glam_SpaceTime reached out to fellow members of 'Ask Reddit' and invited them to share the worst experiences they’ve ever had with HOAs, the responses came flooding in.
To show you the ridiculous lengths they go to frustrate their residents, we at Bored Panda gathered some downright infuriating HOA horror stories from the thread. So continue scrolling and upvote as you go, but be warned: these responses might make you immediately abandon the idea of ever living in a residential neighborhood. Let us know about your own experiences in the comments, and then be sure to check out our last publication filled with HOA nightmares right over here.
This post may include affiliate links.
#1
I slipped in my driveway and fell and broke my femur near my hip and couldn't get up. I was laying in my driveway calling for help for about 30 minutes and I could hear people walking past but nobody stopped for quite a while. I eventually asked someone to call an ambulance as my phone was in my car out of reach and got taken care of. Spent a few days in the hospital and when I got home I had a letter from my HOA saying I was in violation for sleeping in my driveway in the middle of the day. So the people who walked by and definitely heard me call for help and didn't stop were from the HOA or reported me to them.
Alias Delfs 3 years ago
Wow utter b******t of human beings I didn’t know a piece of s**t can take human form
Load More Replies...
3 Owls In A Coat 3 years ago
Apparently enough people did it that they made a rule! It’s pretty gross if you ask me - my property, I do what I want. If I actually owned property - I’d buy property in downtown Vancouver and let everyone sleep there - if nothing else, it’s safe. If I was that rich, I’d have staff helping distribute some fresh fruit and veggies every day, and a big pot of soup with enough garlic bread and mozzarella for everyone - and thick creamy stews too.
Load More Replies...
Raven Null 3 years ago
How do they justify: A- Saying they're asleep, they were calling out for help. And B- Getting mad at someone for SLEEPING ON THEIR OWN PROPERTY.
Alma Muminovic 3 years ago (edited)
WOW. They got sleeping in the driveway in the middle of the day from help.. wtf is wrong with people?
Ronda News Channel 3 years ago
I have read some posts here. Most of them are about HOA rules (restrictions) and home owner complaints. I also try to get information from website and found this: https://hvac-buzz.com/reasons-why-hoas-are-bad/ My big question is why such organisation exists. I ask this because we in Indonesia don't have it.
JMC5003 3 years ago (edited)
Homeowners associations are supposed to make rules that benefit the entire community by mandating property maintenance and/or collect the dues that are used to maintain common areas, like playgrounds or tennis courts. Sometimes the homeowners association is simply a means of collecting dues to maintain a private road that runs through a subdivision. Other times, nosey people with unrealistic demands take control of a homeowners association, which is the stuff of nightmares.
Load More Replies...
Tams21 3 years ago (edited)
People looking away and pretending nothing is happening is disgusting but nothing new but reporting it to the HOA is on a different level. In Germany it's a criminal offence to ignore someone that needs help, I wish other countries had this too.
JMC5003 3 years ago
In the US, we had to institute "good Samaritan" laws to protect people who help in an emergency from being sued by the people they helped, because those people might claim that the good Samaritan made their situation worse in some way and use that as the basis of a lawsuit.
Load More Replies...
Sapna Sarfare 3 years ago
Oh my god. What is wrong with them? Are they serious? I am so sorry you suffered literally and figuratively.
RELATED:
#2
At the start of Covid, our 8 home HOA treasurer just… stopped collecting dues. No invoices, no reminders, nothing. It’s a three year term that’s almost up, so there’s no telling what’s going to happen when/if they change treasurers. Nobody seems to mind, or even really talk about it. Everyone just seems to enjoy the extra $125 a quarter in their bank account, and there’s plenty in the HOA account to cover the expenses and insurance for years to come. It’s me. I’m the treasurer.
Colin Timp 3 years ago
$125 a quarter isn't bad at all; and you say you have plenty of funds? Makes you wonder about those places that charge like $500-$600 a month.
enohPilivE 3 years ago
500-600 is still monthly rent in a lot of places. I get a condo, that's a big shared building. But seriously who do these clowns think they are for free standing homes? I gotta pay rent on property I own? Unless the HOA is mowing my lawn, maintaining my house and paying for my water..no no no. FU wannabe real estate broker that couldn't pass the exam...
Load More Replies...
M. William Bell 3 years ago
I’m sure they are all different, but treasurers have real fiduciary responsibilities to the HOA. If you’re negligent, you may be liable to make up any shortcomings. Your kind little gift may result in you paying for eight new roofs next hailstorm.
Yvonne Montclare 3 years ago
The HOA doesn’t pay for roofs. At $125 a quarter it is just community maintenance, and if they have enough to pay that for years, then the HOA overcharged. I know an HOA community with 20 houses. 95% of the fee goes towards the upkeep of the communal boat dock. Then a little for the gate and lawn care in communal areas. With 8 houses I assume the people are just as close as they are in “mine” and this was at least suggested before in a group.
Load More Replies...
#3
HOA attempted to hold a "secret" community meeting, where they'd vote on turning the large field and walking path everyone used for recreation into an RV park. It was "secret" because they basically told no one and put up the required notice in a place where no one would see. As you can probably guess, most of the board owned RVs.
Thankfully a few neighbors took notice and started knocking on doors. A crowd showed up and the proposal was starkly shot down. F*****g dirtbags.
3 Owls In A Coat 3 years ago (edited)
What is the actual benefit of an HOA? Anyone? Is there a reason people decide living under them? This is a genuine question, not sarcasm - do the benefits outweigh the negatives? I’m so morbidly curious.(Sorry I’m a Canadian pacific north wester from Vancouver - at one it’s “you bought and paid for your own house but too bad, you can only paint it these _ colours and you can only do generic boring thins with your garden and NO EXCITEMENT OR FUN WHATSOEVER.is this a real thing? Have I just been lucky enough to avoid it so far? It’s so gross and weird that it feels weird to be a normal thing 😬 what benefits does the HOA give that justify this weird malignant control over everything? Have I just been living/renting under a rock?) Would love some info honestly! Just so I know whether it’s worth moving into an HOA lot or not (do we even have that in Canada? I’m in Van City and have t heard of it - are HOAs an American thing or do we do that too?)
MGlenn 3 years ago
Honestly, it depends on where you live. In my city, if someone’s property gets completely out of control, the town tells them to take care of it (overgrown grass, etc). They also provide for things like streetlights, neighborhood parks, and Rec centers. I’m good with all that, and don’t care that the guy across the street has a pink house, so we live in a non-HOA neighborhood. The county my sister is in has none of that. If you don’t have an HOA, your neighborhood doesn’t even have streetlights or sidewalks, let alone a park or access to a pool. Where they are it’s worth it to live with an HOA. Theirs also isn’t unreasonable, they just want things neat and maybe not hot pink (in the front yard)
Load More Replies...
Down With Agent Hedgehog! 3 years ago (edited)
What does RV mean? (No seriously, I don’t know)
Khara Mei 3 years ago
Genuine question - does a HOA board not require a quorum to vote? Most setups that I have seen that sound similar to a HOA setup require a minimum number present for the vote to even proceed, purpoely to prevent secret meetings and ballots like this.
KC Lancaster 3 years ago
Like anything, it depends on where the HOA is and what its governing documents say. For legal changes, yes, usually. In Colorado, USA, Common Interest Ownership Act (CCIOA) is a set of laws that govern the formation, management, powers, and operation of common interest communities (HOAs) in Colorado.
Load More Replies...
Gene Starwind 3 years ago
Abuse of position. They should all be jailed for fraud and embezzlement.
Bored Panda managed to get in touch with the person who sparked this conversation on the platform, Redditor Glam_SpaceTime, who was kind enough to have a little chat with us about the topic. When asked what inspired them to start this discussion, they told us, "I was watching AttorneyTom, who said there are specialized attorneys in HOAs. I come from the Netherlands, where only apartment complexes have HOAs (called VvE). I was just curious if HOAs are that bad." And guessing from the deluge of responses to their question, the answer is crystal clear.
But Glam_SpaceTime revealed they were surprised to see the thread blow up as much as it did. The amount of attention to their post made it obvious how deeply it resonated with the community members. "Based on the replies, I think people reacted to show their frustration," the Redditor added.
#4
I sued my HOA for harassment years ago. There was 3 board members that harassed us about everything from our vehicle being 2 inches out of our driveway onto the sidewalk, curtains, things in our backyard. Anyway we sued them and we won. The 3 board members were removed and can never serve on a board in the state of Florida ever again. We moved and now live in a non HOA and will never live in an HOA again. Paying the $5k to sue them was well worth it, zero regrets.
Kate Jones 3 years ago
Some HOA's end up on this weird power trip. It reminds me of message board moderators, lol. I get the benefits of having and Hoa can be to make sure everyone follows the same rules and you don't end up with crazy or inconsiderate neighbors because they're loud or leaving their property a mess or breaking the law etc. But some of the rules can be downright insane. I was looking into a condo in my area and one of the Hoa rules was restricting the color of the flowers you're allowed to have either in your windows or on your porch. They had to be purple, white or pink only. I mean...seriously? What is the reason other than a HOA board member on a power trip?
April Stephens 3 years ago
Cars blocking the sidewalk is my pet peeve. If it's really only two inches over, I can let it slide, but much more than that, how can a stroller, walker, or wheelchair get through? If your car doesn't fit on the driveway, find a better place to park, like on the street or in the garage, rather than making the sidewalk unusable.
#5
HOA of my neighborhood tried to tell me that my house needed to be added on to, because houses need to be at least 1800 sq ft in the neighborhood. My house is 1750 sq ft. HOA was started in 2004. My house was built in 1989. My family took the HOA to court, to make a long story short, HOA had to back down, cuz their rules didn’t exist until AFTER the house was built. So, the HOA rules do not apply to my house.
James016 3 years ago
I would have told them that they would have to pay for it. Otherwise F Off
Colin Timp 3 years ago
That reminds me of one where the HOA tried multiple times to sue a homeowner over their boat being beached on their property. The home was adjacent to, but not part of, the HOA.
rumade 3 years ago
Minimum size is an absolutely ridiculous rule anyway! Surely there should only be a maximum size so you're not butting up to neighbours or blocking out the light with an 8 storey mansion
enohPilivE 3 years ago
Minimum size is set often by the developer who planned the neighborhood and put in the infrastructure. It is to discourage putting a trailer home next to a mansion or stop people from physically building their own home and it falling apart in less than 5 years time because they redneck engineered it.
Load More Replies...
Stephanie A Mutti 3 years ago
Most problematic HOAs are not run by folks who have knowledge of the law. When the insanity begins, a lawyer should be consulted. It will be resolved.
B-b-bird 3 years ago (edited)
lol, had similar situation. Was told to remove shed from our property "because overhanging electricity line above it could cause a fire". All sounds reasonable, until... Shed is more than 100 years old, the line (that they need to maintain but lately is in poor condition) was installed above our property in 80s. They promptly came to fix the line, when have been served with proof documents sent over from attorneys office. :)
Stephen Lyford 3 years ago
That should have been completely obvious. What a bitter, sad HOA to try to enforce that rule.
#6
I didn't think much of my HOA since the fee is only 6 bucks a month, and they're pretty powerless. They maintain some fencing and a small amount of community land that is just undeveloped woods.
Someone in our neighborhood decided he could save money by parking his fleet of a half dozen large septic trucks in his yard, instead of parking them off site at a place of business. No one wants ugly, s**t smelling trucks on a corner lot in a suburban neighborhood. Our little HOA went into action. Shortly thereafter he moved his trucks.
Not all HOAs are bad. I am very happy we had one, otherwise it would have been years of fighting in courts to get some sort of injunction against this awful neighbor, IF we won. Big if. And who would have paid for all that?
SheamusFanFrom1987 3 years ago
This sounds like the HOA being heroes rather than pricks. I'm not sure this should even be here.
Ivo H 3 years ago
This is probably to show the other side too. I appreciate it because sometimes I really wonder why the hell is HOA even thing.
Load More Replies...
Fluffy Griffin 3 years ago
I live in a busy suburban-ish street with no HOA. My neighbor parked all his commercial trucks in his lawn and another neighbor complained to the township and the vehicle neighbor was told to not park his cars there. No sueing or HOAs needed.
Id row 3 years ago
I'm sure the town had laws governing the types of vehicles that could be parked in residential areas. My neighbor had the town come down on him for parking his tractor trailer (just the front cab part) on his property. There's no way a town would let someone park multiple bio-hazardous vehicles on his residential property.
GoGoPDX 3 years ago (edited)
Nope. Sorry, I know you may not like it, but people should be able to park whatever they want on their own dam property. This is where it all starts, "we need to get this or that out of the neighborhood" but sooner or later it will end up like the majority of the stories. Just mind your own business and live your own lives in your own houses on your own property. Unless summertime is getting hurt, it is really nobody's concern
Frans Lancee 3 years ago
Why is there a picture of the llgemeine Deutsche Automobil-Club e.V.??
Scott Rackley 3 years ago
No, HOA wasn't needed for that. A simple call to the zoning commission would have sufficed
Nikki Sevven 3 years ago
My city has laws about parking commercial vehicles on private property, so this guy would not have been able to get away with it.
The examples in this thread prove that some rules and restrictions HOAs impose on their residents seem absurd. With strict guidelines on noise, parking, walls, fences, painting, landscaping, tenants, garage storage, new construction, repairs, remodeling — literally just about anything — many Americans feel frustrated when these organizations go too far.
"I was shocked at first, just how bad those rules are," Glam_SpaceTime said. "One HOA president commented it was mostly about how the neighborhood looks and property value. He has a point about how you maintain the garden, but the rules described in the comments are just crazy. I don’t see how hanging a plant can lead to a lower property value. For me, rules like this would cause unnecessary stress," they added.
#7
Drones were used to make sure no one was growing vegetables in their backyards.
No parking along the street in front of your house.
Garbage cans had to be brought in within 15 minutes of pickup, though that was a different time each week.
My neighbor was sued (and lost) after replacing their old windows. The new frames were the "wrong shade of eggshell cream."
Mikey Kliss 3 years ago
15 mins? Screw that, it goes out the night before and gets brought back in after work
A. 3 years ago
Not being allowed to grow vegetables? Were they afraid of random rabbits? or did one of the board members have stock in a farm?
GlitterQueen541 3 years ago
This sounds like absolute hell!!! Also, who bans vegetable gardens!?!?!
Featherytoad 3 years ago
WTF? You can't even grow vegetables in your back yard? We're all going to be needing to the way prices are. Especially the way the drought is affecting crops in the west.
#8
Got a “friendly reminder” letter to: remove the political sign from the front of my house. Shortly after Russia invaded Ukraine I placed the Ukrainian flag next to my USA flag located in my front yard. After some back and forth correspondence and a Zoom HOA Board meeting, I reiterated that: it’s not a sign and not political as defined in the CCC&Rs and the State’s guidelines.
After five months, the flags are still there, unfortunately so are the f’ing Russians.
Moral: when these pricks start to get in your face, call their bluff in a public forum.
Chewie Baron 3 years ago
I’ve read stories on here that do. One person used lights instead.
Load More Replies...
#9
One of my coworker got a warning from his HOA saying that he had too many boxes inside his garage. They claimed that he couldn't use his garage for storage.
Lisa Shaw 3 years ago
No, it's actually only to store a car, but has evolved to people using it as additional storage. As far as the law is concerned, it would follow the dictionary definition in a court of law and anyone opposing it will lose every time.
Load More Replies...
Boudewijn van der Mik 3 years ago
Who cares about the garage? Were the beds made according to the (army) regulations?
John Dilligaf 3 years ago
how the heck can they know what's inside his garage? Unless he kept the door open all the time or something.
Colin Timp 3 years ago
This is becoming more common. They want you to park vehicles in the garage. If you are storing stuff, you're more likely to park outside.
SpacemanSpiff 3 years ago
German here: We have laws stating that only roadworthy cars and car accessories are allowed in a garage. And of course, this law has a ridiculously long name: Garagennutzungsverordnung.
LynzCatastrophe 3 years ago
I love it! I sprained my tongue trying to say that! 🤣
Load More Replies... 
Lori Sandoval 3 years ago
My old HOA required that because people were using their garages for storage while putting their cars in the spots designated for visitors so there was no parking for visitors.
Amanda Hunter 3 years ago
We'd get letter like that too, the car is supposed to be in the garage.
If you have never lived in a neighborhood with an HOA, you may not be aware of the stigma that surrounds these organizations. But if you ask anyone whose home is a part of one, you're bound to hear about at least one problematic encounter. See, while some people value that their HOA takes care of their community, others lament their excessive fees, poor management, and unnecessary list of rules. An HOA neighborhood can be a haven to some, while others will jump at the opportunity to move out.
As of 2021, community associations are home to more than 73 million Americans and represent nearly a quarter of the housing stock in the country. Moreover, new associations are forming every day and are expected to increase by 4,500 this year alone. But when it comes to how they are perceived by the residents, it reminds us of a rocky love-hate relationship.
#10
They wouldn’t let me add an acre of land onto my property. My neighbor owned 100 acres of land and was letting me buy an acre from him to add onto the 4 acres of land I already had. Since you can not build anything on 1 acre the HOA was refusing the purchase. However, when some lawyer said it was ok they let me buy the acre. I think they just wanted to waste our time.
loty moty 3 years ago
Give little people a little power, and it goes straight to their little heads
ohjojo (you/your's) 3 years ago
Perhaps there should be an application for HOA that's a little stricter. Maybe the first question should be "do you want to be on the HOA committee?" And if the answer is no, put them on the HOA committee.
Boudewijn van der Mik 3 years ago
Thou shalt not be on good terms with thy neighbours! AND if they can't buy it no one can.
Heather Talma 3 years ago
How the hell is there an HOA in a place where someone has 100 acres of land?? Or 4 for that matter??
Cuppa tea? 3 years ago
What? You cannot build anything on 4000 square meters? That's like 10 standard plots in my country.
#11
Not an official HOA, but the management at my trailer park were very upset with me. Why? I was simply exploiting a loophole. We are technically only allowed two pets per household, and I had 8 chickens. I was able to get away with this for so long (3-4 years), that I thought no one would ever notice. But if they did, I had a plan. Reading the lease rules, I came to the conclusion that my chickens were technically "livestock", and being that there was no rule listed against livestock on the property, I went ahead and got them anyway.
Fast forward to about eight months ago, and my manager discovered my coop. She had a very heated argument with me, but I kept my cool, and explained to her that I was not breaking any rules. She left after about a half hour of shouting and general unruliness. Around a week later, at around 10:00 p.m., I hear my chickens panicking (being louder than usual). I assume that an animal is trying to get into the coop, as we have a stray/feral cat problem, and it has happened before, so I retrieve my shotgun and go out the back door and around the back of the house. And what do I find? None other than my manager, as well as the park's landscaping guy, trying to pry the roof of of my coop and stuff my chickens into waiting animal carriers. I rack the shotgun, getting their attention, and watch them promptly run out the front gate.
Nightmarish behavior on her part, but I waited a week to see if anything else would happen, and when nothing did, I decided to let it go. She learned her lesson, and so did I: don't leave your chickens in plain sight!
Michael Largey 3 years ago (edited)
Didn't the manager and the landscaper begin singing the song "Ain't Nobody Here But Us Chickens" when you showed up? If not, they missed a cue of a lifetime.
RajunCajun 3 years ago
in my home state stealing livestock is a VERY bad offence and the fine would fall for each animal.
ℙ𝕦𝕣𝕣.𝕞𝕒𝕚𝕕 3 years ago
Please don't shoot cats! These poor stray animals certainly didn't ask to be here. So it's not a "cat problem", it's a human problem.
Elea Bell 3 years ago
It absolutely is a human problem! but if a stray/feral cat messes with the chickens in the yard, a shotgun blast overhead sounds like a good way to get the cat to clear off before the chickens start dying. I would prefer that all cats be homed in a situation where their access to the outdoors is controlled so that they don't run the risk of straying or becoming feral. However, I can't control the actions of others, so in an area where stray and feral cats are common, a shotgun to scare cats away sounds like a solution.
Load More Replies...
Colin Timp 3 years ago
Should have called the police. That's vandalism and attempted theft. I'm really surprised though. Most developed cities have regulations about keeping livestock; as it poses a health risk. Kids can easily get things like salmonella; as they like to touch everything and aren't great about washing. Side note: I have a neighbor that has chickens and no fencing; but the chickens never leave the yard. They seem to be trained. I think it's cool.
ohjojo (you/your's) 3 years ago
Deliver a raw chicken to her front door. Add a note saying " I am slowly taking care of the problem. Thanks for your help."
Gene Starwind 3 years ago
I'd've shot them for criminal trespass and animal rustling. Most states allow you to protect your livestock from rustlers (thieves) with deadly force, especially at night.
#12
I have three. Two about me, one about my neighbor.
I moved into a new construction neighborhood after picking out all the bells and whistles for the dream house.
About two years after I moved in, the garbage truck managed to destroy the garbage can somehow. The sanitation company replaced it, but in the time between the trash account being set up and the mishap the sanitation company changed the color and style of cans they provided.
My HOA told me that my garbage can was unauthorized and could not be left on the street on trash day because it was visually detracting.
I went to the city sanitation and explained what was going on, and they told me that they didn't maintain the old stock of cans and they had switched over to the new ones when the old ones ran out.
So I had to take a letter from them back to the HOA, who would not budge and told me that I needed to have the same kind of can as everybody else.
Everybody had their can in the same place on the same side of each house when it wasn't trash day.
So I ended up having to put the new can in the back yard and wheel it around the house at the exact moment that the trash truck showed up, and immediately wheel it back to the back yard.
I had to make special arrangements with work to be able to do this every Monday.
The second (context: I had the house built in 2002) I had a 1998 Chevy SUV, which was four years old. I received a letter from the HOA that said my vehicle, (which didn't have a single dent, scratch or paint blemish and was washed and tire dressing applied weekly) was an eyesore and couldn't be parked in my driveway.
The letter referred to it being disabled/junker. Granted, I lived in a neighborhood of Mercedes, BMW and Range Rovers but it definitely wasn't in the class of junk.
So I had to park my truck in the garage and every time I needed to leave I had to play musical cars with my (then) wife.
The third was for my neighbor. His lawnmower stopped running, so he hired somebody to come in and do his lawn until he was able to get it fixed or get a new one. He hired somebody, who did the absolutely normal park the truck on the street while they are doing the lawn. (It was just one guy) the HOA shows up, and demands the lawn mowing service not park on the street- but instead park OUTSIDE THE COMMUNITY because his work truck and trailer "detracted from the classy and elegant stature of the community"
They called the police when he refused.
I ended up selling the house and moving out because there were 14 million other stupid reasons all revolving around the HOA-
I bought a house and while I was looking I absolutely, positively refused to look at a house that had anything to do with an HOA.
April Caron 3 years ago
I had a similar issue with an HOA and our recycle can. They used to be green… then the company went to tan cans. I got notice after notice. Recycling wasn’t mandated, so I had to have the company pick up their tan recycling can… and I was just forced to throw everything into trash. :/
JL 3 years ago
Should have gone to the HOA head's house and broke their trash can. When they needed a new one (in the new color), I suspect the rule would soon change.
Pizzagirl 91 3 years ago
My idea was to switch cans with them, but same thought.
Load More Replies... Colin Timp 3 years ago
You'd think that paying someone else to mow your lawn would be standard for that kind of neighborhood. Having a "service" like that is like bragging that you can afford it; so you'd think they'd be on board with it.
Alma Muminovic 3 years ago
Stop wasting our time and resources hopefully.
Load More Replies...
Cassie 3 years ago
In my area, HOAs are essentially forcing gentrification. Many high-income earners would rather live in low-income neighborhoods than deal with the HOAs in the high-income neighborhoods (and you'd be very hard pressed to find a high-income neighborhood that doesn't have a HOA). I think we could all benefit from banning HOAs.
Mario Strada 3 years ago
Why not just move to North Korea? Aside from famines, shoot on sight border control and re-education camps, it can't be much worse.
Per-Ole Sjuve 3 years ago
Probably didn't match the other wives in the neighborhood. Had to get rid of her. ;)
Load More Replies...
SillyPandaBunny 3 years ago
Yeah I lived in an HOA community once and will never again do that’s. It just invites Karens to gripe and complain about every little thing and they never use the fees for anything useful
A survey by InsuranceQuates.com questioned over 600 people from various demographics and found that how they feel about their HOA depends on their generation. Interestingly, baby boomers were the most likely to say they love their association, while Gen Xers were the ones who hate them most. This could be explained by the fact that baby boomers are gradually reaching retirement age, so they are keen on living in a peaceful and well-maintained environment.
Moreover, feelings toward HOA were also influenced by whether the respondents had ever served on the board. Out of current and former HOA board members, 57% reported loving their organization. What’s more, 75% of these participants revealed that their HOA fees were worth it.
The researchers found that board membership is key for residents to see the value in their HOA as it allows them to take a peek behind the scenes and be a part of the community's decisions. "Studies show that most of us don’t like being told what to do, so being a part of the decision-making process might just make the HOA policies more palatable," they wrote.
#13
My wife and I bought our condo almost 6 years ago and the guy we bought it from had owned it for less than a year. When we closed he said he had never got a key to the neighborhood pool when he bought the place from the previous owner but he was old so didn’t care and was never gonna use it. We said no big deal, we will just ask for a new one. Well the HoA wants us to pay $300 for a “new” key because we had “lost” our old one and it’s some fraud prevention measure to stop people from selling their pool keys or something. We had told them immediately after moving in we never got a key and after 6 years they refuse to get us a new one. We just pick the lock and go anyway but if it was an issue I’d be furious at the ridiculousness of making us pay into the HoA to maintain this pool when we never got access to it even though it wasn’t our fault and probably not even the fault of the guy before us.
Michael Largey 3 years ago
I would have told them, "If you give us a key, we'll show you how people like us have been getting in without a key."
That nerd Zoe ️🇺🇦️ 3 years ago
Ours was $20 to buy I think. I'm pretty sure they had deactivated it because it was Winter or something
John Paul Morrison 3 years ago
Steal the lock as that would force them to give everyone new keys....
DragonflyGreen 3 years ago
I rent, but the last tenant kept his pool fob. If I get one ($50) my management company will reimburse me.
#14
Not a horror story but we had a snowstorm that dumped about 6 feet of snow on us overnight. It was garbage day that morning, so our full dumpster was sitting at the road waiting to be picked up, completely covered in snow (as was everything else) and no one could get to their garbage cans. The snowstorm turned into an ice storm which took everything outside hostage. 6 inches of solid ice on everything, cementing the dumpster in place. The next day, the ice and snow melted just enough to see the lids, but they were still buried. Trash pickup was delayed because they couldn’t get the trucks through the snow because the HOA didn’t include plowing our community’s streets.
The next morning, we got a notice emailed to us about how our garbage had been sitting out for 3 days and that it needed to be moved immediately or we would pay a fine. They literally did nothing positive at all, ever. Total thievery.
Alma Muminovic 3 years ago
They should have an opt in opt out option for an HOA. If enough people in the neighborhood opt out then it should not exist.
Nicholas Kraemer 3 years ago
Literally how they work. HOAs can be dissolved
Load More Replies...
Florida, but without the beach 3 years ago
We have a gym in our neighborhood that has been closed for years because they don’t want to pay someone to supervise it when it’s open and don’t want it vandalized. I don’t understand how we’re paying to maintain a building we can’t even use
V Martinez 3 years ago
Are you able to deduct that portion from the others fees you pay?
Load More Replies...
NannyChachi 3 years ago
Sooo.... what happens if you just kick the cr*p out of an hoa board member. Asking for a friend.
Michael Largey 3 years ago
Tell your friend that his new place of residence will have even stricter regulations.
Load More Replies... #15
I got six separate notices for a parked RV in front of someone else's garage.
It wasn't my RV.
It wasn't my garage.
It was parked in front of the owner's house for about 2 hours while he loaded it up prior to a camping trip.
The best part is that they photographed the violation and it's clearly someone else's stuff in front of someone else's house.
Featherytoad 3 years ago
WTF, do they just sit around spying on everyone? Do they have nothing better to do, or do they have informants placed all around the neighbor hood? This is so Big Brother. It only took 2 hours for someone to load up an RV and they were on them like white on rice.
RajunCajun 3 years ago
my father in-law got a violations for painting his door the same color as a house less than 3 house away.
Angry Little Hedgehog 3 years ago
Our HOA was strict, but the rules were reasonable. RV is allowed for 2 weeks whether it be a visitor's or yours. Then it becomes an issue.
Seadog 3 years ago
It's a few people that want to tell everyone how to live but don't have enough money to buy the whole neighborhood. So they secretly create an HOA and as each house sells it then becomes subject to the rules of the HOA. The newly formed HOA can't enforce their BS rules on existing owners as they were there first. Many try and sadly, many people let them get away with it. Not a lawyer but I'd think in reality it probably wouldn't be hard to get a court ruling that if the HOA is going to control the property then they could be held accountable for the maintenance and upkeep and taxes of said property.
Load More Replies...Of course, certain decisions don’t sit well with some people. A 2015 survey by the Coalition for Community Housing Policy in the Public Interest revealed that more than two-thirds of people surveyed had been involved in a significant dispute with their association, and 60% of those disputes remained unresolved. What this means is that if you live in an HOA, it’s only a matter of time before you find yourself in a disagreement with one.
Finicky rules are often at the center of HOA-homeowner tensions, which can make residents feel like they’re perpetually under a short leash. The good news is that when people are dissatisfied with the organization, there are several ways they can attempt to resolve the issue. While it’s rare to get rid of an HOA as it is a lengthy and expensive process, homeowners can figure out the problem and find ways to tackle it so the organization can operate properly.
#16
Everyone had to drag their trash bins down a hill to a curb where the garbage truck would pick it up. People would be slow to get their bins back after pick up. So the HOA went a dragged all the bins to the other side of the neighborhood and threw them in a pile in a random patch of public grass. So we pay these people to be childishly petty and antagonize us? And their "punishment" only created more of an eyesore than bins uniformly lined up on a curb.
Viktor 3 years ago
I’m sure the municipality would like to hear about their littering the public space with random bins.
Cassie 3 years ago
In my area, the county issues bins, each with their own serial number attached to the customer. Removing a bin from the customer's possession is considered stealing from the county. We had a new guy on our route and he got a stern warning and threatened with a fine for mistakenly leaving our bin across the street on our neighbor's property. My county would have a field day with that HOA.
Load More Replies... Linda Patterson 3 years ago
Good thing we don’t belong to an HOA our bins sit curbside sometimes 4 or 5 days! We are lazy some weeks.
Christof Irran 3 years ago
This doesn't sound like it's the HOA doing it; it's all the little hitlers sitting on the board of the HOA who got drunk on their power.
#17
Visited a friend who lived in a strict HOA neighborhood. I was a smoker at the time, he didn't allow smoking in the house and the HOA had a rule about smoking outside. You weren't even allowed to smoke or have visible alcohol cans/bottles in your own back yard. Yep, if you drank alcohol during a cookout or whatever, it had to be poured into cups. They also had rules about parking in the driveway for more than 30 minutes, visiting the guy was a pain in the a*s.
And i was like WTF!! 3 years ago
Wait wait wait, can anyone explain this to me: So i buy a house, my house, with my back yard and my front yard, and then i cant get out and have a smoke, or drink a beer from a can in MY back yard?? What the acctual f**k!!??
Kate Jones 3 years ago
I didn't think an HoA could circumvent actual laws. Not being able to drink a beer in your own yard seems insane. And also, who is going to rat you out for it?
RajunCajun 3 years ago
here is the problem. local law will not stand in on private property if no crime is being committed. you would have to go to court over stuff like this and who want to pay for that. When you buy a house that is in side a HOA the rules might be ok at the time but new c**p gets voted in over the years and you get stuck with it.
Load More Replies... Brenda 3 years ago
THEY CAN NOT DICTATE WHAT YOU DO IN THE PRIVATE SPACES OF YOUR PROPERTY!As long as it doesn't intrude on others outside activities, what you do in your backyard is your business.
KC Lancaster 3 years ago
It depends on the Covenants and Rules & Regs, which every owner has to sign in order to buy into the HOA. Don't like them, don't buy in.
Load More Replies... Thatkamloopsguy 3 years ago
Why would you even buy a house in a place like that? Are you fu cking brain dead?
#18
HOA tried to enforce a rule that many houses in the community didn't comply with. I did some checking and it turns out that (at least in our state) if an HOA doesn't enforce a rule on **everyone**, then they can't enforce the time on **anyone**.
Colin Timp 3 years ago
Same holds true with termination from an employer. If they don't follow policy to the letter for everyone equally it becomes grounds for collecting unemployment. For example, if they have a policy regarding missed work. If they say that 6 absences is a warning, 7 a suspension, and 8 termination, they have to follow that. If they allowed even 1 person to go like 12 without action taken, you have grounds to dispute "cause "
Ursula Burgess, President, Board of Trustees for the Community Associations Institute, told HomeLight that when it comes to the idea that the HOA "needs to go", it usually boils down to two issues. "Either the current make-up of the board is less than ideal, or there’s a question of maintenance issues within the community, and people don’t want to pay," Burgess said.
Sometimes, a problematic HOA situation can be fixed for the better by removing a board member who might be causing the issues. "The good news is that there is generally a mechanism that allows for members to vote out board members." And in many cases, this will allow people to step up and replace that same board member, so Burgess advised: "I tell people all the time, if someone is very vocal in a board meeting and we have a vacancy, they should appoint that person. Let them take the energy and concern they have and use it for the betterment of the association."
#19
50 years ago a former owner planted two citrus trees too close to the property line. Neighbors didn't mind because they were happy to get free fruit.
Two years after we buy the place the HOA sends us a warning letter that we need to trim back both trees. But they don't send the warning in winter or spring. No, they wait until it's triple digit weather (104 F / 40 C).
Nobody had complained about our trees. Some new electee to the board had gotten snoopy and overzealous.
So I head out back with ladder and a manual saw in the early morning. The overhanging limbs violated the fine print so it had to be done. After the temperature heated up to 90 F I called it quits, then started up early Sunday for another round. The project wasn't done yet because there it required too much sawing.
Sent an email to the board with a progress photo and assured them the work would continue to progress on Saturday and Sunday mornings until it was completed, but had to be spread over several weeks for (a) safety reasons, and (b) because the trash pickup bins would only hold so much.
Got an officious reply Monday afternoon insisting the board had always been diligent about this and it was up to me to finish the job pronto, since I had created the problem.
Wrote back with a second photo: a close-up of twenty years of growth rings on one of the branches. Added a note that we'd only owned the home two years. Asked whether the board would assume liability for any injuries sustained if we rushed the job to come into immediate compliance.
They gave us six weeks. Finished the work in three.
ohjojo (you/your's) 3 years ago
Cutting back a productive fruit tree sounds absolutely cruel. No fruit for them!
Philly Bob Squires 3 years ago
I'd lob some of it their way... a window maybe...
Load More Replies... Colin Timp 3 years ago
Depending on the area you live in, there are certain times of the year where you should/shouldn't prune trees. "Don't prune in May or June" I believe is the saying.
Amanda Hunter 3 years ago
There's a certain kind of person who likes to be on an HOA board. Power hungry and controlling.
#20
We live in a historic district so the HOA is super strict about the exterior of our homes. Our patio door was warped so we spent forever trying to find the exact same style/color antique door to replace it. As soon as we did they got [angry] we didn’t get it approved first. The only way you would even know we swapped it was if you were watching it happen.
ohjojo (you/your's) 3 years ago
The HOA is like Santa Claus. They see you when you're sleeping they know when you're awake
I'mNotARoboat 3 years ago
Because they probably have cameras/snoops everyfuckingwhere.
Load More Replies... Seadog 3 years ago
I'm renovating a home considered historic by the City. They have to approve and exterior work. The Architectural Review Board has actually been very easy to get along with and quite helpful (not financially). Thankfully our city isn't like one not far away. That other city controls 100% of the home, inside and out. So funny they want people to revive these old homes but have such strict guidelines no one is willing to do it so they just sit and rot until they become a hazard and have to be razed. Although, being 4+ years into our reno of a 1920 bungalow, I now understand why most people don't fix up old houses and wonder why anyone would ever do it. Could've built 2 houses for what we have in this one.
Gini Sarver 3 years ago
my dad had actually had to HOA president help him relocate a drainage pipe that ran under the “dirt” rd, it was causing a huge problem for my parents brand new home… a few weeks later… my dad was a professional in earth moving… anyway the only way you would know something had been done was from the new* gravel he added to the roadway ((just being nice)). my dad paid for everything and then… a short time later was served by the sheriffs office paperwork, the HOA a**hole whom helped him decided to sue my dad… my dad tore the HOA a new a**hole in court, counter sued and made a deal with the HOA, they could pay him as the court ordered ((they couldn’t afford to pay him his daily pay for just missing work)) or they could disband the HOA and forget about the entire thing the HOA existed no more 😁
#21
My HOA at my childhood home spent months trying to take my dad to court for the height of our bush. They were literally measuring it with a tape measure every day.
April Caron 3 years ago
Similar issue happened at my partner’s parents’ home in Galveston. After a hurricane wiped out a lot of landscaping, the HOA stepped in and said homeowners had to have so many trees re-planted. My partner’s parents re-planted the trees… but then it was “the trunks of the trees have to be at least 2” in diameter.” Most of the neighborhood’s trees didn’t meet this criteria. My partner’s father purchased two “support” sticks and placed them on either side of his trees and tied them to the trees. Visually, the trunks looked thicker, so this got the HOA off his back.
Carolyn Scott 3 years ago
and trying to find the correct type of tree, when a hurricane wipes out more than just the trees in your town it makes absolutely no sense to be so 'picky'. (I live about 70 miles from Galveston so I do have experience in hurricanes.)
Load More Replies... Disgruntled Pelican 3 years ago
I'm just trying to imagine having so little to do during my day that I can go around measuring bushes just to p**s people off.
Featherytoad 3 years ago
I would be in jail if I had to live in an HOA community. Why? BECAUSE I WOULD KILL THEM ALL!
At the end of the day, resolving problems with your HOA comes down to communication and education. "I think when we communicate and we’re educated, that is the ideal mix of what gets us operating smoothly and everyone understanding each other’s roles. We may not be happy with every decision the board makes, but then at least everybody understands why those decisions are being made," Burgess concluded.
#22
Not particularly a horror story, but we were at the community pool at the same time as our HOA president. His grandkids were splashing people, spitting at each other and screaming. Meanwhile, me and my husband (25 and 27) brought 6 friends with us, which we had cleared with our neighbor, the HOA VP. The president came up to us and started drilling us about who is a resident and accusing us of not being property owners. I firmly reminded him that we are VP's neighbor, who knows us quite well and has told said President about how we are friendly and respectful neighbors. He just huffed, walked away, and continued to scowl at us for an hour as we just sat in the pool and quietly chatted.
Seadog 3 years ago
Maybe say, "okay, then not only can you no longer send me anything about dues, fines, violations or threaten me and I also expect a 100% refund of every penny you've extorted from us + interest and we demand it by 5PM today or we'll have you charged with extortion." See how fast he backpedals. And then point out how HIS guests are being unruly and causing a disturbance to the pool area (I'm sure that's a violation in any HOA pool area)
#23
The condo association wanted to renovate the pool and pitched the cost they were moving forward with. There were a lot of developers in the building and they noticed that it was about 4 times the cost it should have been. Association says tough cookies, things get fun. People writing notices of what's going on with the association, the association writing emails about it, lots of sniping back and forth.
Then one day I'm in the lobby waiting for someone to show up and the head of the association and one of the people calling them out ran into each other and they had to immediately get separated by security because they were about to start throwing punches.
Amy S 3 years ago
Absolutely, I'd put money on the contractor being a family member or connected to someone in the association.
Load More Replies... Brenda 3 years ago (edited)
They were price jacking for kickbacks. Most HOA's are required to get 3 bids & accept the lowest. Check the bylaws
KC Lancaster 3 years ago
Plus the BOD members can be released if a conflict of interest is discovered, or if they decided on a non-vetted contractor. Also, as an owner, I would encourage other owners to attend BOD meetings and each Budget Ratification Meeting to go over everything with a fine-toothed comb. Y'know, the kind of thing Developers could certainly help with;)
Load More Replies... Seadog 3 years ago
Reminds me of our county closing several high schools and moving them all into 1 new one. Okay, I get that BUT, the new high school is not anywhere near the center of the county. Some kids now spend well over an hour each way on a bus as the new school is almost in the next state. And the real kicker? The land it was built on was purchased from the father of a county board member and for well over fair market value. Definitely some kickbacks going on somewhere
#24
$375 fine for a flowerpot
My only regret is that I didn't send a pipe bomb in the return envelope
Charlotte Sandoval 3 years ago
I'm petty enough that I would find a way to move rather than pay that. I'll pay for a whole new house that I can add my flower pot to, thanks
Amanda Hunter 3 years ago
Our HOA decided that they'd ban potted plants. Out little neighborhood turned from leafy and charming to sterile and blank.
#25
A gorgeous vintage wooden sled that has been in our family for at least 100 years was laid out one winter by my family. We received a letter informing us that since firewood is not allowed in front yards, we had to remove the pile from our yard.
Vicki Cunningham 3 years ago
HOAs are made up of people who have always been unsuccessful in life. This makes them feel real important. They are so not smart, they have no idea everyone is laughing hysterically.
AnAntiqueGeek 3 years ago
This would probably be worth taking a good picture of the sled and putting out a "newsletter" distributed to all houses in the area with the headline "HOA Officer {name here} Too Stupid to Recognize a Sled" (followed by a copy of the letter from the HOA about it, proving your point).
#26
My home is in a rural and unincorporated area, so the HOA is a stand in for local government in many ways. They maintain the parks and roads and local business permits with more power than you'd expect. They also care very little about weeds or trimming trees. There is a lovely local lake with a small food cart as the only business. The owners had consistently refused to do boat or paddle board rentals for about 10 years. I attended a community meeting to submit a request for a permit to open a paddle board and paddle boat rental business. I laid out the costs and return on investments as part of the required process of making my case. How it wouldn't require any additional land than what was already set aside for commercial purposes. It was rejected out of hand and rather forcefully. I again laid out how similar businesses had done well in other areas. I was told to come back to next month's meeting. The next month I found the head of the board had partnered with the food cart to rent paddleboards. My business proposal was rejected as redundant. Edit: The food cart owner was the son of the head of the HOA, in case you were wondering how he convinced the guy to partner up.
Seadog 3 years ago
That board sound a lot like our county admin. They do nothing to attract business to our area and when we do get a business to come here, it's usually nothing that really benefits us. IE, Zaxby's is coming. Really? Another chicken place. We already have more chicken shops than pizza or Mexican shops. Yet they did nothing to get Country Cookin' (zero competition) to stay when the building they were in got bought and renovated.
Seadog 3 years ago
About 20 years ago some industry moves in. They make some kind of titanium aircraft parts. Admin makes a big deal about it like they've really accomplished something. 150 jobs will be created. Really? 150 jobs in an area with 35% unemployment. That's like pouring a 5 gallon bucket of water in the local reservoir and bragging about filling it up. Not to mention in a business such as that, at least 1/3 of those workers are going to have to be brought in immediately due to knowledge and of the remaining 100 98% of the locals aren't going to comprehend the job/equipment or get past the background checks. Then before they even got started, they lost their contracts. About this time Google wanted to put in a fiber optic facility. Nope. literally chased them to the next state. I'm surprised there aren't HOAs here. Glad our land has been in the family long enough to exempt us from anything but property taxes (which are illegal but good luck fighting that battle)
Load More Replies...
#27
Towed my car illegally, several times, because I had out of state plates on my car. Cost me around $600 total
Florence O'Grady 3 years ago
Some states have rules that give you 30 days to change your license plate to the new state. Not sure about people in the military.
Nathan 3 years ago
If it was illegally towed, you can get them in a huge amount of legal trouble for that.
GoGoPDX 3 years ago
This happened to me at a conference I rented that was an HOS. We were given parking permits for 1 car, the other had the be in the garage. Well, me and the person I loved with broke up, and I came to get my stuff. There were no parking spots anywhere, so I parked right behind the garage. 15 minutes later, I came out amd my car was towed. Was told I could park there. We went around the whole parking area filming all the cats parked without permits and no parking spots. Spent $400 to get my car out. Called the HOA and insisted they cover it, explaining what happened. They then say I was in a fire zone. I then got the pics from the tow company, and the how hand book, and the pics of the fire zone, all proving them wrong. Still would do it. Took their a*s to court. Got $15000 plus my legal fees covered. All they had to do was admit they were wrong and pay the $400, but they ended up paying 4x the amount. Took the $15000 and used it as a down payment on a house without an HOA!
Colin Timp 3 years ago
This seems to be common. Some states have flat-rate fees for registration tabs while others charge a percentage of the value of the vehicle. So it can be like $40 in one place and $600 in another. So people don't bother updating their registration.
Bruce Robb 3 years ago
I was in a small fender-bender (someone backed into my car in a parking lot. As the police officer was writing out the incident report, he told me that I needed to update the registration. It was 20 months out of date. I really dreaded going to the DMV, thinking it would be at least hundreds, if not over $1000 to get back in compliance. Nope. $56.
Load More Replies... #28
Letter in the mail: "Please remove the items from the front yard on the right side of your house". Which is confusing because there is nothing on the right side of my house. It's my blank side of the fence between me and my neighbors (the neighbor's door). So lawn, wall, fence. Those are the contents of the right side of my house.
I call and leave a message asking for clarification, no reply. I email, no reply. I get another mailed warning. Call, nothing, email photos of the side of my house, nothing. Then I get a fine.
By this point I do a little investigating and I see the same address, similar street name behind me has s**t on the right side of their house. I take copies of my emails, and print out my phone records, copies of their letters and put it all together in a fax and a certified letter to them along with photos of my house, and an explanation that the lazy moron who didn't know the street names clearly made a mistake and that they were lazy morons who couldn't answer the phones or emails. I told them any additional communications would involve a lawyer for harassment, and that I would be taking this info to an HOA meeting.
Never heard from them again. Didn't even get a reply. The sale of that house was free and clear though so they clearly fixed it. I just don't understand the point of being that terrible. The neighborhood I live in now has a really great HOA (It's Metro Houston so HOA's are a must unfortunately).
Potato Chimps 3 years ago
Houston has minimal to zero zoning laws. You have the most random assortment of buildings, businesses and homes on one street, all with a different environmental impact. HOA's are basically a way to protect residential spaces.
Load More Replies...
#29
HOA sued us for leaving out garbage bin out a day past garbage day…a total of five times in the three years we’ve lived here
Viktor 3 years ago
To be fair, a day isn’t really an issue but it quickly becomes a week. In my neighbourhood, bins are being emptied every week (one week general rubbish, then plastic, then greens, then back to general rubbish) and it’s not uncommon for people to leave their bins out until it’s time to swap it for a different one. And of course it’s never in front of their house but half-blocking the corners into side streets.
Kate 3 years ago
We have three trucks come around every Wednesday. I usually put 'em out the night before, then bring them in after the last truck goes by. Our municipal code says the bins have to be kept back by the house the rest of the week, but it's not enforced.
Load More Replies... Yettichild 3 years ago
I live on a hillside, all of our driveways are steep. Everone leaves their cans out all the time. But then again, we don't have an HOA.
#30
Grass cut too short
Linda Patterson 3 years ago
It grows back quicker than you can mow it. This one is completely ridiculous
Colin Timp 3 years ago
Keeping grass cut a bit longer is better overall. It requires less water and burns less easily; which given the water crisis in many areas is crucial. Most cities don't take any action unless it's over 12 inches.
John Dilligaf 3 years ago
Goldilocks and the three lawns. One is cut too short, one is cut too long, and one is just right.
Load More Replies... #31
Live in an HOA in Texas. HOA board was run entirely by the developer. There were meetings, but the neighborhood effectively had no votes. The contract stated that the homeowners would be able to take over after the neighborhood hit something like 70% capacity. But years went on, and they kept adding more and more roads onto the neighborhood every time we got close to capacity. We still didn't have any say by the time I sold my house and moved to a different state. They mostly didn't bother me. But one thing that happened that steamed me was that a lady got a bee up her a*s because there was a group of high school aged black kids who would play basketball at the basketball court every day. Not causing any trouble other than pissing a couple of people off with their cursing. One day the goals were taken down without notice. When people started asking about it, they said that neighbors were complaining about a "gang element" invading our neighborhood. Racist AF.
Seadog 3 years ago
Capacity. Reminds me of working for O'Reilly Auto. They set sales quotas that once met you get a bonus. Problem is if you get within 5-6K of it, they raise it 10K. I never met anyone who ever met their quota. It's just a thing they dangle in front of applicants to make the job look more appealing rather than pay a competitive wage based on pay at other auto parts chains.
#32
My place got flooded twice by my neighbors… the first time, the neighbor next to me had a hot water heater failure (accidental). The second time, the psycho lady who lives above me left her sink running (negligent).
In both instances, I had to put the claims through MY insurance and also pay my deductible because there was fine print in the HOA contract that we couldn’t go against our neighbors.
The first incident was about 10k in damages (mainly flooring). The second incident was 20k in damages (flooring, electrical, Sheetrock, counter tops, etc).
To top it off, our homeowners insurance company (State Farm) dropped us after the second incident even though neither incident was our fault.
#33
When I was married, we bought a house in a new construction neighborhood. When buying the home, we were informed that the developer would have full control of the HOA including funds until the neighborhood was done being built, at which time the homeowners would take control. We thought it wasn't that big of a deal, just be patient for a year or so. Well the developer keeps buying acreage adjoining the neighborhood to expand it. Six years later the neighborhood is still expanding with the developer in charge of the HOA. Potholed streets, weeds and overgrowth, a dilapidated pool, ect not to mention the probable misuse (stealing) of funds.
Seadog 3 years ago
I often wonder how many marriages broke up due to arguments dealing with these HOAs?
Load More Replies...
#34
We built a new fence around our property and told us to take it down since the other fences looked old.
We built a walkway from the door to the driveway, they told us to take it out.
Seadog 3 years ago
Heard of this more than once. They're so stupid they can't comprehend things age and nothing new is going to look old. Take it out? Sure, just as soon as you pay for it and it's removal as it's not a violation of any rules YOU yourself established. And if I can't have my fence and walkway then all other homeowners must remove theirs as well.
#35
They force us to have our fences 6 feet from the property line. Creating weird back alleyways between houses that is overgrown and rarely mowed, making the complex look like s**t.
#36
This one is actually really small but I use it as my example just to show how *stupid* they can be for no discernable reason. In high school my friends parents were older and retired. They bought a new home and the dad was so excited to spend the entire summer landscaping. He put one of those little fountain features in the backyard. It was bean-shaped. Their HOA made him take it out and and replace it with an oval-shaped fountain pool. Only oval-shaped pools were allowed.
Michael Largey 3 years ago
Some HOA rules are just reasonable ideas gone berserk. But only oval-shaped pools???
Brenda 3 years ago
Again they can't dictate what is in your backyard unless its seen over the fence. Invasion of your privacy is the only way they could know about it and the shape
Seadog 3 years ago
Depending on how bad you need your backyard, I picture malicious compliance and build an oval shaped one as big as the lot will permit.
Load More Replies...
#37
Our HOA president and vice-president kept one-upping a new resident, some rich dude who was renovating and adding on to a house he bought. Later, I found out the duo was caught stealing fees and payments to pay for their project."
"The new resident then built a five-story tower with a bar on the top floor. The duo couldn't beat that and tried to do everything they can to f*ck over the new resident, some of which involved sabotaging the supplies and materials.
The duo was arrested for something else not related to their d*ck contest. The HOA lost a lot of power and trust so they just collected fees and cleaned up the place
Alma Muminovic 3 years ago
As they should. WTF is up with these unbelievably petty power trips?
Sheila Stamey 3 years ago
When the local asshat neighbor bought her way on the board in order to "get" me, ( this was passed on to me I had lived in the neighborhood a long time and the hoa couldn't do piddly squat to me I was there before them and had thumbed my nose several times) I proceeded to order a LOT (30) Of giant pink flamingos, and when she went on vacation,I flamingod her lawn. She had a mailbox full of HOA notices for herself and got kicked out. Don't play with a player. Best part? She knows I love flamingos.
#38
I had to get aggressive towards the HOA hag-nazi that used to stalk our old neighborhood. The HOA kept harassing me for vehicles parking on my lawn while I was on business trips, and I had to remind them that they weren't my vehicle, and I can't control what others do when I'm not home. Then, they continued sending me fines for "unkempt property" because my neighbor's lawn crew wouldn't mow the incline between our properties, which was technically not even my property. Another time I got a fine for "letting in too many people in the community pool." There were RFID cards for entering the pool area, except *I never actually got mine* and didn't want to touch that band-aid urine-swamp. I was always calling and fighting these morons. One summer, I had enough with the poor drainage issue. These ant-hill cookie-cutter sardine-can c**p-built neighborhoods are typically excavated out without much thought in terms of proper drainage. It's a very common problem that the developer ignores and lets the homeowners deal with. I got sick of my back yard turning into mud every time it rained, and the water would build up against our foundation. So I built a short retaining wall on one side, and graded the side against my house and extended the patio bricks out to help keep the water from pooling up. It was a weekend project with some simple rented equipment and two buddies helping out. No permit needed, and I made sure it didn't violate any of the 10-billion rules in the HOA handbook. It turned out looking beautiful and improved drainage so much that the grass grew better in our yard and our neighbor's yard. A few weeks later I noticed someone walking around in my back yard looking in my windows. It was the angry HOA narc, some retired woman who would walk around and inspect everyone's property to send complaints to Berkshire Hathaway. I walked outside and asked her what she was doing. She said "I can be here, I'm with the HOA." No, you are trespassing, lady, get off my property. She started rattling off all the violations. I had enough, so said "Look, you can either get off my property, or I'll remove you from it." She gave me this nasty scrumpled-up frown and said she'd call the police. I said "Oh, I'd hate for you to do that and not have a reason, give me a sec." I went inside, opened the nearest window, and racked an (empty) shotgun. She left in a hurry. I called B-H and asked if they condoned people trespassing on my property without asking for permission or stating a reason. They said "absolutely not, we'll address this with [narc]. She should not be doing that." A few weeks later I saw the narc going through my neighbor's yard. We moved not too long after that.
#39
Only removed Biden signs from people's yards, but left Trump signs intact. Our bylaws say no signs in our front yard period. The board was voted out last year, and the new board enforces that rule fairly.
ohjojo (you/your's) 3 years ago
Did they deny being voted out and said the election was rigged?
Load More Replies... Kate Jones 3 years ago
I don't understand the love affair people have to Trump. I couldn't care less about Biden either but there's this crazy obsession people have for trump that is strange and unhealthy and makes people act like they're defending a lover when they do these petty sort of things. People wear wedding dresses with his name on it and have trump wallpaper in their houses. I just don't get it. I've never loved anything as much as these people love trump. They'd run over their own children if it meant saving him somehow. It's like Beatlemania.
#40
This isn’t even remotely close to what other people have to deal with, but my MIL died suddenly. We quickly found out she had not one, but two different HOAs. They had some portal to pay fees, but we obviously didn’t have access to it. Neither would answer their phones or return messages, outside of the very first one when I let them know the situation and they told me they’d get back to me about how we could pay. They kept sending overdue notices for months, with late fees, and we couldn’t get it cleared up until we got the realtor involved when we got it ready enough to sell. We had complete strangers in the neighborhood trying to help us contact them. How can you have TWO HOAs?!
#41
Worked for a landlord who owned 4 townhomes on one lot. There was a 5th town home he didn't own. He created an HOA exclusively for the lot, with the sole purpose to put a lien on the 5th building to force out that owner so he could buy it. All of the other members of the HOA were his employees of the company that he had purchased his properties under. I guess if capitalism is your thing, it isn't necessarily a horror story. But as the then-property manager, it felt more to me that we were harassing and intimidating a low income immigrant homeowner for the sake of greed.
Viktor 3 years ago
I thought HOAs only have power if you signed up for them?! Read lots of stories here about people whose house predates the local HOA and they just laughed in their face when they came with unreasonable demands.
Jerry Mathers 3 years ago
I agree. I don't think they ever force a home built prior to the HOA formation to join. They can pressure people, but can't legally make them join it.
Load More Replies... #42
Wanted to replace our townhouse's white aluminum siding with white vinyl siding, and they told us no because it would be too close to our neighbors' colors, and "washout" the row. it's already f****n white!
#43
Never lived in one but worked in one. Board evicted someone because a guy cold cocked him at a party. The guy who swung was the brother of a board member and the guy who got slugged supposedly made a pass at the other guys wife. From what I've seen HOAs are a lot like highschools with more alcohol.
#44
A close family member of mine is trying to build a home in a resort community. SUUPER strict HOA type community. Fine whatever, except he has special needs. He's in a wheelchair because he's paralyzed, therefore he needs a custom home. Resort said no problem. Their builder gave him plans and none of it was actually good. Like they maybe complied to some ADA laws but never bothered to look at it to see if it's actually functional for a wheelchair user. It's not. Family member asks to bring his own architect, they say no. He reads by laws and CCRs or whatever they are, show he's allowed his own architect. They allow. Architect presents plans, they say no to one thing. He reads up and finds it is allowed. They allow, but say no to something else. Back and forth for months with them being so nit picky. All because being in a wheelchair means your house will look a little different from the neighborhood. As an example of what might be different and look different from the neighborhood: wider doors for the chair to get through. There's no evidence to show that they are not being ableists. Also no evidence to show that they are not just a holes.
Brenda 3 years ago
Sue for discrimination. ADA Laws override HOA laws when building or modifying a home. As long as the exterior colors and yard are good, they can't do squat
Albino 3 years ago
Even that's mind boggling to me. If I want to paint my house in magenta with neon green dots the only thing stopping me is the painter trying to sell me more expensive paint.
Load More Replies...
Emiloy 3 years ago
Reading through the list I’ve been wondering how an accessible home would be affected by all these HOAs and their nonsense. I’m glad that they were able move forward but that’s way too much extra work to have to fight for what you’re entitled to. Also I think that on all new builds wider doors should be standard. I’m always surprised it isn’t a thing yet. You never know who will need them eventually, plus they’re just handier for everyone to use
B.Nelson 3 years ago
You would think ADA would trump HOA. If the HOA disagrees, then sue for discrimination.
Load More Replies... #45
They planted random trees in front of everyone's house. Fast forward 20 years and about 1/3 are crab apple that's start splitting at about 3-4 feet off the ground. HOA now says trees have to have 6ft of clearance and that they arent responsible for what trees you have, oh and if it dies in the process, you're required to get a new tree planted of their choosing. All in all something like 60 trees died and had to be replanted for no reason at all.
#46
When we moved into our last house we noticed the previous owners had a DirecTV satellite dish in the back yard. The previous owners had lived there for 3 years and neighbors said they put it up as soon as they moved in. Within 2 months we got a letter from the HOA demanding that we IMMEDIATELY remove said satellite dish as it was not allowed and we didn't ask permission to put it up anyways. They wanted it done in 48 hours and then a picture sent with the newspaper date like a hostage standing in that spot to prove we had done it. We tried to respond saying we're happy to remove it as we don't intend to use it but we weren't the ones who put it up in the first place. They insisted we were and said we'd be fined if it wasn't done in their time frame. It was so stupid and petty and not a great beginning to living there. Lots of Karens walking around [angry] at nothing.
Kate Jones 3 years ago
I lol'd at the 'like a hostage'. If you'd been fined you should have paid it in a black suitcase like you were paying a ransom.
#47
They have the power to foreclose on a house for practically any reason they see fit. They even have power over individuals that own their homes free and clear.
#48
HOA would not maintain the lawns of some houses no one was living in at the time. This was a major eyesore as the front lawns had started to look like a jungle. However they immediately resumed upkeep after people started threatening to not pay their bills until HOA upheld their end of the contract. Another one is when the president of the HOA decided the front of the neighborhood needed some plants put in. What makes this so annoying is that instead of just getting a contractor to do it for a reasonable price, he hired out a friends business for an absurd price, something like $400 for three plants. There were a few other small things that were just petty and childish. However they are relatively tame compared to some others that I’ve heard of in this thread.
#49
As I bought my condo the hoa went from small local to corp management. And they are a bear to get anything done. They pay booklets out with bold cap lettering to pay on time. When I send my check (I refuse auto withdrawal ) I remind them of how threatening this language is and to stop using it. The following year it was reworded to state: “please pay by —(date). It works sometimes on the blow back side
#50
I don’t live in a HOA or the US but I once had a neighbour call the city on me because I let grape vines cover the railing studs on my front steps. I just got a letter saying a complaint was made but I don’t have to do anything. Letter didn’t say who but I know exactly who it was but they no longer live there so it’s all good now.
What do you think ?
Raena Celis 3 years ago
I could never live in an HOA run neighborhood. I can't fathom tolerating someone else telling me what to do with "my" house. Nope. Never. Nope. Not ever.
Chich 3 years ago
Just puting this out there, but you know you can spell out C**T! on certain people's lawns with either fertilizer or herbicide. Other expressions might come to mind as well. Just sayin"
Jason Marin 3 years ago (edited)
HOA doesn't stand for Homeowners Association. It stands for Horrible Oppressive A**holes.
Sam 3 years ago
Not always my friend, I'm an HOA president and I joined the board as the old board had a president that was spending tens of thousands just in legal to address a problem that was nonsensical and we didn't need legal, we needed a president with common sense. Not all boards are run by A holes. Took some doing but most homes in our small HOA appreciate the board and community.
Load More Replies...
Trillian 3 years ago
I don't understand the concept of a HOA. Why would anyone want that? And how is that legal? I mean, you can literally shoot someone who sets foot on your property but some association can tell you which plants to grow?
AndThenICommented 3 years ago
It’s a Strata - community members make up the board. On one hand, great for maintaining communal areas, on the other hand it can attract some unbearably petty people that have no experience in community leadership or management. Some people just like to peck at others, it’s a reflection on their personal deficiencies but unfortunately makes life miserable for others in their realm
Load More Replies...
Jknbt 3 years ago
The egotistical midgits turn into little dictators once they get on the board... Drunk with power, too much for them to handle!... My hoa told a decorated marine corp viet vet that he couldn't display the flag in the front yard except on independence day and other holidays. He was proud of the flag, and he wanted it on display at all times. They kept after him until they compromised. He moved the flag to the backyard, but it was still visible. Even this wasn't enough. They kept after him until he finally gave up and moved. What jerks.
Felipe Franchini 1 year ago
Federal laws and some state laws allow you to fly the American flag, and others.
Load More Replies... Lori Sandoval 3 years ago
And for those who say "Don't pay the fine", belonging to an HOA has given them the power to put a lien against your house for that amount without regular, legal court-mandated due process and that lien could impede your ability to sell your house or similar.
Pam Derck 3 years ago
I got a text message one Sunday morning at 6am from the president of my HOA asking if I was ok because she noticed I had left the living room light on all night and I don't usually do that. She also almost called the police on my roommate (a young black guy) while he was waiting for an Uber one morning to go to work because she didn't recognize him and he "looked suspicious."
Mario Strada 3 years ago
When I was house hunting, one of my parameters was "No HOA". I grew up in Europe and one of the things I love about european cities is the diverse and organic architecture. I simply could not live in a neighborhood where every house was the same, down to flowerpots and the right shade of eggshell white. These people would take San Francisco "Painted Ladies" and make them all eggshell white. They should move to North Korea.
Raena Celis 3 years ago
I could never live in an HOA run neighborhood. I can't fathom tolerating someone else telling me what to do with "my" house. Nope. Never. Nope. Not ever.
Chich 3 years ago
Just puting this out there, but you know you can spell out C**T! on certain people's lawns with either fertilizer or herbicide. Other expressions might come to mind as well. Just sayin"
Jason Marin 3 years ago (edited)
HOA doesn't stand for Homeowners Association. It stands for Horrible Oppressive A**holes.
Sam 3 years ago
Not always my friend, I'm an HOA president and I joined the board as the old board had a president that was spending tens of thousands just in legal to address a problem that was nonsensical and we didn't need legal, we needed a president with common sense. Not all boards are run by A holes. Took some doing but most homes in our small HOA appreciate the board and community.
Load More Replies... Trillian 3 years ago
I don't understand the concept of a HOA. Why would anyone want that? And how is that legal? I mean, you can literally shoot someone who sets foot on your property but some association can tell you which plants to grow?
AndThenICommented 3 years ago
It’s a Strata - community members make up the board. On one hand, great for maintaining communal areas, on the other hand it can attract some unbearably petty people that have no experience in community leadership or management. Some people just like to peck at others, it’s a reflection on their personal deficiencies but unfortunately makes life miserable for others in their realm
Load More Replies... Jknbt 3 years ago
The egotistical midgits turn into little dictators once they get on the board... Drunk with power, too much for them to handle!... My hoa told a decorated marine corp viet vet that he couldn't display the flag in the front yard except on independence day and other holidays. He was proud of the flag, and he wanted it on display at all times. They kept after him until they compromised. He moved the flag to the backyard, but it was still visible. Even this wasn't enough. They kept after him until he finally gave up and moved. What jerks.
Felipe Franchini 1 year ago
Federal laws and some state laws allow you to fly the American flag, and others.
Load More Replies... Lori Sandoval 3 years ago
And for those who say "Don't pay the fine", belonging to an HOA has given them the power to put a lien against your house for that amount without regular, legal court-mandated due process and that lien could impede your ability to sell your house or similar.
Pam Derck 3 years ago
I got a text message one Sunday morning at 6am from the president of my HOA asking if I was ok because she noticed I had left the living room light on all night and I don't usually do that. She also almost called the police on my roommate (a young black guy) while he was waiting for an Uber one morning to go to work because she didn't recognize him and he "looked suspicious."
Mario Strada 3 years ago
When I was house hunting, one of my parameters was "No HOA". I grew up in Europe and one of the things I love about european cities is the diverse and organic architecture. I simply could not live in a neighborhood where every house was the same, down to flowerpots and the right shade of eggshell white. These people would take San Francisco "Painted Ladies" and make them all eggshell white. They should move to North Korea.
You May Like 49 Body Things That Make People Panic But Are Totally Normal, According To Doctors These 2-Sentence Horror Stories Will Send Shivers Down Your Spine “What Things Are Normal For Americans But Weird For Non-Americans?” (43 Surprising Answers)
Justinas Keturka
Inga Korolkovaite
Ilona Baliūnaitė
Related on Bored Panda
