“Don’t Mess With My Uncle”: Woman Shares How Her Uncle Dealt With A Karen Neighbor And The HOA
If I had a dollar for every time I hear someone appreciate their HOA, I would have a round total of zero dollars. You see it too, right? It’s like, sometimes people are happy with certain controversial choices, but I’ve never ever heard everyone be happy about their HOA, maybe it’s survivor bias, maybe it’s Maybelline, I dunno.
Today, we’ve got a story of a really cool uncle dealing with an annoying Karen neighbor and the HOA she tried to sic on him.
More info: Reddit
It’s not uncommon for a neighbor’s concerns to go far past their own yard
Image credits: Ronnie George (not the actual image)
The poster started the story by saying that they have a super cool uncle with many interests from aquariums to gardening
Image credits: u/stardenia
Image credits: HittaRomantik (not the actual image)
A neighbor took issue with his garden, making him take down a small picket fence with the help of the local HOA
The uncle just replaced the fence with loads of noise-making whirligigs that annoyed the neighbor so much, she let the issue go forever
You know a story will be good when someone says “don’t mess with my X,” especially if it’s a cool uncle. And, according to the original poster (OP), the uncle is a really cool guy, doing anything and everything he feels like, from breeding tropical fish to gardening, creating a paradise for pollinators in his backyard.
The flowerbeds surrounded by a short picket fence somehow triggered a neighbor, who called the homeowners association (HOA) on them. The HOA sent a written reprimand, because a short fence is somehow not permitted.
Uncle, not being one to back down easily, replaced that fence with hundreds of whirligigs (those things that spin and clack even in the lightest of winds), which would make a racket day and night.
He took them down a while later, but neither the neighbor nor the HOA messed with the uncle again.
In the comments, the poster, stardenia, also clarified that the whirligigs weren’t visible or audible from the street, and served only to terrorize that complaining neighbor, as her house was right next to the uncle’s.
And if you had any doubts about the uncle’s coolness, OP also has some more comments. Apparently, she loved visiting him as a kid because he had a huge aquarium, with an eel and a shark being some of the more notable exhibits.
He was also building a giant pond for a frequently visiting family of ducks to nest in.
Verdict: Certified Cool Uncle.
Image credits: christian buehner (not the actual image)
But let’s go back to those HOAs, shall we?
If you’re still unconvinced about the argument I gave in the intro about pretty much everyone being a hater of HOAs, allow me to attempt to convince you.
Reddit, being home to the most eccentric, small, and weirdest of communities, of course they have homeowner association related communities.
By the way, these communities flourish so well on Reddit because according to some it has ended forums in a way.
Anyway, there are two bigger HOA communities on Reddit, r/HOA and the politely mannered r/[screw]HOA, meant for sharing anger-inducing stories about them. To put it into perspective, the HOA community has a little more than 11k members, while the anti-HOA group has 217k members, nearly 20 times more.
To me, that’s a little more than telling.
Looking at the community’s top posts, most people are sharing stories of how they are suffering from or are fighting with an HOA.
So that doesn’t paint a great picture, but what are the draws of HOAs? Why do they even exist?
According to The Management Trust, there are several benefits of being in an HOA. One of them is that these associations usually have good amenities, such as trails, sports fields, or barbeque pits, as a part of association fees go to the upkeep and development of these comforts. And if you’re in the association, you’ve got to pay less for the maintenance of these amenities!
The main benefit is that HOAs are proven to stabilize property values in the area, preventing chains of foreclosures. The strict appearance standards and high upkeep prevents property values from suddenly nosediving.
The story of this malicious compliance collected more than 10k upvotes and more than 200 comments. The community enjoyed the story, especially appreciating the uncle and hating on HOAs in general. Share your own HOA stories in the comment section!
The community appreciated the uncle and his victory over the HOA
Image credits: CDC (not the actual image)
I don't know about this. He ended up punishing the neighbor with his noise for the sins of one reporting person.
There are no HOA's in my area but pretty sure I had a run in with someone who is used to living in one. A not so close neighbors son moved from California (HOA + CA = trouble) and decided to walk around the neighborhood. Ended up at our place. Seemed nice enough until he starts telling me I can't have wrecked car on my land. First off, my land is zoned Agricultural (in the eyes of the county I can do as I please with it short of making it a nuclear waste dump). Second, said wreck is INSIDE of a garage to keep it out of the weather (it's a convertible) AND under a cover. Not sure if he tried further to report it to anyone but it wasn't long before he moved on. If dad were still alive at that point Mr. California probably would've had a complete melt down as there were at least 10 derelict cars out in the open + 10 semi trailers, a cargo container, a used car lot (which as everyone knows is state regulated) and all of this closer to the main road than I am and all in plain view.
I don't know about this. He ended up punishing the neighbor with his noise for the sins of one reporting person.
There are no HOA's in my area but pretty sure I had a run in with someone who is used to living in one. A not so close neighbors son moved from California (HOA + CA = trouble) and decided to walk around the neighborhood. Ended up at our place. Seemed nice enough until he starts telling me I can't have wrecked car on my land. First off, my land is zoned Agricultural (in the eyes of the county I can do as I please with it short of making it a nuclear waste dump). Second, said wreck is INSIDE of a garage to keep it out of the weather (it's a convertible) AND under a cover. Not sure if he tried further to report it to anyone but it wasn't long before he moved on. If dad were still alive at that point Mr. California probably would've had a complete melt down as there were at least 10 derelict cars out in the open + 10 semi trailers, a cargo container, a used car lot (which as everyone knows is state regulated) and all of this closer to the main road than I am and all in plain view.
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