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Don’t paint your front door pink. Don’t park in front of anyone’s home except your own. Don’t adopt a pitbull. Don’t forget to bring in your bins within an hour of the trash being collected. And don’t even think about letting the grass in your yard grow taller than an inch and a half.
Ah, the joys of having a homeowners association! While purchasing a house means freedom for many people who have previously rented, for others, it means being tied to a host of new rules. And to find out just how extreme HOAs can be, we’ve gathered some of the most infuriating posts from the [Anti] Homeowners Associations and Just No HOA subreddits down below. Enjoy reading through these stories that might make you want to abandon the suburbs for good, and keep reading to find a conversation with Orchard's Housing Advisor Jason Hanson!
This post may include affiliate links.
#1
My mom lives in a nice, newer home community with a voluntary HOA. My mother being the firecracker she is, she refused to formally join the HOA but agreed to do the things she would do anyway to upkeep her home. We paint for her, she has a gardener, she washes windows, etc. She never signed any documents, doesn't pay fees, but told the board she would adhere to the standards that she didn’t find silly.
The volunteer president lives next to my mother and this guy has never liked our family. Since mom didn't join, he would knock on her door for "friendly visits" to tell her what rules she was violating. It was all very silly and we continued to ignore him. His biggest pet peeve was her trashcans. Apparently they stayed out too long after trash pick-up and he said it was an "eye sore" for the rest of the neighborhood.
Now I have to explain a few things about mom. My mom is a double amputee, has a dysfunctional side from a stroke, is wheelchair-bound, and is still about 95% independent. There are a few things she can’t do, and bringing the trashcans in and out of the side gate is one of them. For that chore, my sister or I come over the night before trash day and put them out, and the following evening to put them back in.
He whined and complained, wrote letters, and called the city about her trash cans. This guy knew my mom is in a wheelchair, but he kept harassing her. It was after a winter storm that the trashcan blew over and sprayed the neighborhood with trash overnight. It wasn’t just her can by the way, it was several. My sister and I walked the neighborhood and picked up the trash as soon as we could.
Well, the president lost his mind. And this time, he went too far. He gathered up the other members of the board next trash day and stormed up to her house. He yelled at her through the screen door while the other sycophants nodded their heads. I happened to be there and was preparing to grab a broom and go after them. But, to my mother's credit she didn’t yell back, she simply opened the door and rolled her wheelchair down the drive.
And then, my tiny mother struggled to pull the trash can back up the driveway with her one good arm. It was actually pretty sad, mom hammed it up. She has adapted to her weak side, but you wouldn't know it from watching her that day. By the time she got the can halfway up the drive, the angry mob was glaring daggers at the president. I would find out later he never told them she was disabled.
He also painted her as lazy, and most of the meetings were the president complaining about my mom and telling lies about what a nightmare it was living next to her. After a round of muttered apologies, they scattered like roaches in the light. Once they left, I moved the trashcans in and we had a good laugh. The volunteer HOA ended soon after that.
Apparently, no one wanted to attend meetings that were little more than glorified whine sessions about my mom and other people in the neighborhood. The president had been harassing other homeowners and telling similar lies about them. He was proven a liar and we almost never see him now. I’d say the neighborhood has gotten better at this point.
This guy turned out to be the cause of all the strife, and without his influence people began to actually talk to each other. Nowadays people stop by to check on mom during storms and sometimes her trashcans will magically appear in the side-yard on windy days. And mom, in perfect fashion, sent out Christmas cards to all her neighbors.
You may have seen this card in the stores but it has a raccoon on it and says "Merry Trashmas".
Hphizzle 2 years ago
What a power tripping jerk!!! I’m glad she has a good sense of humor and put him in his place, and managed to disband the HOA.
Gabriele Alfredo Pini 2 years ago
He could have offered to bring back her trashcans on the morning...
Sunshine Lady 2 years ago
That was what I was thinking. It's not a big deal for a healthy person to just move the trashcans. I would totally do that if it bothers me so much.
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I’mSoEmotional 2 years ago
Every neighborhood always seems to have an a$$hole who thinks it’s his/her business to dictate to the rest about these petty little issues, taking nothing into consideration like disability or age. Kudos to you and your Mom.
Half eaten Hamster 2 years ago
In the UK, that would be considered to be disability discrimination, a criminal offence.
Anyone-for-tea? 2 years ago
Also in the UK you can ask for assistance from the bin men via the local council, so they will always come and empty your bins no matter where they are on your property if you prove to them you have a medical reason why you can’t do it. I’m surprised they don’t have this in other places?
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Pumpkinpi 2 years ago
Since she was disabled and he was harassing her specifically, she could have always threatened a lawsuit against the HOA for that.
Ken Beattie 2 years ago
From the sounds of it he was harassing others so not just her specifically.
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Phil Vaive 2 years ago
I'm wondering why they didn't report him for harassment. They weren't part of the HOA so he had absolutely no reason to be interacting with them.
RELATED:
#2
Admittedly, our HOA is pretty good. The fees aren’t that high for houses (less than $30 per month) and a little higher for the condos. Pool is pretty decent and not that far away. We decided to put solar panels on our house. The HOA told me that we were not allowed to do that. We asked why. They said it would ruin the aesthetic of the neighborhood. The solar panel company told us that that was illegal. They have a legal department that has to argue with HOAs all the time. It took two months before we finally got the OK to put the solar panels in. I just wonder, is it just a power trip for the HOAs that they have to make you jump through hoops to go a little greener. SMH.
Urbane Gorilla 2 years ago
As an ex-president of a 400 home HOA, I have to say that this is the type of issue that should be documented and sent to all of your neighbors... In fact, I'd demand the issue was put in the monthly newsletter just so everyone knows the issue and the HOA stops trying to block Solar Panels.
Leo Domitrix 2 years ago
My hubby just went and got on the HOA as VP for a year. Boom, things loosened up. Boom, done. Most HOA boards where I live are, frankly, just something people join to be able to skip dues for a year. They have approved solar, recycling, etc. since, and we recebntly went all in together for internet as a group so it's cheaper per house. Also got them to okay no-mow yards. All they do now is hire the snowplow in winter if needed (rarely) and arrange contracts for repairs. TLDR: Make your HOA what you want it to be.
Nikki D 2 years ago
This is amazing! I've been trying to do something similar with recycling bins in my neighborhood.
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Booker 2 years ago
I've noticed that organizations that aren't held accountable to others tend to become unreasonably inflexible until they feel consequences that personally affect them. They often see requests and suggestions external to their small group as challenges to their authority. Self interest and image appear to play a significant role.
Joshua David 2 years ago
My partner and I live in Alpharetta GA and it's a very wealthy area. Most of the homes are in what I call cut out subdivisions and all feature an HOA. When we decided to buy a home it literally took 9 months and that wasn't because a lack of inventory. It was because all the homes were in subdivisions. We persisted and have been living on a 2 acre plot NOT ruled by an HOA. We were adamant about that. Plus the subdivision homes all look like identical cookie cutter homes and look very dated after about 10 years of going up.
Justin Thyme 2 years ago
Had a HOA tell me I couldn't put up a flagpole-- am a combat vet-- that was a fun fight, once we got the local media on the story. Greatly enjoyed taking them to court, then painted the house as a giant flag as well as mounting a 40' flagpole, properly illuminated as per US Code
MacintoshID 2 years ago
My HOA actually made sure the solar panel choice was addressed over 20 years ago. They provide information on how to do it right and to make sure you have enough sunlight in the years to come as trees grew in your yard as well as your neighbors. We pay once a year for our dues and no one complains about the HOA members since they keep getting re-elected year after year.
Rockaway Beach 2 years ago
In florida, it is stupidity. It is the law that energy saving, techniques using passive energy is allowed. Solar panels, retracting line driers, advanced reflective metal roofs.
To learn more about HOAs and whether or not they're a good thing for homeowners, we reached out to Jason Hanson, a Dallas-Fort Worth based Housing Advisor for Orchard. Orchard has served thousands of homeowners through its brokerage services and online home search tools, and Jason has 10 years of experience working real estate, so he was the perfect person to weigh in on HOAs.
"HOAs can be great if they're run well," he told Bored Panda. "But if they're not, they can end up being a nightmare to deal with. That's why it's so important to research the HOA before buying a home in an association. Look into the board, their finances, and the seller's history with the HOA, for starters, and don't be afraid to ask the seller and neighbors questions."
#3
About 25 years ago, my aunt and uncle moved into a new construction single-family home neighborhood on a half-acre. About six months after they moved in, my uncle was informed that his neighborhood was being taken over by an HOA. He disregarded his HOA application as he did not wish to join. Not long after this, random neighbors began complaining to him directly.
They whined about his boat and cars in his driveway violating HOA rules. He just informed the often rude people that he was not a member, and they would argue with him that everyone was a member. One of the major issues is that his driveway, garage, and front yard was on the main level of his home and the backyard dropped down a cliff to level with his basement and backyard.
So he had no way to back his boat around the side of the home into the backyard. It escalated quickly. Eventually, the HOA began harassing him with threats if he didn’t move his boat to the backyard. His backyard had been closed off by a vinyl fence the HOA installed and lined another road back there. So one day my uncle decided to compromise by trying to take down a section of his back fence so he could make a gate for boat parking access.
The HOA called the authorities on him for destruction of property. The officer left my uncle with a warning and said the fence needed to be returned to proper condition by the end of the day. My uncle put the fence back up and placed his boat back in his front driveway. Now the fines started coming. Week after week, month after month. When the fines reached $10k, the HOA filed a lawsuit against him.
He countersued for the harassment and street access to his backyard. In court, the HOA showed the HOA boundary and showed my uncle’s house was in the middle of the HOA, explained the violations, and the report filed over the back fence. My uncle explained that he never signed up for the HOA, moved into the neighborhood before the HOA existed, never gave them permission to fence in his back yard, provided all mortgage documentation, and a blank HOA application with the HOA’s security stamp and date.
The HOA argued that it didn’t matter if he didn’t turn in his application because he was within the HOA borders. It didn’t go well for them. The judge declared my uncle’s property was grandfathered as private property and not part of the HOA. The HOA was to immediately take down their fence on the back border of my uncle’s lot. Since the HOA had fined my uncle $10+k in fines, my uncle was owed $10+k in damages for the harassment.
Then he really got revenge. My uncle rebuilt his yard fence in see-through chain link with a gate where he parks all his toys in full view. He moved the boat from the driveway to his front lawn, let the lawn go to seed and then paved it over—all 10 feet from his front door to the sidewalk. HOA neighbors in the decades since still approach him to complain and he just tells them to take a walk knowing there is nothing they can do to him.
WindySwede 2 years ago
I'm just truly amazed that anyone wants to be in an HOA?!
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Fish Fingers 2 years ago
What actually is an HOA for? I don't think we have them in England, and these posts seem to make them out as basically the Mob, suddenly taking over your place, threatening you to do things 'their' way, and demanding money for the privilege.
Nonna_SoF 2 years ago
Originally, to keep black people out of the neighborhood. Now it's more to do with the privatization of government functions and the bigotry is secondary.
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Laura Murzynski 2 years ago
*chef’s kiss* Hit them legally and then sip champagne while they stew.
Nitka Tsar 2 years ago
It was good until the revenge part. I would not pave my front yard just to spite someone. Mind you, we don‘t have a front yard 😂
imgonaarickrollyousohard 2 years ago
WTF officer left Uncle with a warning? That's unacceptable, officer has no right to side with an HOA, they're supposed to side with the law and if they looked closely HOA should have been stopped at that time instead of being able to further harass the man
#4
A number of years ago we moved into a subdivision with what seemed like a pretty laid back HOA. Now, the former owner was a first class a-hole who would never win the good neighbor award. Among the worst things he did was pave most of the front yard because he got tired of the neighbors b**ching at him to cut his grass. About 6 months later I got a letter from the HOA telling us the driveway was "out of compliance". I called the number in the letter and asked what they meant and they said it was far too large and needed to be reduced in size. Me: "Okay, so just let me know when the contractors will be here so I can move my cars". HOA: "No, you're the one who needs to pay to have it reduced in size." Me: "Sorry, there were no covenant violations listed in the settlement papers, so there was no problem then, which means there's no problem now". HOA: "But, but.." Me: "Let me know when they'll be here and I'll move my cars". Never heard from them again, and that was 17 years ago.
Justin Thyme 2 years ago
Love proving to HOA boards that they are personally liable-- sue them and the HOA for EVERY BS infraction. You can go to small claims court up to 25k with no attorney-- have become a master of filing
When it comes to the pros of having an HOA, Jason says they can be helpful with exterior maintenance, increasing home value, offering amenities, lowering bills and assisting with conflict resolution. "Most HOAs handle a large portion of your home’s exterior upkeep so you don’t have to, like mowing the lawn and landscaping," he explained. "Although, most HOA's don't handle the upkeep of the homes’ exterior, mowing, and landscaping in Texas."
"[Homes with] HOAs sell for an average of 4% more than similar homes outside of HOAs, according to a 2019 UC-Irvine study," Jason added. "Many HOAs offer amenities like swimming pools, tennis courts, golf courses, playgrounds, and gyms in the communities."
#5
I live in a rural area, on a family farm. The farm next to ours was sold to a developer, who built a bunch of Mini Mansions that now have an HOA. Now the Mini Mansions back up to my family farm. This kick-started a chain of awful events. I get letters every week from the HOA complaining about the tractor sitting in the field at the front of my property.
Yes, it can be seen from the street; we're working that field and the tractor is necessary. I've had them complain about my barns, outbuildings, the sound of the large tractor when I'm seeding, and once my grandfather saw some people he didn't recognize checking out the barn and went out with his double-barrel to see what they were up to.
Yeah, they didn’t like that. Apparently, they were HOA “inspectors” who declared their “right” to inspect the building to make sure it met HOA rules. My grandfather is not politically correct and I was pleased he restrained himself from using his buckshot to register his opinion of the trespassers. Also, our property is fenced and posted, it was ridiculous. But it got MORE ridiculous.
I was then informed by the HOA that they were going to fine me $1,000 a day until the offending striations and machinery were removed. I informed them that I and my property are not part of the HOA and if their inspectors set foot on my property again, I would have them detained or let my grandfather loose with his double-barrel. They went nuts and called the County Sheriff’s Office.
But, having lived here for generations, I know the Sheriff. He came out and asked me what was going on and I told him. He also visited the HOA and heard their demands that he take immediate action to “protect” their inspectors. They were less than happy with his answer. He informed them that since my property is posted and fenced, I was well within my rights to not allow them on my land.
Also because of our livestock, my grandfather’s double-barrel is not unreasonable because of predators. He also informed them that as I am not a member of the HOA, I have no requirement to allow them on my land and if he gets another call he will arrest the “inspectors”. I have since been sent a letter from the HOA's lawyer telling me to cease and desist all operations until they get a court date.
They are apparently suing me for “damaging the value of their property.” I forwarded it to my lawyer who, after he got done laughing, was amazed. First, because a court has to issue a cease-and-desist order, not the HOA, and secondly we've been here farming for four generations. I have spoken with the HOA board and told them to leave us alone or we'll be more than happy to play “our lawyer is better than their lawyer”.
This is when I learned they are under the delusion that I'd be selling my land for development to an organization like theirs. They were more than a little surprised when I told them that we're currently training the fifth generation to take over and we have no intention of selling our farm, period. Seems the developer left them with the impression that I was selling my property to be developed like my neighbors had been, only to make his money and run.
God have mercy on overzealous HOAs.
Batwench 2 years ago
OP shoul turn to plot of land into a small pig farm, or even free range chickens. Now those really smell and they are just “diversifying your farming operations for future proofing in the current economic climate”
Michael Fuhry 2 years ago
I find it little sad (albeit somewhat humorous) that many of us have seen and heard so much bullflop in our lives that we can roll "diversifying, etc..." off our tongues as if we were born to it. Sheesh.
Load More Replies... Petra Schaap 2 years ago
imagine moving next to a farm and complaining about seeing a tractor -_- Also i assume "mini mansions" mean the owners have money enough to choose where they can live so just dont move next to a farm if you dont like it. JFC.
JM 2 years ago
Wow. We lived in Ohio for a few years, in a suburb outside of Dayton. The surrounding area was mainly beautiful farmland, with a few unfortunate exceptions where farmland was becoming housing developments. As I read this post, I was so reminded of the encroachment of housing developments on Ohio farmland it made me sad and a little sick.
Janner Wingfeather 2 years ago
It’s happening in Wyoming too. A bunch of Californians are moving in to LARP as cowboys and are driving land prices up.
Load More Replies... Wilf 2 years ago (edited)
This one happens all the time in the UK too. City people move out to the country and then complain about people who actually use the country for its proper purpose. My grandparents had a dairy farm and over the last couple of decades have had the local blow-ins complain about everything from the smell, the noise, the 'dangerous' muck on the roads, obstructive lorries pumping the milk... you name it! Every time they respond with "we're a farm. We've been here, doing this since about 1750. Why don't you fuxk off?"
Wilf 2 years ago
The same people led a (thankfully unsuccessful) campaign to turn off the hourly church bells too because they thought they were too disruptive.
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Nay Wilson 2 years ago
Yes, let’s demand the farmer get rid of the equipment that enables him to work his farm(!) Idiots!
Kathryn Baylis 2 years ago
Even if OP was going to sell, the HOA has zero authority over him and his property until the check has cleared, and he and his family have vacated. Until then, it’s HIS property, not theirs.
Rae Ramirez 2 years ago
I love how it has been and your family for four generations, and you are currently teaching the fifth generation to take care of the farm!! HOA does not understand where they get their meat, their vegetables and other agriculture products!! I hope it goes on for many more generations!!
Janner Wingfeather 2 years ago (edited)
These guys sound like the neighbors I had about 10 years ago. No HOA, just a bunch of retirees with nothing better to do than complain that tenants of a 7-acre property zoned for agriculture would have the audacity to have an actual working farm, rather than just a horse or two as a lawn ornament.
Roxie Carter 2 years ago
My stepdad is a farmer with land beside a subdivision. Opposite problem. They love the scenic views of rolling pastures and cows SO much, that they have worked themselves into a tizzy over the possibility he may someday sell to developers and their quaint backyard view will be ruined. He would never that, but boy, did it p**s him off to learn they were attempting to force his hand in the future.
#6
When we bought our house, the largest in the hood and the original showcase home for the development, there was a shed in the back yard. My Lady Lair, if you will. The home sale was approved by the HOA and a letter of “no violations” was issued. All good, right? The home unfortunately came with scads of “abandoned property.” Within 24 hours of taking possession of our home the former owners broke back in to remove what was now legally ours (a suitable story for entitled people.) I stopped at the security guard shack to inquire about ensuring that the former owner’s gate codes were inactivated and to keep an eye out for any attempt at continued entry into the gated hood. The guard assured me he would handle it and I went on my way. That evening the guard came to my home to give me additional info I might need and offered security cam footage for the police. I thanked him for taking the time to make me feel safe in my new home but before he left he said “Just to warn you, the HOA will go after you for your shed-they want it gone.” After a bit more discussion he informed the former owners were not only crazy but had gone toe to toe with the HOA over the shed. Three years and lawyers all around the HOA finally said eff it, this is costing us too much money and their lawyer is better than ours, and dropped the whole thing. Within two weeks I had two different neighbors tell me the HOA would give me problems over the shed. Fun! At the three week mark an inspector from the county showed up to tell me he was investigating an anonymous complaint about code violations and the shed, visible only if you stood on my property, was in violation with the county as there was no permit for it. I was livid and already considering what avenues I had to keep my shed or “win” compensation for the loss of property when the code enforcer smiled a devious smile at me, handed me a printout, and said “all you need to do is fill this out, pay $50 to the county, and you will be in code compliance.” He then said that “Mr. Little Man Syndrome...*oops coughcough...I mean the ‘anonymous complainant’ cannot touch your shed after that.” The key here is that 4y ago when they were battling the former residents the county did not permit sheds and the bylaws say all additional property structures require permits. If there is no permit the HOA can order the removal and fine the resident until it is gone. Two years ago the county started permitting sheds and HOA was unaware of the change. I paid my $50 and got the permit, making my lady lair code compliant and untouchable by the HOA. I also made a new friend in Code Enforcement and all is well in my 150 sq ft slice of heaven.
JM 2 years ago
You go Girl! All hail the Lady Lair and kudos to inspectors with a sense of fair play.
Stannous Flouride 2 years ago
Many building inspectors start out in the building trades and are genuinely concerned only about structural safety and such and see these petty 'rules' for what they are.
Load More Replies... LooseSeal's $10 Banana 2 years ago
And let's just all ignore the fact that the government has to be involved in having a shed.
Gabriele Alfredo Pini 2 years ago
In south Italy you can see what happen when the community doesn't control such things. It is not pretty, especially when a family of five dies because their shed is not up to code.
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Fish Fingers 2 years ago
These are just too depressing to keep reading them. What's the point of any of these situations? I'm out.
Nikki D 2 years ago
You grab my purse, I'll hold the door, and we are going out in style fish!
Load More Replies... Amanda Hunter 2 years ago
HOA's are full of 'little men' wanting to be powerful, it's laughable.
#7
So... I purchased my property in a quasi non-voluntary HOA in forced sale. I cleared the liens (Which were disclosed prior to my purchase) and have been fixing up the property. I'm currently "living" in an RV I have parked in the front yard. I have it up on concrete blocks. Totally in violation of the HOA but I'm not a member. The interior of the house is not livable (pretty bad hoarding situation) and I have a standing order with the trash company to have a 10 yard bin that gets swapped out every Friday. I predict another 2-3 months until that service can be canceled. The dumpster every week is on top of bags of clothing that goes to goodwill and all the c**p I put up on craigslist and ebay for sale. Plus I have enough shampoo and conditioner to keep my hair silky smooth and smelling of spring time for the next 50 years. The HOA has been harassing me to join, I thought we settled the argument but screw them. They also attempted to have my RV towed off my front yard, fortunately I had already made efforts to prevent it from being towed. Namely I called the towing company the HOA had a contract with and my lawyer explained the situation. They also started sending me fines in the mail and I'm adding them to the harassments file. Not being dumb enough to be sued the towing company agreed that they wouldn't tow any vehicle from any space that could be defined as "123 oak street" without my direct authorization. Including but not limited to the driveway, garage, front yard, or street in front of 123 Oak street. We also saw a way for them to profit from the situation. This is my pro revenge on them. We have a standing deal that they can drive the tow truck to my house, then they knock on my door and ask if I called the tow. If I say no they charge the HOA for wasting their time, and If I don't answer they can still charge the HOA for wasting their time. The towing company hit them for about $500 before they caught on to the deal they made with me. Some good news... i've successfully gotten into the bathroom and cleaned out all the children's clothing and decades old pizza boxes and bags of onion peels. So after a great deal of elbow grease I might actually be able to shower in my house soon.
Zoe Vokes 2 years ago
The fact that he is improving the look of the area by cleaning and fixing up a home in that state is surely a good thing. A few months of having an RV and a dumpster I’m the garden seems a small inconvenience to prevent that house becoming run down and turning into a messy eye sore. That would surely affect the property values.
Panda Bear 2 years ago
I hope the person who lived in that house previously got the help they needed. Hoarding is a serious mental illness.
Bethan Coleman 2 years ago
As someone who also brought a hoarders house and had to live on site in a caravan until it was habitable, it's worth all the hassle when you see the end result.
"HOA fees cover different things, but one commonly included cost is utilities, like water and gas," Jason continued. "Sometimes, HOAs resolve conflicts rather than incite them. If your neighbor plays loud music in the middle of the night or they fail to pick up after their dog, who just so happens to love your front lawn, an HOA can step in."
#8
Disclaimer: I did not live in this HOA, but I did live down the street. Ok, so, we're gonna set the way-back machine to circa 2000 on this one...gas is cheap, cell phones were small, and my Ford Escort got amazing gas mileage. As the (now) ex-wife and I were struggling with our bills, she decided that the easiest thing (for her) was for me to get a 2nd job to try to catch up and then get something into savings. Having seen the sign in the window of the local pizza shop which was named after a popular game played with small rectangular pieces that was advertising $12-$16/hour for drivers (THAT was a lie...), she badgered me into applying. Fast-forward a couple of months, and I have settled into my mind-numbing routine of working 60-70 hours a week at two jobs. On this particular day, I was scheduled to work on Saturday, which was hit-or-miss for tips. You see, our delivery area was very nouveau riche, combined with scattered groups of Florida rednecks. You would have a gated community with McMansions and BMWs right next to a trailer park. Oddly enough, the smaller the house and cheaper the car, the bigger the tip...which factors in to the story. On this particular Saturday, a local HOA was throwing a pizza party for the residents. I think they were celebrating the last house being sold, or moving the HOA from the developer to the board, or something. Anyway, they ordered a TON of pizza. So much so that the manager had scheduled extra kitchen staff and had them show up an hour early just for this one order. He even gave them a discount on the pizza, since they ordered so much. There were so many pies that it took myself and another driver two trips apiece to deliver it all. When we got the last boxes of pizza delivered, the manager wrote a check for the total. Couple hundred dollars and change... ...rounded up to the next dollar for our "tip". So, I left, and went back to the store. The manager asked me how much of a tip that I got, to which I replied "87 cents". He didn't believe me, so I showed him the check. He then asked me if I was messing with him, and if they had given me a cash tip. "Nope!" He. Went. OFF! He walked over to the phone, called the manager of the HOA, cussed her out for not tipping his drivers, AFTER he had discounted the order and scheduled extra staff just for her order, and told her that he was entering that entire subdivision into the computer as "Do Not Deliver". He then hung up, opened the cash register, and gave each of us a $20 bill for a tip. To this day, I have no idea if any of the residents were ever able to order from that store.
Wilf 2 years ago
"circa 2000 on this one...gas is cheap, cell phones were small, and my Ford Escort got amazing gas mileage." Anyone else just absolutely savouring that almost Proustian description of the year 2000? *chef's kiss*
Brocken Blue 2 years ago
Yes! I read it out loud to my completely uninterested spouse because I just wanted to linger a bit longer 😂
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Nightshade1972 2 years ago
While blacklisting a whole *neighborhood* is pretty rare, I have heard of situations where New Occupant moves into a house/apartment. First time they try to order pizza, Chinese, whatever, as soon as the restaurant hears the address they flatly refuse to deliver. Turns out that Old Occupant had a nasty habit of refusing to pay, not tipping, etc, so Old Occupant got blacklisted. Took some convincing for New Occupant to get the various restaurants to believe that they wouldn't do that to the restaurant.
Fay Louise 2 years ago
Oh, yeah. Middle and upper class people have less understanding and less empathy of what its like to be working the minimum-wage jobs and the difference tips make. Also, being cheap in a lot of areas is how they pay for the fancy stuff. Working class people tend to have more of a 'do as you would be done by' attitude towards tipping.
Ross Shaw 2 years ago
When I delivered pizza there was a local factory that would routinely order 10 pizzas right before closing on Friday nights, then fail to tip or only tip a couple bucks. Two different managers let it go, but we got a new dude who called the company and told them he was going to add a 20% driver gratuity on all their future orders, and if they didn't like it they could stop ordering from us. Loved that guy!
John Dilligaf 2 years ago
"You would have a gated community with McMansions and BMWs right next to a trailer park. " ....Sounds like the part of AZ I live in.
Beck 2 years ago (edited)
I love these hoa stories more than I should! And also, around 2000 I started selling rainbow vacuums door to door. Only lasted a few weeks, never again. They told us right off the bat that the trashy trailers will be the first to go to a secret hidey hole and pull out a wad of cash for a rainbow before any of the richy houses will. So don't judge!
Jane Hower 2 years ago
I used to do comedy/singing telegrams for parties and it was my experience also that the rich houses tipped worse than the low income areas. go figure
#9
This happened about 3 years ago, I was living with my dad before moving out, this is in central Texas a little north of Austin on a county road, my family had lived there for almost 30 years long before any thought of a neighborhood even existed. We have our 2 gate posts painted purple, which means keep out, for anyone who doesn’t know. And we kept the gate dummy locked to avoid unwanted guests. The most recent neighborhood at that time had a rather strict HOA that luckily up until that point we had the pleasure of never dealing with as we lived 2 miles down the road from the back entrance to said neighborhood. One day on my day off while my dad was at work I heard a knock at the door and looked through the peephole to see a woman in her mid 40’s dressed like a business woman. I assumed it was someone offering to buy the property as we live on 20 acres. I opened the door and she said “I’m blah blah blah with the (neighborhood) HOA, I just wanted to speak to the property owner about the purple posts, it doesn’t really match the aesthetic of the neighborhood.” I was f**king lost, I started to talk and then was left speechless and this b**ch says “can you speak?” In the most c**ty tone I’d ever heard. And I said “lady, purple posts mean keep out and that gate was dummy locked, idk how long you’ve been in Texas but your actions in the past 5 minutes would’ve counted as a signed death wish to a lot of people on this county road, including my dad. We’re not apart of your stupid ass HOA, we live 2 F**KING MILES down the road from it and if we want to spray paint our trees red and grass blue, we can. So turn around, close the gate behind you and f**k off.” She started to talk so I slammed the door in her face and watched her leave from the window. Few months later a friend of mine moved into that neighborhood and told me that my dad and his property is regularly posted on their Facebook page as “unfriendly and dangerous”. Anyways, I hope someone gets a laugh, and I’m so glad I found this sub.
JM 2 years ago
I have relatives in Texas who have explained the purple gate posts to me. Apparently it’s a pretty well-known cultural “rule” and anyone who violates the “purple post no trespassing notice” is very seriously risking a conversation at the business end of a firearm.
Blue Bunny of Happiness 2 years ago
Hmm so if I paint my front door purple in the UK…..anyone up for creating a new cultural rule here??
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NotMykl 2 years ago
Purple posts have absolutely no meaning beyond being purple. If you want people to stay off your property then you put up No Trespassing signs as purple paint has no legal meaning.
Kira Okah 2 years ago
Texas Penal Code 30.05. Purple paint marks on posts are classified as notice of entry forbidden.
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Miss Frankfurter 2 years ago
I just love🙄 how people think they have the right to tell other people what to do with their property when they don’t even live in the HOA neighborhood. It’s private property that they have no right to concern themselves with. They can just STFU and tootle on off.
John Dilligaf 2 years ago
not sure what "dummy locked" means, but as for being described as “unfriendly and dangerous”; yea - there's a reason for that. On a side note; I've often wondered what folks with their locked up fences and gates and No Trespassing signs do for things like FEDEX packages, utility meter readers, and other folks like that.
Ken Beattie 2 years ago
I've heard of couriers basically just dropping the package over the fence. Not sure about meter readers though. You're legally obliged to allow them access so I dunno.
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Stannous Flouride 2 years ago
I want a t-shirt with purple posts framing a sign that says "Unfriendly and Dangerous"
#10
My HOA was doing some useless things like replacing asphalt with bricks, which was loud and took weeks and probably will cost a lot to repair, so they told us we could move our cars to the small plaza next to our homes. They assured us we had permission. Big mistake. Every car parked there got towed, and they had no choice but to pay roughly $300 for every car towed.
Phil Vaive 2 years ago
Brick roads are significantly better for the environment and easier to repair than concrete/asphalt. They were in use for thousands of years around the world, until we came up with a faster / cheaper alternative that doesn't last nearly as long and is much worse for the environment. Newer isn't always better.
Inclusion2020 2 years ago
Hopefully the cars were towed properly. Otherwise, someone’s drive train got f****d.
As far as the downsides of having an HOA go, Jason says some of the most common complaints are about the fees, the risk of lien or foreclosure, the lack of choice, the rules and the potential for mismanagement. "HOA fees (sometimes called HOA dues) are mandatory. The actual cost of these dues can range from $100 to $1,000 a month or more, depending on the services the HOA offers," the expert explained.
"Those who can’t or don’t pay fine assessments or regular HOA fees can face a lien on their property from the HOA and risk losing their home to foreclosure — even if they’re up to date on their mortgage," Jason added.
#11
Last month my wife and I (newly married) moved into a community that had no HOA listed. We are both the DIY types and take care of our own property. Part of the reason we picked our house is it had a large corner backyard with RV parking on the side, plus a fair amount of workspace. The community was also in great condition considering no HOA was involved. One week in, we started redoing the kitchen cabinets. They were from the 70s and we wanted more hardwood instead of the cheap wood that was installed. I'd say the saw was on for five minutes when one of the neighbors came up to say it's against HOA rules to do DIY improvements on my home...I obviously wondered what he was talking about. I had made absolutely sure there was no HOA before signing and moving in. He replied that they have a community HOA and that it would be in our best interest to join. I obviously said NO and went back to my day. An hour later, the guy is back with a woman in business attire to hand me "THE RULES" and to have me sign the acknowledgment/entry papers. Also to retain my $289/month fee. Once again, I explained I'm not interested nor do I care about their club. I see no reason to abide by their rules. I simply stated that I will keep my property maintained and that's all they need to know. She gave me a few choice words and left. I thought all was done, but I was so wrong. Today I received a fine for a leaky sprinkler. It leaks for all of five minutes past the timer...at 4 am...which means one of these prunes has been watching my house at 4 AM!! I'm up at all hours of the day for work so I was able to check. I know this is just the beginning. The HOA has not registered, at least from what I can find. The board members’ names and signatures are listed in the back of the Rules Book. I’ve already started the paper trail just in case it gets worse.
Cyber Returns 2 years ago
Report it as an illegal HOA. Local authorities have a problem with unregistered HOAs as it really messes with their duties, for example, clearing debris from the road after a storm. You have the local authority pay for clean up and the HOA charges you for the clean-up they had no involvement with, thus pocketing the money for something they didn't pay for
Blue Bunny of Happiness 2 years ago
So, as a Brit, I’m assuming a HOA is a bit like a Neighbourhood Watch area. Only instead of freely making your area less attractive to criminals, you criminalise your neighbours and charge them a monthly fee for the privilege. This then allows you to take more money from them, for their wanton neglect of the stupid rules you invent.
Ted Higgins 2 years ago
Starring BoJo as President, Hyacinth as Code enforcement officer, Wee Nippy Krankie as Treasurer, Lord Sutch as Secretary and Rule maker upper, Bez as Entertainment officer, should tell you everything that you need to know
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Wilf 2 years ago
289 a month is as much local council tax you would pay for a 4 bedroom house in the UK. A tax which pays for ALL your local services. Everyrhing from bin collections to libraries, planning departments, socoal housing, community centres, support groups and recovery centres, road repairs, street lighting, a percentage of policing and firefighting services, education services, kids school meals, basically everything that's not covered by central government spending.
SingingCatMom 2 years ago
It will get worse...but from the sounds of things, the HOA has met its match! Hang in there!
the harbinger of doom any 2 years ago
op has more restraint than me, i would have burned the papers right in front of them
Linziaj 2 years ago
What is an HOA ? Meaning, what do they actually do. You have to pay to be a member but abide their rules ?? UK here.
Zakaar Bovus 2 years ago
They supposedly "protect property value", but generally it's just a group of mini dictators that use what miniscule authority they have to bully people
Load More Replies... Jane Hower 2 years ago
If it started like that then it WILL get worse. Hang in there and good luck
#12
This was in the mid-90s, when I owned a condo in Las Vegas. I bought it new and lived in it. I do not recall how long I had lived there when I received a letter from the HOA asking me for my address. I just ignored it. A few weeks or so later, I received an infuriating package. It was a letter stating I had been fined $100 for not “returning” that other letter.
I went down to the office to visit the HOA president. And said exactly this to him: "The only way I will pay this fine is through judgment. Because I want to see you explain to a judge how you sending a letter to my address to verify my address and then fining me because you did not receive a response is going to fly with a judge”. The reaction was priceless.
He thought for a minute, then conversed with the other person there, then said to her “Could we have misplaced his letter? Ok, no fine”. He just was completely unwilling to admit he was in the wrong, but he obviously didn’t want to go to court, either.
#13
Back in the '90s, the wife and I bought a new home that was part of an HOA. We made sure to read the HOA rules in advance, and thought we understood them. We kept a snake as a pet, and wanted to be sure that there was no issues. The only pet restrictions stated were no livestock. Since we didn’t intend on owning chickens, cows, pigs or other farm animals, we thought we were safe. Wrong. After living in the home for a few years, we expanded our animals to include additional snakes and assorted reptiles. Since all were in locked cages, the neighbors never really knew about them. Eventually, the HOA board found out and sent us a letter demanding we get rid of them. Very stupid because this was in an area of north Phoenix, AZ, and wild snakes, lizards and other reptiles abounded. The people of the area were far more likely to run into a rattlesnake on their own front porches than to ever even see our ball python, or bearded dragon. The HOA board members viewed our reptiles as livestock. (Yee haw, let’s round up them corn snakes and herd them along!) Bottom line, we were facing a big fight with them, one of which we couldn’t financially afford. Not ready to back down and lose our pets, we decided to reread the HOA paperwork again. We discovered that, as HOA members, we were entitled to all financial records of the HOA. So we sent them a registered letter requesting ALL financial records. All of a sudden, the board backed down and let us keep our reptiles. Never saw a single financial record, but we took the win. Not too long after, we moved out of that house and into another that didn’t have an HOA. Will never, ever buy a home that is part of an HOA again.
and_a_touch_of_the_’tism 2 years ago (edited)
I call on all my fellow pandas to get this to the top I’m dying
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Lynn Morello 2 years ago
At least here in Australia, we have never heard of living, breathing HOA's. If they turned up on our doorstep, I would be painting the whole place Purple.
"Since HOAs handle so much of the community upkeep, they often have meticulous guidelines for individual homes, like pre-approved exterior paint colors and shutter styles," the real estate expert shared. "HOAs often come with a litany of rules about things like fencing dimensions, how tall your grass can grow, or what fertilizer you're allowed to use."
"HOAs are made up of volunteers in the community. In other words: They’re human," Jason noted. "A good board can be efficient and professional, a bad one can mismanage the community, misspend money, or abuse its power."
#14
I own a bunch of rentals in a bunch of communities. I'm no stranger to HOAs and court battles. In fact, I have a company attorney on retainer. I just moved into a community and finally bought myself a house I plan to stay in for a while. Well, a Karen recently got elected to the board and she immediately hated me. Why? Well it all started when I requested the following:
1: HOA financial documents—which two months in they have still not produced. 2: A temporary reasonable accommodation after a major surgery. Finally, I asked her husband not to change his oil in the parking lot. She hit back hard. So far I've received four notices for: speeding in the parking lot, a political sign (who was an opponent to her political sign in her front yard), a construction noise complaint, and destruction of community property for washing my car with a hose.
So my attorney goes to work on the upcoming fight. My attorney BCCs me on all emails to the association and the management company. I wish I was making the next part up. Karen is so stupid she replied all on an email meant for just the property manager: A few snippets: "I'm going to keep fining him and make his life horrible.” "He is a nightmare and a punk kid with too much money.”
"We are going to drown him in lawyers’ fees and send him the bill until he finally submits to me." "This is now personal, I'm on a mission to show that punk kid with his parents’ money that I'm president, and he will do as I say." My lawyer called me six times at 10:30 last night and said “check your email.” At 9 am, my attorney sent a cease and desist to the entire board and included a copy of the email.
Mine and his phone have been blowing up non-stop from the four other board members and their attorney trying to just talk. This woman may be the stupidest person on Earth. I honestly cannot wait to see the fallout from this.
JM 2 years ago
Some people get their whole identity from a little bit of power. So sorry OP had to go through this.
Zoe Vokes 2 years ago
This was years ago and he only posted one update but I don’t think he was too upset. He had previous experience with HOAs and a good lawyer. Karen resigned and once the courts opened up after Covid he said he was going to sue her personally for compensation and expected the HOA to offer him a settlement. He didn’t want to take money from other homeowners so wasn’t going to be greedy with the HOA. The other board members seemed reasonable and surprised by Karen’s behaviour but once they saw the email then she resigned.
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Zoe Vokes 2 years ago
He posted an update after this. This happened during Covid so courts weren’t open at the time. Everybody agreed to have a zoom call: OP, Karen, the four other board members and a lawyer from each side. The HOA lawyer tried to intimidate OP by saying his harassment of the board wouldn’t be tolerated. OP’s lawyer showed the email on the screen (which the other board members hadn’t seen). Karen left the zoom call and later resigned. OP’s lawyer made it clear that Karen was to have zero contact with OP or his family, but whilst walking his dog she came up to him and started petting his dog (after he told her not to). OP called the cops, who warned Karen to leave him alone or be arrested. And they’re going to demand damages from her personally once the courts reopen. No other updates and this was years ago.
Jane Hower 2 years ago
Stupid people who want POWER just LOVE getting on HOA's - mine is a pure example.
Milo Stefani 2 years ago
That is not how BCC works. Even if you Reply All the BLIND cc is gone. The mail physically doesn't have the address of the BCC.
Stannous Flouride 2 years ago
Whew! I just read through hundreds of Reddit comments trying to find an update but there aren't any. But many people pointed out that by her saying, "now this is personal" she removed herself from the legal shield provided by the HOA and can be sued independently.
#15
Every few weekends my manager comes over my house to help work on a side project for the company. When he comes over he parks in front of my house. The house across from mine just happens to be one of the worst karens I ever met HOA volunteers. She tends to take her job a bit too seriously. Anyways she complains to my wife and I every time she sees the car like clockwork. She will ether call or wait until she sees us outside. The first time she even took it upon herself to write a letter about how its better for everyone if we can keep up a certain image in the neighborhood. I explained to her that he is my manager after the letter about a year ago. She accused me of lying since I drive a nice truck and have a nice house so she knows I bring in a decent salary. She assumed that my manager made more therefore he "needs to own a nice car." I than explain that my manager makes 250k per year and drives a beater because he does not care about his image. She than goes on some rant about how she goes into massive debit to keep up the right image for the neighborhood and that its ignorant of my manger to save his money and buy a beater when people like her are pay check to paycheck to keep up with the Jones's. Lucky for me I can not get fined but I still find it quite annoying that she is worried about the cars that my guests drive. I told my manger about her constant complaining every time he is over. He joked that He will spray paint his car with chalk next time he comes over to make it look as trashy as possible. I told him to dress in his worst cloths as well and slowly get out of his car to make sure she notices.
Ken Beattie 2 years ago
Get a shopping cart out and fill it with old cans and bottles just to complete the image.
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Elio 2 years ago
Imagine bragging about getting into massive debt to Keep Up With The Jones'. At least any debt I've had has been for sh!t that's actually useful. (Student loans, car loans, one time I had a heads up about being laid off, so I opened a 0% interest credit card before that happened and paid it off when I got my new job. I had some savings, but not a lot.)
Nitka Tsar 2 years ago
I need to digest this. She goes into debt to „keep up with the Jones‘s“ and demands others to make that stupid financial decision too? Oh my…
Ken Beattie 2 years ago
It's amazing how often this is a thing. It's even more common in some cultures, my Dad spent quite awhile living in a few different Asian countries and it's incredibly common to see someone driving a Mercedes but they can barely afford food for the week.
Load More Replies... #16
Okay, so when we moved in to our condo, our HOA was actually pretty good. But ever since one crazy old bat got on the board, everything has gone downhill. It all started at the end of last summer. I'm disabled. I have Ehlers Danlos Syndrome and fibromyalgia, and I use a cane to walk. As part of my physical therapy, I used to pool to do hydrotherapy routines. No one I had met minded this as I only took up a corner of the pool. But after being witnessed doing water therapy by this old bat, everything changed. She got the nastiest look on her face, and informed me that I was taking up to much space in the pool and was distracting and detracting from others' enjoyment. It's a huge pool, and I'm not a big person! Anyway, winter came and I thought that was the end of it, but I tried to go down to the pool a few weeks ago at the beginning of our vacation (my husband and I are teachers). Our pool fob had been turned off! And we called the HOA, and they sent us a BS form letter about us "violating pool rules" which we never have! It's absolutely ridiculous that I know have to pay for a Y membership to do therapy when the pool is literally behind our condo all because one old b**ch hates disabled people!
StarlightPanda! 2 years ago
Get a lawyer. This is discrimination against disabled people and illegal!
Zoe Vokes 2 years ago
I fell down the rabbit hole of reading her other updates (this was from 6 years ago). OP contacted an attorney friend who got the FOB turned back on. 🚓 The HOA present later lost her presidency after another incident - she reached into OP’s car and tried to steal her disabled lanyard, saying OP wasn’t disabled because she was able to carry some light groceries inside. HOA President mouthed off to the cops and spent the night in jail, then lost her HOA leadership role as a result.
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Zoe Vokes 2 years ago
I fell down the rabbit hole of reading her other updates (this was from 6 years ago). OP contacted an attorney friend who got the FOB turned back on. 🚓 The HOA present later lost her presidency after another incident - she reached into OP’s car and tried to steal her disabled lanyard, saying OP wasn’t disabled because she was able to carry some light groceries inside. HOA President mouthed off to the cops and spent the night in jail, then lost her HOA leadership role as a result.
Zoe Vokes 2 years ago (edited)
And once when they had Jewish friends over for an interfaith Shabbat, one of her friends (not knowing HOA president was a nightmare) explained that were there discussing different religions and they were Jewish. HOA president said “you people killed Jesus,” looked at OP and said, “I always knew there was something more wrong with you.” Friend explained OP isn’t Jewish but she woke up to a pound of unwrapped, uncooked bacon on her front porch. They got security cameras installed.
Load More Replies... SingingCatMom 2 years ago
That is COMPLETELY illegal under the ADA...Americans With Disabilities Act. I completely agree with Upstaged75. This would be a dream case for a lawyer. Maybe you could even find a lawyer who was screwed by a HOA!.
Laura Murzynski 2 years ago
Oh hello lawsuit for discrimination against a disabled w! I hope you get enough to buy the ENTIRE condo association, because you deserve it.
Jay Weigel 2 years ago
She's in violation of the ADA. See a lawyer who specializes in disability rights.
The Starsong Princess 2 years ago
This is the kind of thing that can be fixed with one lawyer letter. Cheaper than joining the Y.
When it comes to what buyers should understand before purchasing a home in an HOA area, Jason says, "Depending on the HOA, owners may have to get approval for even the simplest of things, such as planting shrubs and flowers. For larger improvements such as pools and patio covers, a more extensive approval may be required."
"The HOA board members are typically elected positions, and the HOA holds meetings on a regular basis," he added. "Many homeowners don't go to these meetings or cast a vote for the board members. If you want to make a change for the better, attend meetings and consider running for the board."
If you'd like to gain more insight or guidance before purchasing your next home, be sure to consult the experts at Orchard!
#17
On June 25th, after my son got a lumbar puncture with chemo, his doctor gave us paperwork to get an emotional support dog. We showed it to the HOA president, and apparently the rule is no dog over 20 lbs. However, my fiancé is worried that he may crush that small of a dog by accident, so we need a medium-sized dog. We let her see the paperwork the day we got it.
She said she had to talk to the HOA lawyers for paperwork that we would have to sign. Well, it's been three weeks. I know we could get her in trouble and possibly disband this HOA if she tries to fight this. But this dragging their feet is making me mad. I want to get the dog now, but my fiancé wants to give them a three-month time limit. Honestly, I think that is too much time.
Megalodon Meg 2 years ago
Honest folk don't turn into bullies. That's something that already is there no matter how deep down it seems.
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Xenon 2 years ago
3 months is too long to make up their damned minds to follow federal law. Service animals are allowed pretty much everywhere, never mind his own damned house.
John Dilligaf 2 years ago
Emotional Support Animals are different from Service Animals and are not covered under federal law.
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Nay Wilson 2 years ago
No dogs over 20 pounds? So no labradors, no golden retrievers are allowed in the community. Wow. That must be a very sad, depressing place to live if they’re so anti something that brings people so much joy
Maisey Myles 2 years ago
I can understand if it was a rental property but how can an HOA tell a homeowner they can't have a dog of any size?
Kitty 🥀 2 years ago
Even in rentals, it’s illegal to deny or even charge for an actual service animal.
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Patricia Smith 2 years ago
Your fiancé needs to step back. This is your son who needs this dog. Your and your sons emotions are the ones tied up in this affair, not your fiancés He might be a nice guy but he is not the birth father of your son. I agree with you; get mad they deserve it. Three weeks is too long for a "yes", "no" answer to your problem. It sounds like you want to call right now for a deservedly "yes" answer. I don't blame you. Your son needs your support now in every way. It also sounds like you're ready to answer that call.
mrsmir 2 years ago
Just because she refers to him as her "fiancé", doesn't mean he's not the father.
Load More Replies... Stannous Flouride 2 years ago
The ADA compliance laws specifically address things like this and the OP has an absolute right to a service animal. They don't need permission and the HOA is not legally permitted to ask for proof (it violates HIPAA). Doing so is a courtesy but not required.
Sarah Hoskovec 2 years ago
I'm confused, why is the fiancée concerned about the boy crushing a small dog??
Ken Beattie 2 years ago
Maybe movement problems and risk of passing out because of the chemo and cancer.
Load More Replies... Justin Thyme 2 years ago
1- Never buy into an HOIA 2- You are protected under the ADA, file a criminal complaint against the HOA Board with the Sherriff
#18
I have not heard a peep from my ridiculous HOA in over three years. Pre-covid, I was trying to install a shed in my backyard. It was not visible from anywhere other than my house, but I'm a rule follower, so I asked for permission. I wanted something cheap and knew the HOA would be a hassle, so I started with three separate units in my request and told them to pick one. They were all pre-fab sheds, and the HOA wasn't having it. They said it must be a Tuff Shed. I sent a new request with the moderately priced shed kit from Lowe's, and they came back and said it must be a Tuff Shed. I drove around the neighborhood taking pictures of other non-Tuff Shed sheds. Then I attached it with a letter that asked why was I getting denied with others clearly had this allowed. I added, "Is this because I'm the only Mexican on the block and you are trying to drive me out of the neighborhood?" I felt a little guilty because I'm only half Mexican and very white looking. I don't have a Mexican name and I do not look Mexican at all. TL;DR, I pulled the race card and never heard from them again.
David Blair 2 years ago
Not a fan of the race card per se, but you using it as an inside straight to cut them off at the knees... well, cop didn't see it I didn't do it. #GoodJob
Amelia Jade 2 years ago
Did something similar. We're allowed to have Christmas decorations up but they have to be down by Jan 15th. We had gone out of town for my Grandpa's funeral, but we were back the second week of January--before the 15th. Yet, there was a letter stating we still had decorations up. We thought they meant the lights around our garage, we took them down. But then we got another letter. This is when I realized they mean the snowflakes in our front window and the snowman on our front door. But those are winter decorations. I was told it was still not allowed. I don't remember how they worded it but basically, if it wasn't for a holiday, it had to be removed. So, I walked around making notes of all the decorations on other people's houses. Guy has a football banner in an upstairs window, etc. I then sent an email asking why we were being singled out. That was all I said. But I guess it was enough. They emailed back that winter decorations were fine and we could leave them.
Nonya Business 2 years ago
No guilt necessary: you expressed how their inconsistent enforcement could be interpreted as discrimination. You did not sue, but pursued equal treatment reguardless of the why.
Jane Hower 2 years ago
Good for you!! I pull the 'old lady' card whenever I need to but for sure I don't look 79, hehe
#19
My HOA in the last neighborhood sent out a letter saying everyone needs to have their house painted this summer because the neighborhood is looking "a little dull". The next letter that came was a petition from someone in the neighorhood that they wanted everyone to sign and tell the HOA that more than half of the neighborhood hasn't fiscally recovered from Covid and that they can essentially go f**k themselves. I was renting so the paint wouldn't have been my problem anyway. But it's just ludicrous to me that people who run these s**thole Karen commissions think that they can just do this kind of s**t.
and_a_touch_of_the_’tism 2 years ago
I’m pretty sure “a gathering of Karens” is the dictionary definition of an HOA
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Brian Droste 2 years ago
Did they say what color the houses needed to be painted? if not I would get the cheapest and ugliest color I could fine and paint my house that color.
MacintoshID 2 years ago
Wow! Did not realize HOAs were forcing homeowners to shell out thousands of dollars to have their houses painted. Makes you wonder who on the HOA board had a relative in the house painting business.
#20
I do not live in an HOA but we still have a "neighborhood region" as designated by the city. Once a month anyone who wants to gets together with our local PD neighborhood relations officer, and usually our district city council rep. As you can imagine, we have a few people who are the type who would dream of being on an HOA board. We had that monthly meeting a few days ago and one of my most "lovely" neighbors shows up with this guest in a bit of a suit. After the routine stuff, she points out that she filed to have time to speak. She gets up, introduces the guy, and starts talking about how she would like for us to listen to him explain the benefits of bonding our neighborhood together in an HOA. I'm sitting up front as usual and could not help but blurt out “screw HOAs" while trying not to laugh. She looks surprised, stares at me, and says "excuse me?" So I popped to my feet "Okay". I went off on her. "Most of us are fighting to make it month to month, and we will have to pay a few hundred extra to some suit for what might sound good but guess what?” I took a deep breath here. “Trash can on curb past 7 am on pick up day or out before 11 pm the night before? Get a fine. Lawn over two inches high for more than 24 hours? Get a fine. House does not match the stipulated paint colors? Get a fine and fix it within 14 days. Feed the stray cats (looking at a lady who does so)? Get a fine." I look to another neighbor. "Put out winter protective boxes so the strays don't freeze? Get a fine per box”. The neighbor kept trying to interrupt but I ignored her. "Working on your car in your own drive, yep another fine, per day. And guess what? You fall behind, they put a lien on your house, put you out and either rebuild it or tear it down and build something new to up-sale and eventually push as many people out as possible to replace us and ‘elevate’ the neighborhood, all while making themselves rich off stealing our properties”. “I'll never sign anything. Judy?" The room looked back at her like they were looking to hurt her. Needless to say, it went nowhere. The suit tried to talk up his points but I had counters to everything he threw out.
Moose Gomer 2 years ago
That's the way it should be. No HOAs should exist. At least as long as power hungry people are allowed to own them. Never fails HOA board member gets personal feelings and all of a sudden everything goes to h**l.
and_a_touch_of_the_’tism 2 years ago (edited)
I’m so sorry is HELL censored? Edit: ok phew don’t blame you these guys are getting out of control
Load More Replies... Lynn Morello 2 years ago
Keep i InTouch just in case HOA starts up anywhere I happen to be, I might need some tips.
#21
I am a first-time home-owner, and I have an old car that does not start, and which I have been trying to fix. I have been parking it in front of my house. Today I saw an HOA warning notice on my car, saying that parking a car in front of my house overnight is prohibited and it will be towed at my own expense—which is seriously the dumbest thing I have heard in a while.
I called the HOA asking about this and the lady told me that they can't have cars parked in front of the house as it damages the view of the community. Good God.
Patricia Steward 2 years ago
Yep, like Judge Judy advises, if it's not in the contract, it doesn't exist.
Load More Replies... Sumdumfu 2 years ago
HOA rules cannot supercede the law. If its legally parked on a public street you can tell them to take a long walk off a short pier. If they tow anyway its a slam dunk lawsuit and possibly grand theft
Bex 2 years ago
It depends. Some HOAs take over responsibility for repair and maintenance of the streets within their borders in an agreement with the municipality. If so, they have jurisdiction over the street and can actually make up any stupid rule that like as long as it is documented. Ask for a listing of the rules both from when you joined, and a current one.
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Maisey Myles 2 years ago
Unfortunately, that's a rule in almost every HOA, especially the ones that will only let you paint your house in their approved colors- all 8 of them.
WindySwede 2 years ago
Same with haircuts? Only 8 styles that been approved by sup HOA leader? /s
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Zoe Vokes 2 years ago
I wonder where everybody else parks their cars. Does everybody else park in the street and it’s only because his car is old that it’s a problem. Because complaining about him would surely would mean enforcing the rule for everybody in the HOA. There must be off road parking available that they’re supposed to use.
Page intentially left blank 2 years ago (edited)
It's a good idea to read every clause in the HOA contract. If you don't agree with even one of them, don't get the house.
MacintoshID 2 years ago
HOAs do not own the road or the rules that go with public roadways, so wouldn't this be illegal for them to enforce illegal laws? If I remember correctly from my past HOA in Las Vegas, they tried this trick and got caught for writing fake parking tickets. It was my late husband who took this issue to LV Metro and the DA's office. They tried to ticket him one morning for parking in front of the house and he caught two young adults dressed in polo shirts with the company logo, writing up fake parking tickets and setting fines for hundreds of dollars. This duo was not very smart, they put a ticket on the windshield of a federal law enforcement truck which was being loaded up for the day by my husband. He worked from home so the truck was always parked in the driveway and only moved that morning so I could drive the car that was in the garage. HOAs are so stupid with the power they have from state law makers and the rules they make up to line their own pockets with.
#22
A hurricane was coming, so I put my boat on a trailer to bring it more inland, and put the trailer at the side of my house. I am not a part of the HOA in my community as my house precedes it. Within a week, I find a note saying if I don’t move my boat, it will be towed. I tried to call their bluff and left it—what came next infuriated me to no end.
Two days later, a truck came by and tried to tow it. I had to come out with my double-barrel and tell him to get off my property. He ran off without his truck….so I had it towed at his expense. The hurricane passed, and I put the boat back in the water. Just yesterday, I got a package from the HOA with fines for the boat at $5,000, plus the price of the truck being towed.
Like heck I’m paying for that.
JM 2 years ago
a) heartless. b) your rights predate the HOA so who in the heck do they think they are?
Zoe Vokes 2 years ago
I find it impossible to believe that neither the truck driver or the HOA didn’t call the police on him. He might have been legally allowed (I don’t know American laws) to brandish a gun to protect his property, but surely police would be called to settle this. And a simple, “I’m not part of the HOA,” might have solved this.
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StarlightPanda! 2 years ago
He had no right to treat the truck driver that way. The guy likely had nothing to do with the HOA and was just doing his job.
Sue User 2 years ago
Hurricane was coming usually means "texas to florida and up to north carolina" , the south. Starting to wonder if we should have just let them succeed ( but we hsd to take a stand against slavery ,)
Load More Replies... Tee Rat 2 years ago
If the homeowner mails them a few certified letters stating that they are not part of the HOA, making sure to keep records of course, they can file a civil harassment suit if they continue.
I’mSoEmotional 2 years ago
One of the first response I’ve ever seen where the word “harassment” was used correctly. By this I mean that it must be something that happens more than 1 or 2 times to show a pattern, in order to be considered “harassment.” Most people think one incident constitutes harassment and it doesn’t.
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I’mSoEmotional 2 years ago
I’d be interested to see if the truck driver filed a police report for assault, since the guy brought out a shotgun and the driver obviously felt threatened or he wouldn’t have run off. Plus I find this story a but suspect as I was a police officer for 15 years and he’s either embellishing or leaving something out.
Load More Replies... #23
Well over a decade ago, I was forced to move back in with my dad. Was only planning to stay a few months till I was financially stable enough to get my own place once again, but my dad insisted I stay rent-free while I got my car paid off and some serious dental work done. This lasted 4 years. My dad owns a really nice place in a subdivision that had an HOA. For about two of those four years, things went fine... until a woman who I shall aptly call Karen became head of the HOA. Me and Karen had many unfortunate run-ins in the past. She would constantly ask my dad how long until I move out. Then she would always report me and my dad to the HOA for the silliest things (which the HOA would usually ignore, or at best dismiss after getting our side of the story), but now that she was in control, she took direct action. The first was to declare me an "unauthorized boarder" after instituting a bylaw that all adults 21 and older in a household have to be registered with the HOA as a permanent resident with a minimum of five years they have to stay without penalizing the homeowner. My dad refused to do any such thing because I would eventually be getting my own place. But Karen insisted, even serving him two years of backdated penalties for having me there. My dad ended up having to spend money on a lawyer to send her a cease and desist order because I was legally grandfathered in since I was there before the bylaw. Of course the fines were begrudgingly dropped, but afterwards she would try to nickel and dime my dad with constant little things like me being out at all hours of the night (I worked late) or the way I dressed in public being inappropriate (Jeans and band t-shirts mostly), and other stupid c**p that most of which weren't in the bylaws. She even took to using a selfie stick over the fence to see if there was anything in the backyard violating the rules. I since moved out of there and a year or so later, Karen was voted out of the HOA after pissing off the wrong people.
and_a_touch_of_the_’tism 2 years ago
No Karen, that’s a bad Karen! *sprays with water bottle*
Load More Replies... Downunderdude 2 years ago
Ludicrous! Are you telling me that an HOA can dictate who lives in your own house?
Miss Frankfurter 2 years ago
Being out at all hours of the night? How she dresses? And she’s his daughter, ie family. Get a life lady!
Maisey Myles 2 years ago
How would the HOA deal with a situation where the homeowner was single then married.
Coralinea 2 years ago
The whole community will have to fall in love with them. The person can then swap house regularly and never be a permanent resident... Obviously.
Load More Replies... #24
FHOA It’s semi long, and sorry for any spelling/ grammatical errors. My bf works as a survey crew chief who has usual rotations: it’s either 3 weeks on, 1 off or 6 weeks on 2 off. He also has a big take home work truck with a trailer that hauls the work UTV that he parks in front of the condo. It takes up a lot of space but there’s still room for 3 other cars to park behind it. Usually this isn’t a problem, but with covid and whatnot, he’s been home a lot more. The company doesn’t have the security to store the equipment onsite, so they want their equipment stored elsewhere, if at all possible. Since we live in a nicer quiet area, it’s a no brained they’d prefer him to keep it here. It started with passive aggressive comments about how he’s home more and hinting about storing the truck somewhere else (it’s on a public street). Then there were notes from “concerned neighbors” about how it’s an eyesore and doesn’t belong in this neighborhood. At this point we were suspecting either our HOA Pres/VP or a really nosy rude lady across the street. We talked to our HOA and told them about the notes, cue “oh no, some people are so rude, blah blah blah.” One morning we came out side to find a parking warning on the truck. We called the city, they said someone called about the truck not moving so they wrote a warning, just make sure to move the truck a few inches or erase the chalk mark, nbd. So last week, we wake up to an actual ticket on the truck for “storing a trailer on a public street” or some c**p. It’s $40. He calls his boss and his boss tells him “eh, it’s cheaper than getting the equipment stolen” and told him to just expense all the tickets. Shortly after all this, we saw Pres/VP and another neighbor. Bf told them about the ticket and they started with “oh I’m so sorry, but it REALLY IS and eyesore so...” so my bf told them what his boss said. All three of them looked like they had been slapped in the face. They said “well won’t that get expensive?” His response: “well they’re a multi billion dollar company, and $40/day at MOST is a lot better that dealing with stolen equipment all the time”. Watching them die inside was the highlight of my quarantine. He hasn’t gotten another ticket since.
John Dilligaf 2 years ago
please tell me how to do Paragraphs/line breaks when posting to BP. Because seriously, I have not been able to figure it out. Thank you in advance
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#25
The HOA had these expensive custom-built wooden mailboxes installed in all the houses as they were built- the issue? They really don't stand the test of time. Several of these mailboxes are rotting badly. Mine was unsteady and leaning for years until it finally gave out. I waited several days- expecting to be contacted but when I wasn't I went to home depot and got a cheap one as a filler. I then spent the next two hours digging rotten wood chips out of a hole. I installed the mailbox and received a notice saying I must fix this or be fined. I contacting them telling them that I can't just pop out to the store and buy a custom-built mailbox, they don't sell them. They looked through their files and found the number of the man who installed them. I called him (I don't see how this is my job) and he said that he hasn't made a mailbox like that in years and that he doesn't have the parts for them anymore and that- even if he did, he's going out of business and won't be able to install a new one. I told the HOA this and they said they would give me an extension of 1 month to figure this out and then we'd 'reconvene'. Welp, it's been a month and nothing has changed and they're threatening to fine me again. Maybe if you're going to require a special custom mailbox- you should make sure they don't rot in a matter of years. These things should be able to last for decades, mine got about 8 years. I also think it's funny that they didn't fine me for having a rotted broken mailbox but for having a metal 'non-matching' one.
JL 2 years ago
Maybe find your way over to the homes of the HOA board, and help along the decay of their mailboxes. I think you'll see this rule get changed in quick fashion.
Nitka Tsar 2 years ago
Something tells me their mail boxes might be of better quality
Load More Replies... John Dilligaf 2 years ago (edited)
were these "expensive custom-built wooden mailboxes" approved by the Postmaster General? Because, fun fact, mail boxes (yep, even the ones in front of your house) have to be approved by the Postmaster General. And the one you bought at Home Depot? It is approved because Home Depot knows this and wouldn't sell it otherwise.
Violet Bunny 2 years ago
Since the HOA originally installed these rotten mailboxes, THEY should be responsible for replacing it!
Justin Thyme 2 years ago
Call the local postmaster-- I can guarantee you that wooden mailboxes are not legal
Stannous Flouride 2 years ago
The Postal Service has very clearly spelled-out laws regarding mail boxes and one of them is that they be made of non-biodegradable materials. These rules are very rarely enforced but that doesn't mean they aren't still there.
#26
My wife and I have been getting harassed by a new HOA to join, as my house is the lone holdout on a beach-front strip. With my highly evolved ape brain, I have spent the weekend scouring the laws and loopholes. I have now, through a series of quantum calculations that will only make sense to me, found the means to kill an HOA anywhere. Step one: Organize your community and friends at the next meeting and have someone or yourself call for no-confidence and vote to remove all HOA board members. Then vote in new members. Step two: Have a new president. Vote to overturn all standing fines, then end the meeting with a vote to dissolve the HOA in it entirety. Any properties owned by the HOA are to be sold to pay off any debts owed by HOA. Record everything. Then turn a copy of the video into the governing body of where you live. As proof. Ta-da.
WindySwede 2 years ago
Then it becomes the home of the free. I can't believe anyone will stand these demands and rules.
Ken Beattie 2 years ago
Even if they're not your friends it's not hard to door knock and ask neighbours in the area whether they're happy with what the HOA is doing. Chances are good you'd find many people who aren't happy. BINGO! Instant friends.
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#27
FHOA My son had turned 4 and wanted to build a birdhouse. I am thrilled any time he wants to make something and not sit glued to the TV or ipad, so we went out to get one of those birdhouse kits with the pre-cut pieces. He loves being independent so aside from starting the nails and helping him figure out which piece goes where, I let him do his thing. He even painted it after, calling it the rainbow house (so you can guess what it looked like). This thing was barely staying together, but it was his and he was so proud of it. We put it on our table on the back deck and when I got home from work the next day I had a letter from the HOA shoved in my door. It was a $50 fine for having an animal sanctuary on our property. I went down to the property management office to argue the fine and was told they would take me to court if I didnt pay. Since technically it fell under the definition of an "animal sanctuary", even though I doubt any birds would ever use it, I decided to save some money and just pay the fine instead of fighting it in court. The worst part of this whole ordeal was explaining to my son why he couldn't show off his birdhouse. I told him what the HOA said and he told me when we move next time, that we should make sure there aren't any HOAs around.
Ken Beattie 2 years ago
The problem is that costs you money as well. Even if you don't hire a solicitor/barrister to defend you it's going to require you take time off work to attend court and that's lost wages (or holiday time). As the guy said, it technically was an animal sanctuary so unless he got a really sympathetic judge chances were he'd be up for the HOAs court costs too. Which could easily be in the thousands.
Load More Replies... the_avenging_knight 2 years ago
Poor kid. I'm sorry the HOA are a******s. I hope you now live somewhere with plenty on rainbow birds!
Amelia Jade 2 years ago (edited)
We have an HOA. They have to give 2 (or maybe 3? I can't remember) warnings to fix an issue before they can fine you. It seems incredible to me that they can just fine you without giving you a chance to fix the "problem" first.
Ken Beattie 2 years ago (edited)
Even more incredible when it hadn't even been set up, it was sitting on a table on his deck. If it was me I'd have responded "It's not an animal sanctuary on my property. It was made as a gift for [pick a friend or relative] and you had no intention of it being a permanent fixture. Therefore I'm not paying the fine."
Load More Replies... Kitty 🥀 2 years ago
I doubt a 4 year-old understood the concept of an HOA and said that in response, but ok.
Janner Wingfeather 2 years ago
All he really needs to know is that an HOA is a thing that says no birdhouses, so if there isn’t one at their next place, he’d be able to have one. I don’t think that’s a stretch.
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MacintoshID 2 years ago
A simple bird house does not constitute a bird sanctuary. If the HOA tries to pull off something stupid like this again, remind them that every tree must be removed since they too are "bird houses".
Lynn Morello 2 years ago
The fact that it was on the Back Porch, How did they find out about it?
#28
This happened 30+ years ago, before I was born, to my mother’s family. My grandmother lived in a house in this one neighborhood that was meant to be for older people in Florida. They really didn't want anyone under 16 to live there. However, my mother was living there with her, and she also had my older brother Jack. The committee did not like this. They told my grandmother that while my mother could still live there, my brother couldn’t. Their methods got dark. They began completely harassing them, and the rest of the neighborhood joined in. My great aunt was also in the area and had sold my grandmother the house she was living in during this time. A guy actually threatened to shoot up my aunt’s office and someone threw a brick through one of the windows. They were not the only ones that had kids living there and being harassed, either. An elderly couple who had their grandkid due to the fact the parents had died also got this mistreatment. After some time, everyone who was being harassed started up a lawsuit against the HOA clubhouse. It was a federal case and took five years to finally resolve—in favor of the kids and guardians.
Jann Stone 2 years ago
Was this in New Port Richey? I remember a case going to court where they/HOA threatened to take the Grandparents Home from the unpaid fines they were issuing because they were living in a 55+ Development. It was a big news story at the time because the boys Parents had died and the HOA had no compassion for the circumstances.
Violet Bunny 2 years ago
Ask the HOA if they'd like to adopt all these kids out since they (kids) can't live there.
#29
This happened years ago when I was in elementary school. I was living in Florida at the time. Anyone who lives in Florida knows how often new gated communities just pop up. So our neighborhood was established and had been before I even moved into the house. The house once belonged to my uncle. We had a neighborhood watch, but no HOA. The gated community was finally built and people were moving in. Now, we don’t have a bad neighborhood, but we had some strange colored houses. Lime green and magenta with giant metal lizards hanging all over it, for example. Our house was simple, hand brick and half concrete painted white. It stood out compared to some of the other houses. The new gated community is an HOA community, and they thought they ruled over ALL of us. Soon people in our neighborhood were receiving fines for their house color choices, their “unsightly” cars, not approved mailboxes, and other nit-picky things. My parents received some for my dad’s boat being in the driveway and even our unruly yard. We had a bougainvillea, which grows like crazy, and we were constantly trimming it. We even got a fine for our fence. The old fence was chain-link and the new fence was a wooden privacy fence, don’t ask why we had two different fences, my uncle only fenced-in part of the house, it was still a good fence so my dad didn’t want to rip it out. Well, my mom and dad would just pitch anything they saw coming from that gated community, as they had fancy stationary that was easy to spot. This went on for maybe four or five months, we would receive “fines” for not meeting HOA standards and other violations. We talked to our neighbors and they received them too. They tried to call and complain. Still, they were given the run-around and decided to pitch the mail as well. Then it all came crashing down. My mom received a phone call from her bank, and they started to question her about the lien on the house that just appeared in the system. My parents had less than a year left on their payments for the house, and they always paid extra every month for the house loan and were always on time. My mom was super confused and said there shouldn’t be a lien, we don’t have a reason for there to be a lien. Turns out the gated community filed liens on almost every house in my neighborhood. My mom told the bank the situation and called a lawyer. At that point, a lot of the members of that HOA faced charges and it was a just huge mess with a pretty big lawsuit against the HOA board. We were able to pay off the house after the lawsuit. We even had a big celebration on one of the roads, a huge cookout, and we met people we didn’t know before. I even made new friends with some kids that I didn’t know existed. People moved out of the gated community due to bad press and a lot of the houses stood empty for a long time. When I moved away, there were still a lot of houses empty and it was like a ghost town. Last I heard, the name of the community changed and the houses were being filled up. So I guess the lesson is, leave our bright houses alone and mind your own business.
and_a_touch_of_the_’tism 2 years ago
And giant metal lizards? That’s sounds sick as hell!
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James016 2 years ago
How the hell is a HOA allowed to put a lien on a non HOS house? Hopefully criminal charges were filed. Bad enough they can put a lien on a HOA house. I’m glad we don’t have these in the UK.
Scotira 2 years ago
Is it even legal to put a lien on a house you don't own (HOA or no HOA aside)? Where I live, this would be impossible, I'm not in the US and don't know their laws though.
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Phobrek 2 years ago
A claim upon a part of another's property that arises because of an unpaid debt related to that property and that operates as an encumbrance on the property until the debt is satisfied.
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#30
To set the stage: I just turned 30. I have a good job, spend my money wisely, save and invest. I grew up dirt poor and had nothing handed to me in life. In my late 20s, the software company I had been at went public and I cashed out and moved back home to Florida. With nothing to do, I started investing in rental properties with a good friend of mine.
This started about a year ago with the president of an HOA where I purchased two condos. This is a man in his late 60s, and he thinks he is the second coming of Jesus. From the get-go, he made comments about me being young and buying houses, why my parents weren’t co-signing. Or must be nice to have a trust fund. Both properties had existing tenants.
One still there, one left. My business model has been to completely remodel every property between tenants to get the maximum rental income. Construction was a nightmare. Literally everything was a problem. Dumpster smelled, contractors leaving at 5:05 pm and being accused of not pulling permits. I submitted six rental applications, and all got denied.
I was never given a reason but the board was happy to cash my application fees. I got my company’s attorney involved. It took six months and many days in a courtroom but we finally got the books. I had a family friend go through them—and they came to a disturbing realization. I’ll save the long story, but many thousands of dollars and hundreds of hours later, this idiot and his two other board members were taking from the bank account.
He was writing fake invoices to his own company. My magician attorney was able to get text logs of them discussing blocking my applications; mainly they wanted me to dump the property so they could buy it. We won a sizable judgment against him personally, and just today he put his house up for sale. The house he had been living in for 30 years.
To throw salt on the wound, I did put in an offer for 65% of what he is asking though I doubt I’ll get a response. The best part? We offered to settle for a fraction months ago, we even were willing to include a non-disclosure. The idiot told us to pound sand at every turn. So Mr. HOA president, screw you, I won. The “stupid trust fund baby” won and you lost!
PandaGoPanda 2 years ago
Pretty certain the house in the photo isn't in an HOA .. we don't have those in England.
Jeremy James 2 years ago
So often, the people who like to claim that they, "grew up dirt poor," and "never had anything handed to me," are full of excrement, have no idea what poverty is and have had quite a few advantages. The implication is that, "Poor people just need to learn to make better choices, like I did." That's a fairytale. The reality is that people born into poverty have very few choices to make.
#31
A few weeks ago we got a pitiful little snow that was barely really a frost. Just enough to cause a little trouble on the roads, because any sort of weather causes troubles on the roads here. But nothing severe. So my husband and I go out, get in our cars, and leave for the work day. A while later (I don't remember if it was five days or a week), we get an email from the HOA saying we are being fined for something.
They aren't very specific at first, but they are saying it's about the snow and our cars. We are very confused. There is not enough snow to shovel. Finally, after a few back-and-forth emails, they simply send us a picture "describing the problem". Y'all. Y'all. They were emailing because in this pitifully tiny layer of snow, the imprint our car left was in the shape of some twigs-and-berries, if you get my meaning, and somehow that's our fault.
I cried laughing, y'all. This is the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard of being fined for, and we flat out told them we weren't paying. Eventually, they realized we were serious about not paying, and since there were no by-laws on the books about something like this, they dropped it.
Zoe Vokes 2 years ago
FYI, this is the same woman and the same HOA (in an earlier post) that was harassed by the HOA president for being disabled and using the community pool quietly in the corner to do physio. Her pool access fob was turned off and she had to get a lawyer friend to help get it turned back on. 🚓 The HOA president was later arrested (and held overnight) after she tried to steal her disabled placard from her car, claiming saying she wasn’t really disabled and then mouthed off at the cops. (I read through her other Reddit posts). I think the HOA doesn’t like her after the previous incidents and is being especially petty.
JM 2 years ago
I don’t understand about the “twigs and berries” but I applaud OP for not accepting the bullying.
Auntie H. 2 years ago
I just want to know how you park to get that imprint!
Load More Replies... Nonya Business 2 years ago
I typically hear of Pareidolia as people seeing faces in inanimate objects, but this is a whole 'nother level. That level is the seventh grade.
#32
Back when I was 18, I was helping my cousin, who is white, and his newlywed wife, who is Black, move into their new home that has an HOA. I was carrying boxes into the house and I was covered in sweat. As I was enjoying some rest with a bottle of water, one of the HOA members came up to me to introduce himself. We exchanged pleasantries and then he asked, "How long have you and your husband been married?" I told him to please wait and brought in the actual married couple to meet the HOA member. They came out and the man's face dropped. He then faked a phone call from the HOA and left. We didn't know anything was wrong at the time. Not even a week after they moved in, I get a call on my cell phone from my cousin. He said that officers were raiding his house for possible substances. I know my cousin. He has the record of a boy scout. Every time he gets a prescription for pain medication, he either shreds the note or dumps the unused pills in the toilet due to fear of addiction. The officers found nothing and left, though they did apologize. The very next day, his wife was stopped by officers in her own driveway. They said that she was suspected of selling her body! This, even though she was wearing a pantsuit from her job as a cardiologist. They called her hospital to confirm her whereabouts and she was let go. They came back the day after that, after someone claimed that his wife was breaking into their own home. How can someone break into their home through the front door and with their OWN keys? After a month, the HOA came up to them claiming that they are a nuisance and attempted to put a lien on the house for so many calls to the authorities. Luckily, my cousin's brother is a lawyer and fought against the lien in court. At court, the HOA member that met the couple on Day One was revealed to be the one that sent the officers after them so they can be kicked out of the neighborhood. The whole story came out then. As it turns out, that person testified that he didn't want "their kind" in his perfect neighborhood. Everyone in that room was dumbstruck. The HOA lawyer immediately dropped the case and apologized to my cousin and his wife. That HOA member was kicked out of the neighborhood for his views. Apparently, he also called the authorities on every black and brown person that even passed by his house. Since then, they moved out of the neighborhood after my cousin’s wife got a better job offer in her field.
James016 2 years ago
The officers never questioned that they were being called to the same black woman who was never doing anything wrong. I *almost* feel bad for the HOA lawyer when the whole story came out.
Chucky Cheezburger 2 years ago
Yeah, usually the police have to have more than an anonymous call to get a warrant to search a house. Not saying it doesnt happen, but it exposes them to legal issues if procedures aren't followed.
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Aboredpanda 2 years ago (edited)
Their kind... cardiologists have a really bad rep these days.
Violet Bunny 2 years ago
Your cousin & his wife could've filed a racial discrimination suit against the HOA.
Lynn Morello 2 years ago
Now we know why racism is alive and well in the USA. With people like this, Racism is a hard thing to get rid of.
Zoe Vokes 2 years ago
It surprises me that he was so welcoming when he thought they were gay. And that the HOA were trying to remove them because of the “calls to the authorities” when every time it was proven to be a false report.
Jen Hart 2 years ago
The OP calls themself SerenaUsagi; Serena is a female name. I think OP is female and helping her male cousin move.
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Natalie Scott 2 years ago
It doesn't occur to anyone here this story is obviously made up? Cops can't search a house based only on an anonymous call. They don't call a homeowners job when they're in their own driveway for suspected prostituition. That's absurd. And they'd clearly suspect harassment after the second call. And how do you kick someone out of a neighborhood? So much virtue signalling here. Especially from white people in the comments.
#33
My in-laws live on a golf course that is private membership, weird thing is living on the course does not get you membership to it and you still have to pay HOA and membership fees do do both...well in-laws have an in ground pool that is right below one of the greens and a hole (Think a 10-12 foot hill up to the green from the pool level). So many entitled people will yell at my in-laws as well as us when we are over that we have to be quiet when they are putting and we just ignore them. HOA and the club have sent letters as well as attempted to walk into the locked backyard while we were out in the pool to yell at us but were only to leave the property. Nowhere in the HOA laws does it say you need to accommodate golfers while on your private property. They once had a Karen who was both on the HOA board and part of the golf club yell and fake choking on the green while my father in law was grilling.
Laura Murzynski 2 years ago
Time to break out The Best of AC/DC for the next BBQ get together! And turn it up to 11.
Hokuloa 2 years ago
This is why you don’t buy a house on a golf course and especially not one next to a green. Many golfers are angry, foul-mouthed d’bags (and I’m a golfer). Add alcohol and poor golfing skills to the mix and you get some nearly lethal problems. I wonder how often the OP’s home and pool get rattled with errant golf balls?
Violet Bunny 2 years ago
That's what they get for building a golf course so close to the house & pool!
Brian Droste 2 years ago
If they are coming on your property without your permission they are trespassing and could be arrested.
#34
This story was shared with me years ago by a late family friend. He was an avid ham radio operator and had numerous antennas scattered around both his front and back yards. His subdivision was older construction and did not have an HOA, so there were no issues with this. However, his lot backed up to another subdivision that was newer and did have an HOA. You can probably see where this is going... One day he gets a knock on his door from one of these Karen types. She had just bought the house behind him, and needless to say, she was not a fan of all his antennas. She starts rattling off all these supposed HOA rules he's violating along with the typical "They're a safety hazard, eye sore, lowering my property value, hurting my feelings, etc." arguments. He tried to politely explain that his house was in a different subdivision and was not part of their HOA, but she was having none of it. After a few weeks and a few more interactions that went just like the first one, he got a threatening form letter in the mail from the HOA's law firm. Coincidentally, his lawyer was a partner in that same firm. One phone call got that line of communication shut down instantly. With that defeat, Karen finally gave up and he was able to go back to living in peace. Karen moved about a year later.
Coralinea 2 years ago
If she only bought the place "five minutes ago" she should be happy that the antennas had supposedly lowered the value.
Zoe Vokes 2 years ago
My thoughts exactly. Shouldn’t she be glad that he lowered her house value if she just moved in? Did she not visit the house before buying it and seeing her view?
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Brian Droste 2 years ago
People that are looking to buy should check out the surrounding neighborhood to make sure there is nothing around them that will bother them. What I read it only causes them problems.
#35
Just happened to my girlfriends parents. Her father wanted to plant a vegetable garden. HOA rules state that garden can be no larger than 8'x8'. Plants can't grow taller than 4' so it limits what he could plant. He measured out an appropriately sized patch in the back yard. I came over with a few buckets of compost and my tiller to help him set it up.
Turns out that the old hag next door was pissed that the garden was bordering her property and complained to her friend on the HOA board. Two men from the HOA came by last night for an inspection and measured the garden as 8'-4"x8'-2". We must have accidentally expanded it when tilling.
They fined her parents $350 and told that they have to buy sod and cover up the garden by end of the week because they "lost the privilege to have a garden this year" and will be fined again every week they don't comply.
JM 2 years ago
Whoa. What a power trip! I think I might consider getting an attorney. That’s a heck of a punishment to demand killing the whole garden rather than demanding conformity - i.e. bringing the dimensions of the garden into compliance.
Colleen Glim 2 years ago
EXCUSE ME?!!!! Feel free to f**k all the way off. My vegetables and I will be laughing at the dinner table at the audacity of you thinking you get to decide whether or not I have a garden this year
Ken Beattie 2 years ago
Time to get a copy of the bylaws and find every single breach the a*****e neighbour and the board are guilty of.
#36
When I was two my dad bought the house I grew up in. It was a major fixer upper. In total he probably put 100,000$ fixing it up if not more. So this is where the story comes in. The city building inspector informed my dad that because it was documented that he spent over 50,000$ improving his property he would have to build a sidewalk. But only in front of his house. The experience would come out of his pocket. If anyone injured themselves on the sidewalk that abruptly started and abruptly ended. He’d be responsible for that as well. Along with upkeep. It would also cut about 3 feet into the front yard and would permanently lower the property value. Now at the time that this happened the city had completely renovated a park playground costing well over the 50,000$ and this was public knowledge. Also the park was within viewing distance of our house and had two historic trees within feet of the road. My dad wrote a letter to the mayor’s office. And worded the cover letter in a way such that they would have to publicly read the entire letter out loud during a public meeting. The letter basically said to lead by example, and put in a sidewalk at the newly renovated park meaning they’d have to cut down the two historic trees. The public was outraged. After that the building inspector basically let him renovate the house however he liked. And there is still no sidewalk.
Chucky Cheezburger 2 years ago
The sidewalk thing...thats such a load of B.S.... Thats what the city is supposed to do. If I have to build, maintain and am liable for its use, I'm at least gonna put up a toll gate, if I don't fence it off completely.
#37
When my HOA said that I needed a “water catch basin” under all of my potted plants in front of my townhouse, I noticed that the official rules did not say plant saucer. Technically a water catch basin is an industrial water conduit. So I went out and bought a big ugly water conduit and a big PVC pipe to be attached to it. I then sat my plants on top of that (It is still there. It takes a majority of members to change the rules so they have to live with their demand). They then said that the flowers in front of my townhouse needed to be dug up because only the landscaper could plant things there. The previous owner had planted them and I hadn’t any idea where they all were. So I bought a shovel and dug up every single plant and expensive bush in front of my place. It cost them much more than the $50 fine that they were charging me to fix my compliance. In the past year they have stopped trying to fine me. Probably because I am too expensive to go after for their little things anymore. There are lots of malicious compliance solutions you can pick. If an HOA requires a grass front lawn, see if you can get written permission to spray it regularly with color so that it won’t turn brown. You then go and get fluorescent pink. You simply make it so obnoxious and expensive that they stop trying to impose silly little things. There are lot of fun things you can do with following rules exactly or getting permission to do things that have unexpected results. Brainstorm with friends. Have fun. But make sure it stays exactly within the rules. You can “train them” to look only at meaningful things instead. Especially with you. HOAs can actually be a good thing if they are reminded to stick to what is really important. More like a utility service than an enforcement authority.
Hokuloa 2 years ago
Those last two sentences are spot on. HOAs are absolutely necessary in many developments for maintenance, but they need to limit their scope and stay in their lane.
Colleen Glim 2 years ago
Exactly what maintenance do they provide? I’m in a condo and don’t begrudge a penny of my condo fees. I have never been treated like this
Load More Replies... SkekVi 2 years ago
Thanks but no thanks. HOAs are NEVER good. Ever. I would rather deal with tracking down all the workmen to do maintenance myself than deal with other people telling me what to do with MY home. I've lived in rentals and institutions way too much to ever willingly let anyone tell me what to do with my home ever again. Not to mention, I'm an artist and my home is my d@mn canvas. our neighbours are going to deal with my big beetlejuice gothic house when we get the exterior repainted black and purple and neon green and there's nothing they can do bc there's no HOA and that's how it should be!! Like d@mn is it my house that I bought or is this a damn institution???
Jane Hower 2 years ago
I've been fined 3xs now for 'altering the property'!! MY crime? Painted rusty posts.
#38
My HOA is fining me for parking in the Visitor Parking area…but the car is not mine. They will not believe me, and refuse to remove the fine. In fact, they are now adding on late fees.
David Blair 2 years ago
Eh, they're welcome to tow the offending car and tack on penalties from there. Otherwise, shouldn't they be providing evidence the car belongs to you you?
Anna Drever 2 years ago
I’d certainly tell them to tow the car and that they’re welcome to sell it to cover the fees. Then the actual owner will probably take them to court and OP can just sit back and watch all the fallout.
Load More Replies... Justin Thyme 2 years ago
Sue them for harassment, personally and as a board. Unlike their fines, tort actions have the force of law. If they don't pay, put liens on their property, including vehicles
Violet Bunny 2 years ago
Tell them to have the lic plate# traced to see who the owner is! Sheesh!
#39
I've said on here many times I would never ever buy in an HOA, I have almost 4 acres, metes&bounds in the county with chickens, sometimes goats and pigs or other livestock. So my back 2 acres have grown over (no goats right now) and while I love blackberries they're taking over. So I rented a skid steer this weekend and started clearing to the back of my property, something I haven't done in years. Well the back of my property there's a creek (not quite within the property lines for me, so I don't have access to it), and there is a typical planned subdivision, I'm sure with an HOA, dunno, don't care, that butts up to my property. Well I'm happily knocking down trees and piling them up along my property line and one of the neighbors walks over through the woods "you can't do that with the 200 foot easement" "excuse me? I have no f**king 200 foot easement, that'd be half my property I can't use." She insists there's a 200 foot easement for the creek (rofl what? that's usually 20 feet for creeks). So she brings over a copy of her deed, I've been here 16 almost 17 years now, I don't actually have a copy of my deed handy because, why would I? Anyway, long story short, her property is 419 feet deep by about 120 feet wide and yep, there is, in fact, a 200 foot easement for U&D (utility and drainage) for HER, my sister is a real estate agent so I had her pull my deed up, nope, no such easement for me. Good job buying a house that you can't use HALF your property because it's all an easement, hahaha.
#40
Our condo association is evil and power hungry. A few years ago they called DCF and tried to get my sister and I to go to foster care. I have a service dog for my disability. It was fine for the first year but then they started issuing fines. We are up to 6000 dollars. One of our neighbors are on the board and for the past year she has been taking photos and videos of me and my dog. Yesterday, I was leaving the car and I saw her in her window recording me. Someone put up a paper saying no dogs in our unit. I took it down and they fined us for destroying their property. They violated HIPPA and talked to my therapist without my consent. They send angry emails to us every day and send treats to foreclose. This association harass anyone who doesn’t fit their mold. Edit: There has been a few people that have said things along the line that my dog is a ESA not a SD. 1. FHA gives housing rights to ESAs 2. My dog is task trained for my specific disability’s and we have provided a note to the association in which they ignore and still issue fines while encouraging neighbors to stalk us.
Deborah Rubin 2 years ago
If your dog is task trained for your specific disability, mental as well as physical, it is a service dog and protected under the Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990. Doesn't matter what kind of dog, I use a pomeranian. Get a lawyer. Now. This harassment is against federal law and you are within your rights to call a federal marshal on her.
David Blair 2 years ago
Does your furry friend have his orange vest shiny and polished? That and your certification letter should give them another bone to chew on. Of course, if they're violating ADA, maybe it's time for a property inspection. There have to be a few violations that are relatively minor that should occupy their attention. And of course, each authority or enforcement action just adds to the adventure. Why do HOAs always take the slash and burn approach... in their own backyard?
Violet Bunny 2 years ago
Yoy need a lawyer for more than 1 reason - your therapist also violated HIPAA.
Dawn Hartung 2 years ago
Regardless if your dog is a EMOTIONAL SUPPORT DOG or a SERVICE DOG, housing of ANY KIND, cannot deny you!!! I have 2 emotional support dogs, however my male is learning how to help me with my heart issues. The female is my dads dog and helps him with diabetes. The lady here tried this c**p with my dad and I. Get a lawyer, they are not only violating HIPPA, they are also violating ADA. It’s the law, especially with a doctors note. I have the Mayo Clinic on my side and my dad has VA. Don’t let them play this game.
Lynn Morello 2 years ago
Stalking, Harassment, Disability discrimination. and the list goes on.
Justin Thyme 2 years ago
File an ADA complaint and sue them board and board members. They are personally liable. File a criminal complaint with the Sheriff for the HIPAA violations-- won't go anywhere, but adds to your case. Add on several hundred harassment cases, each act of harassment individually filed in small claims. And if your therapist told them ANYTHING without your expressed consent, sue the therapist too., as well as having the therapists license pulled by the state health dept. fight back!!!!
#41
Date back to 2017. There is no way my HOA would have known but from Dec 2016 - March 2017 I got divorced, my Dad had a heart attack, while he was getting a stent put in my Mom was in the ER with a gastric ulcer and died 10 weeks later, and my 18 year old dog died the day after my divorce mediation. This was my Falling Down moment... The HOA sent me a violation letter in March '17 for not having enough mulch in my front yard flower beds. It wasn't that I was missing mulch; I just didn't have enough. However, the front entrance to the subdivision, beds along the community walls (about a mile long), common areas, gatehouse and clubhouse areas, etc., which the HOA maintains, were missing mulch. This is a large, gated community in South Florida where the entrances are big - it was an eyesore considering we pay $425/mo HOA dues. They had budget issues and were behind in that upkeep, but they thought they could ding a homeowner for the same thing. I created a violation letter with the same font, logo, style, and used the exact same wording used in my violation letter and sent it back to the property management company with my information changed to their name/address. I added 10 more bags of mulch to my yard and waited. I went to the HOA meeting the next month and they brought up my letter. I had to bite my cheek to keep from laughing as these twats got riled up over it. By next month they hired a company to mulch the subdivision.
Xenon 2 years ago
I can't believe the fees some of these HOAs charge monthly. There is no way in hell I would pay almost $500 a month!
DeoManus Argentem 2 years ago
To be fair, a lot (especially condos) include water, cable/internet, trash/sewer, exterior insurance, pest control, etc. I don't like it either, but I pay $355/month.
Load More Replies... Lynn Morello 2 years ago
Why would you Pay over $125 per week to be a member of a HOA, when you own your own home and don't appreciate anyone telling you how to live.
Justin Thyme 2 years ago
Have the local fire inspector fine them for too much mulch-- fire hazard Find interesting violations of county and muni codes, then report each and every one to appropriate agency. Call for an open reading of their accounting, as required by Florida statute.
#42
Our friend was on our HOA board and told us this story. Here’s the situation that happened to a household part of our HOA: Older couple. Husband passed away, and he always handled all the bills. Older lady (widow) got behind on her payments probably because she didn’t realize she owed them. Our friend on the board suggested that someone go talk to her, and she probably would have written a check on the spot for her dues. The board (gentlemen’s club it seems) said that’s not the way they operate and they instead place a lean on her house. She had to get a lawyer to get it paid off and sorted out. Housing development is quite small and any board member (our friend offered) could have easily sorted it out by dropping by the house with 10 minutes of their time, but they prefer to take the hard (and honestly mean) route. Our friend resigned from the board after this and many other issues.
Ken Beattie 2 years ago
Pity the one decent guy on the board didn't do the "right" thing and get more decent people onto the board to temper the decisions of the a******s on it. Sounds like they'd have free reign now :(
Lynn Morello 2 years ago
It is not a Lein, it is Greed and defrauding people out of hard earned money.
Mark Bayliss 2 years ago
Can someone explain what a Lien is and how it works please? I've never heard of one before (UK)
Nonya Business 2 years ago
A party submits a legal claim on another party's property (land/building/automobile/etc.) so if that person goes to sell that property the debt must be paid to the lien holder before the proceeds are distrubuted to the seller. Filing a fraudulent lien is a great way to have to pay back at least 3 times the amount you claimed you were owed.
Load More Replies... #43
My co-worker’s neighbor behind him has been reporting him to their HOA for months now and getting them fined for literally nothing. The latest issue was having a firepit on the back porch. The by-law mentions you can't have an open fire or have firepits in use, but grills are allowed... but the issue here is that the firepit isn't even in use and never has been. Also, the picture presented to show the fireplace on the back porch comes from that neighbor’s security camera...that is directly pointed at my co-worker’s house. Like, the entire view of the camera is all of only his property and nothing else. The houses are separated by an alleyway, too. This neighbor spies on him regularly. He sees him looking out at them all the time, day and night. He also trespasses on other people’s property to find reasons to report them. Ridiculous.
Kitty 🥀 2 years ago
I’m now pretty sure this is some people’s kink. Like this is literally how they get their jollies.
Violet Bunny 2 years ago
They're lonely people with no friends or hobbies.
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Justin Thyme 2 years ago
Catch him on your property, have him arrested for criminal trespass. Can't do much about the camera, but a nice wall in front of it on your side makes the point
#44
So about 6 years ago my wife and I bought a townhouse in a small town. A condition of the purchase was to join the HOA, sure whatever it is a small town surrounded by farmland cheap dues not a big issue. Living there for about a year no big issue, we have our first son. Two years later we are expecting our second son. We decide to switch places with my single sister who is living in my childhood home (5 bedrooms vs our 2) easy decision since we will have a newborn and a two year old. So we make the switch, two months later. I get a call from Clar (husband) and Dorthy who live across the street from our town house. Clar built all the townhouses in the 80's and still owns 4 off them which he rents (his buddy also owns&rents 4 one of which we share a wall with). Clar informs me that its against HOA rules to rent units unless you owned 4 (conviently the HOA was written by Clar). I told him I know and that I am letting my sister live there rent free (which I am). He says that that is highly irregular and insists I come to the HOA meeting. I am like sure, not breaking any rules. At the HOA meeting he demands proof that I am not receiving payment for my sister. I have to inform him that I can't prove something that doesn't exist and that the burden of proof lies on him. I also may have told him in front of all his neighbors that I thought I moved to xburg not Soviet Russia. He wanted to put it to a vote, I said go ahead and have the vote but if it didn't go in my favor I wasn't going to abide by it. The vote went my way the only desenting votes were him and his buddy trying to protect there Monopoly. He insists I go to every meeting still to defend my case, I don't but sometimes I lay awake thinking of ways I could make his life hard if I did.
and_a_touch_of_the_’tism 2 years ago
Please, we all know the “land of the free” thing is BS.
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#45
I'm in a condo with an HOA. This morning I found a nice lost pair of headphones in the gym. Too large to fit into the "lost and found" box slot. Our president is a thief, so I was leery of just passing them off to her and walking away. So, I found our last newsletter that was accidentally emailed to everyone instead of BCC'd. (The board's been ridiculously anal about not giving us a mailing list. So I just replied to this and asked if anyone lost a pair of headphones, to give a description to me by email, and I'd return it to the rightful owner.) All hell breaks loose. Since then, I've gotten a message from the president (the same one who has given me a threat from a lawyer never to speak to her again), DEMANDING I turn in the headphones to the very same lost and found box that they can't fit in). I've since gotten a message from the manager, telling me not to use the mailing list and to just email her, so she can send the information to the current residents, as several on the email list are not residents and prefer to not be bothered with emails. Uh, whaaat? I'm not making this up, and it's probably going to get weirder.
Ken Beattie 2 years ago
I'm a little undecided on this one. I could understand people not wanting to get spammed, and by this person forwarding an email to everyone (unless they use BCC) you're just propagating the email list. I'd have probably put up a "Found headphones, please call" flyer in the gym. Although they're probably want to fine for that too.
Panda-sized Potato 2 years ago
There seems to be some missing information. How did *all hell" break loose?
#46
So earlier this month, I purchased a property in real estate lien auction. The property was in a voluntary HOA that had 100% membership, and they were RUTHLESS in trying to get me to join before I bought the house. But I knew what I had to do get them off my backs. My attorney looked into the situation and drafted a proposal and sent it to the HOA via registered mail. He drafted up a proposal agreement with the HOA with the following conditions: 1. The property owner has unrestricted access to any community-owned roadways, gates, etc. necessary to access his property. 2. This does not constitute joining the HOA. 3. The property owner will pay a figure monthly to the HOA to contribute to the non-government owned infrastructure, at his discretion. The amount is non-negotiable and not legally required, merely an acknowledgement that the assets exist and have costs for their upkeep. 4. The property owner will not be held to any HOA standards. 5. The property owner does not and will not get any voting rights in the HOA. 6. Any further attempts to get the property owner to join will be considered harassment. 7: Cashing of the attached checks constitutes agreeing to these terms. 8. The HOA will provide any necessary access codes for the property owner to use for visitors, contractors, etc. They received it and signed for it. That day the harassment from the HOA stopped. A week later their attorney sent back a response. When I read it, I had to shake my head. It read: The HOA board has met, and they do not appreciate your un-neighborly attitude and are not agreeing to your terms. However, they acknowledge that your claim to unrestricted access to your property may have legal merit if the issue is taken to court. I have been instructed to give you a gate access code, attached below. You will not be given a key fob to the gate as it would give you unrestricted access to their clubhouse. Furthermore, they are notifying you of the following: The roadway and sidewalk are both HOA property and they reserve the right to remove any illegally parked vehicles or other property. This is however an acknowledgement that you will not be held to their community standards. They also are requesting some leeway regarding harassment as community notices may inadvertently be delivered. Finally, they are returning the check uncashed. I'm not quite understanding how this doesn't constitute them agreeing to my terms though. They are giving me everything I want and are turning down my gift towards the upkeep of the road/gate. I guess if they want to shoot themselves in the foot just to be spiteful, I’ll let them go ahead.
Jane Hower 2 years ago
But you don't get to use the pool, or whatever the other amenities are - but if your check wasn't taken then at least your offer to help maintain is being turned down. Up to you if you want to fight for it.
#47
I’m in Canada and am working on an apartment. We have had multiple meetings with the local HOA to get approvals for how the material looks, the color, even how it all goes together. I work in architectural sheet metal. Anyways, we have been working on this building for about two months. We made it up to the 6th floor and are securing the cap metal with standing seams, wing clips, and smash pins. That’s about when the HOA representative comes out onto the scaffolding. What he said left me dumbfounded. He promptly says "Take off all the cap flashing. I don’t like the standing seams because it ruins my view and the views of the residents. Don’t you know this is a ‘luxury’ apartment?" My boss and I were seriously at a loss for words, since what we were doing was LEGALLY REQUIRED. All I could manage to say was, “If you didn’t like this, this should have been brought up during the meeting with the architect and the head contractor". This building is as old as I am, clearly was not built to a standard, and if you are a construction worker like I am, you would clearly see all this just by looking at the building’s concrete. After the HOA representative left, we went to talk with the head contractor. He proceeded to laugh his butt off. He told us not to worry about it since the HOA is already into it for a good million and it would cost them another $50,000 to remove the siding, take out our metal, pay for new metal, install it, then reinstall the siding to get it to the way HE wants it. Then came the surprise. A day later, we get a phone call from the owner saying that they are going to pay for it. But the way they want it (absolutely no standing seams) is going to cost the building its 10-year warranty on the metal. Meaning that if anything happens after we leave the building, it's not our problem. I don’t think it’s worth it at all, but hey, I’m not paying for it.
Stannous Flouride 2 years ago
"Comes out onto the scaffolding" should have gotten the idiot kicked off the property immediately. That's a MAJOR liability.
Justin Thyme 2 years ago
HOA rep came onto the the scaffold? Call your Safety dept, have him forcibly removed unless and until he can prove he has been trained, and has access (He doesn't)
#48
My wife and I bought a house in an HOA back in May of 2020, we bought it from family and was told the HOA is very relaxed to say the least. Basically pay you're dues and submit the proper documentation when doing major changes to the house/ landscaping. We received the rules and regulations when we bought the house, and it was very generic, nothing in it mentioning security cameras and motion lights. Well this past Monday my father in law and I finally installed 2 security cameras/lights (had to run new electric lines due to the house not coming with a doorbell). Tuesday afternoon we received a warning about modifications to the house without prior approval (we already had 4 motion sensor lights up months prior to installing the camera). I figured they just want a statement or something similar to explain why we put up the new system. I submit the statement, and don't hear anything back for a couple of days. The response I finally got was that the cameras needed to be removed, paperwork submitted, then they can be re installed. After spending 6 hours running wire and installing the system, I'm not pulling it down, and will not be changing anything until I get a response to my submission. If it wasn't mentioned in the rules and regulations, I figure they really don't have a leg to stand on in general. To summarize we have 4 motion sensor lights and 2 cameras.
Shawn Matalino 2 years ago
Ambiguity in a contract benefits the party that DID NOT draft the contract.
Ken Beattie 2 years ago
Simply solved "They do not constitute a major change to house/landscaping. As such no action is required. Thank you and have a nice day".
#49
The community manager emailed me a notice saying to remove the weeds from my front lawn, or that we would have to pay a fine in 14 days. She took the photo of the weeds at 10:29 a.m. The landscapers had arrived at 9:42 a.m. and were parked behind my car. She took or cropped the photo in a way so that you couldn't see the landscaper truck behind my car. I sent her photos after the property had been cleaned up, as well as the invoice for today's work. I also acknowledged that she took the photo when the landscapers were there. Haven't heard back yet. It's not the first time she does something like this. In October, we got a notice to remove the weeds. We told her we would not be able to take care of them till the following weekend. She said ok. That following weekend, she sends another notice for the same thing. We complain and told her what we had agreed upon, and she basically says, "you're lucky we didn't fine you." I normally give people the benefit of a doubt, but what happened today gives me the impression that she's harassing/targeting us. Update: She said that if she would have seen the landscaper, she wouldn't have sent the notice, and she is closing the violation. It makes me wonder if the time stamps on their notices are incorrect/fake.
Justin Thyme 2 years ago
Go through their rules for malicious compliance, write them for every violation of their rules
#50
We bought our place back in June 2021 and have since been trying to get past our “flooring violation”. The rules in the HOA say we must have rolled carpet or sheet vinyl. 15 years ago, someone installed ceramic tiles in the kitchen and living room. Anyways, we talked to many, many, many flooring companies and they told us vinyl planks were best with the attached padded underlay. Our HOA immediately said no to the pricing, which was high. So we went back around to the flooring companies and most told us no, that sheet vinyl it really would cost 10k because it would be hard to get the floor that smooth again. Finally, Home Depot said they would do it at a lower price and the HOA finally agreed. Until it all went so wrong. When Home Depot actually got here to do the work, the workers then refused, saying it was too much and we need licensed contractors—and again that vinyl planks are better. We took all this information back to the HOA. Mind you, all this time we have only spoken with our actual board members for no more than five minutes. We are only permitted to talk to the property management that ignores us half the time. They actually forwarded us to their attorney simply because I think they were tired of talking to us. So the HOA attorney decided to make a waiver with the HOA board members that says our neighbors below us have to sign off saying that if our new floor bothers them, it’s up to them to legally come after us and the HOA will not help them. This is how cheap they are. Our neighbors that also think this whole situation is weird signed off on the papers. We found the planks and sent all this to the HOA attorney. WELL, apparently we missed in the wording on the waiver that we had to re-send this neighbor approval back to the property management—basically an approval on an approval. We did not understand this—and we started the work. Now we have a half-cement, half nice-looking floor. No baseboards and our washer and dryer cannot be plugged in. The property management has told us to cease all work and that they would update us later. They threatened fines if we attempted any more work. How long are we supposed to live like this? We cannot deal anymore with this stress. The day when they told us to stop all work, I literally got home and burst into tears. Also, the attorney told us we were absolute idiots in so many words. I have never felt so belittled in my entire life.
Xenon 2 years ago
I fail to understand how an HOA can have any jurisdiction on what is inside the house. That's freaking intrusive and bizarre to me.
Beachbum 2 years ago (edited)
It is a Condo I imagine and flooring rules exist to limit the noise from above.
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René Sauer 2 years ago
I can understand having (reasonable) rules for the outside, like not painting your house neon green. But whatever is behind closed doors, or in the back yard, should be nobody´s business but the homeowners.
Beachbum 2 years ago
It is a Condo I imagine and flooring rules exist to limit the noise from above.
Load More Replies... MacintoshID 2 years ago
What is a HOA doing inside a home? This makes zero sense. How do some of these HOAs get away with so much harrassment only to cost the owner tons of money and headaches.
Colleen Glim 2 years ago
In what world does ANY HOA have any say over what happens inside the residence?
What do you think ?
Mike Fitzpatrick 2 years ago
You need to have a screw loose to voluntarily buy into a sub with an HOA.
WindySwede 2 years ago
"I pay lots of money to be harassed by a HOA president and peers.."
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Suzy Creamcheese 2 years ago
How stupid do you have to be to voluntarily pay an exorbitant monthly fee to have a committee of Karens dictate to you what you can and can't do with your own property?
SkekVi 2 years ago
A lot of the time it's nigh-impossible to find a home that ISN'T in a HOA, depending on where you want/need to live. The Northeast in particular is HOA Central--if you want to live in Massachusetts, it's REALLY hard to find a house that doesn't come with a HOA. Zillow goes from 500 listings to about 5 the minute you ticky the 'no HOA' box. It sucks!! HOAs should be illegal tbh.
Load More Replies... WindySwede 2 years ago
I would not want a HOAme there, I would wanna decide over my own property..
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Vanessa Lapato 2 years ago
What's sad is that these HOA people would have a much nicer neighborhood if they focused on being kind neighbors. Elderly neighbor is in the hospital and can't cut his lawn? Do it for him. Neighbor works late on trash day? Wheel her bins in for her. Also, your veggie garden is a little too big? Offer your neighbors some tomatoes. A little good will goes a long way.
Ima Manimal 2 years ago
I wish state legislators and congress would enact laws that give people the right to opt out of HOA membership, fees, and harassment. There’s no way in hell that I would ever buy a house where HOA membership is mandated.
Bart 2 years ago
Is there any other country who has HOA beside the US? I cannot fathom those ever taking root here in Switzerland...
Firefly 2 years ago
One of the stories was from Canada. I don't know how wide spread they are there, though.
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Nay Wilson 2 years ago
These people must lead very sad little lives if this is the kind of thing they get off on doing. Imagine being so petty and cruel as to b***h because a child built a bird house
Suzy Creamcheese 2 years ago
Not surprisingly, HOAs are popular with upper middle class people who generally vote for the party whose symbol is a very large animal with a very long nose. ;-)
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JayWantsACat 2 years ago
The people on HOA boards are the ones that whine that their Constitutional rights are constantly being violated by the government and society at large, when they never are, but will then be the pettiest a******s dictating how people should run their houses whether its in the rules or not. Like the a******s that put a lien on the old lady's house instead of just stopping by and talking to her.
whiterabbit 2 years ago
I know it's hard to believe (I'm adamantly against HOAs so it's even hard for me to believe) but I was actually part of a good HOA once. It was about $400 a year. It was a rural area so the fee covered snow removal of our road, road grading/graveling, maintenance on the shared dock/private boat slips and prevented people from commercializing any part of the land (it was on a remote side of a ritzy lake so many people tried). There was about 12 houses on a ~200 acre chunk of land, only half of us lived there all year around. We all stayed out of eachother's business and banded together when issues came up, worked out well.
Mike Fitzpatrick 2 years ago
You need to have a screw loose to voluntarily buy into a sub with an HOA.
WindySwede 2 years ago
"I pay lots of money to be harassed by a HOA president and peers.."
Load More Replies... Suzy Creamcheese 2 years ago
How stupid do you have to be to voluntarily pay an exorbitant monthly fee to have a committee of Karens dictate to you what you can and can't do with your own property?
SkekVi 2 years ago
A lot of the time it's nigh-impossible to find a home that ISN'T in a HOA, depending on where you want/need to live. The Northeast in particular is HOA Central--if you want to live in Massachusetts, it's REALLY hard to find a house that doesn't come with a HOA. Zillow goes from 500 listings to about 5 the minute you ticky the 'no HOA' box. It sucks!! HOAs should be illegal tbh.
Load More Replies... WindySwede 2 years ago
I would not want a HOAme there, I would wanna decide over my own property..
Load More Replies... Vanessa Lapato 2 years ago
What's sad is that these HOA people would have a much nicer neighborhood if they focused on being kind neighbors. Elderly neighbor is in the hospital and can't cut his lawn? Do it for him. Neighbor works late on trash day? Wheel her bins in for her. Also, your veggie garden is a little too big? Offer your neighbors some tomatoes. A little good will goes a long way.
Ima Manimal 2 years ago
I wish state legislators and congress would enact laws that give people the right to opt out of HOA membership, fees, and harassment. There’s no way in hell that I would ever buy a house where HOA membership is mandated.
Bart 2 years ago
Is there any other country who has HOA beside the US? I cannot fathom those ever taking root here in Switzerland...
Firefly 2 years ago
One of the stories was from Canada. I don't know how wide spread they are there, though.
Load More Replies... Nay Wilson 2 years ago
These people must lead very sad little lives if this is the kind of thing they get off on doing. Imagine being so petty and cruel as to b***h because a child built a bird house
Suzy Creamcheese 2 years ago
Not surprisingly, HOAs are popular with upper middle class people who generally vote for the party whose symbol is a very large animal with a very long nose. ;-)
Load More Replies... JayWantsACat 2 years ago
The people on HOA boards are the ones that whine that their Constitutional rights are constantly being violated by the government and society at large, when they never are, but will then be the pettiest a******s dictating how people should run their houses whether its in the rules or not. Like the a******s that put a lien on the old lady's house instead of just stopping by and talking to her.
whiterabbit 2 years ago
I know it's hard to believe (I'm adamantly against HOAs so it's even hard for me to believe) but I was actually part of a good HOA once. It was about $400 a year. It was a rural area so the fee covered snow removal of our road, road grading/graveling, maintenance on the shared dock/private boat slips and prevented people from commercializing any part of the land (it was on a remote side of a ritzy lake so many people tried). There was about 12 houses on a ~200 acre chunk of land, only half of us lived there all year around. We all stayed out of eachother's business and banded together when issues came up, worked out well.
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