View Full Version : I became President of my HOA, now I want to move!
After 20 years of slack-assery, the developer of our sub-division turned over the HOA to residents. We had an election, and rather than be a person who bitches all the time and doesn't contribute, I ran for and was elected President. We have 292 homes, and they are "single family attached" homes. Think, duplex. So, we're a pretty high density neighborhood.
Fast forward 4 months. After dealing with this crap, I want to move. These people don't realize how lucky they are to have me - seriously, I'm a big property rights guy. But, there are some basic rules - such as you can't live like a pig with your home falling apart (literally) and your yard FULL of trash - think "Sanford and Son."
It amazes me that people think it's OK to make their house look like a complete and utter dump. We don't care if you biuld a shed, plant a tree, put in a bird bath, garden gnomes, fences, or build a deck. But we do ask that you paint every now and then and keep your yard relatively neat.
I've been called names, harassed, told that I personally needed to shovel snow for people, been called "greedy" (like I personally get the $60 a YEAR we collect), and in general have just felt abused.
We're taking crap because we spent $4000 clearing fallen trees in the playground (winter storm damage.) "I don't have kids, what are you going to do for ME?" We have a little bridge that was failing over a drainage ditch, we replaced it and took crap because we didn't have neighborhood volunteers do it for free. Think liability, and the value have having a licensed, insured contractor do the work. No, these people want SOMEONE ELSE to volunteer to do all the work, so we don't need their $60 a year.
Anyway, I want to move now, and will probably put my house on the market this week. I now know what kind of neighborhood I have lived in for the past 8 years.
Thanks for listening.
ChuckTShoes
02-01-10, 10:25
If I could make a suggestion, you might want to consider someplace with a HOA next time. Just saying.
Err... without would be my suggestion. ;)
If I could make a suggestion, you might want to consider someplace with a HOA next time. Just saying.
I don't mind reasonable, well-run HOA's. It's apparent that some people cannot have any consideration for their neighbors, especially when packed in like sardines.
Have been on the board of 2 different HOA in the past 25 years. Had similar experiences to yours both times. I was so frustrated with the last one that I refuse to even attend the meetings as a resident. I have never experienced such back bitting, selfishness and pettyness over money. You can never make everyone happy and it always becomes personal.
Anyone who wants to know what it's like to be a politician or work in government, or just in general lose all hope for humanity at a whole, should take a position on their HOA.
I was on the board of my HOA when I owned my townhouse. We had a good set of reserve accounts for various things, we did a good job of taking care of things, and for the most part people left us alone to run things. I was on the screening committee and turned people away for the first time in the entire history of the development. This was during the height of the boom, 0-down adjustable-rate mortgages, etc. We got financial records so I used them.
Being on the innaugural board is going to be doubly tough because you don't have any reserve accounts built up to delve into for things. Couple that with the current economy and you're ****ed.
Personally I'll never live another place with an HOA, although in SE Florida that's basically unheard of.
Puddle Pirate
02-01-10, 10:46
My daughter and her husband were on the HOA board for the development where they live. They HATE it!
All people do is complain. I can understand where you are coming from.
But, you know. Someone has to do it. You sound like you are a reasonable guy. You also know that there are unreasonable people all around you who would make living in an HOA a living hell!
Keep your chin up!
ChuckTShoes
02-01-10, 10:49
Err... without would be my suggestion. ;)
:o heh, that's what I meant.
Outlander Systems
02-01-10, 10:53
I would just appreciate it if the HOAs around here would allow solar panels...
I'm trying to figure out how my solar panels reduce someone else's "property value".
At what point is a home a home, instead of an ATM...
parishioner
02-01-10, 11:04
Anyone who wants to know what it's like to be a politician or work in government, or just in general lose all hope for humanity at a whole, should take a position on their HOA.
No shit, I was about to type this exact statement. My mother is on the board for her neighborhood and is quite good at what she does. Some people think she is a bitch because she actually enforces the rules. Rules that have been in the covenant for about 10 years now. The things she tells me about her dealings with people in our neighborhood really leave me wondering how they manage to function daily.
Anyway, she is also on an ethics committee for our city and when I asked her why she doesn't pursue her political career further and try to hold a city position, she responded with what rob_s said above and how the shit she deals with now would only be exacerbated if she attempted to hold office which is not good for a multitude of health reasons.
HiggsBoson
02-01-10, 11:14
Interesting post. I am currently wading into the market to buy a home. Just this weekend I decided I should try to find someplace without a HOA. I really don't like the idea of potentially petty and spiteful people having that much power over my life. If some nosy neighbor decides they don't like the cut of my jib, they could harass me until I get foreclosed on? :eek: I see the value in enforcing rules like having pets leashed, etc. And I respect those who would try to help maintain community standards by working with/for an HOA. But the benefits don't seem to outweigh the risks.
This thread just reinforces my desire to avoid a HOA if at all possible. Unfortunately that's not easy. Most of the nicer houses in the area where I'm looking have HOAs (and the restrictive covenants that come with them). We may end up buying a cheap house with no HOA and just saving until we can build the home we really want.
Business_Casual
02-01-10, 11:24
I'm on our board and it never ceases to amaze me how people will see something and assume that it is nefarious. That and they will make up all sorts of conspiracy theories about how the evil board is out to get them while the reality is we don't even know they were thinking about something. Seriously - the crazy shit we get accussed of is just plain bizzare.
M_P
Interesting post. I am currently wading into the market to buy a home. Just this weekend I decided I should try to find someplace without a HOA. I really don't like the idea of potentially petty and spiteful people having that much power over my life. If some nosy neighbor decides they don't like the cut of my jib, they could harass me until I get foreclosed on? :eek: I see the value in enforcing rules like having pets leashed, etc. And I respect those who would try to help maintain community standards by working with/for an HOA. But the benefits don't seem to outweigh the risks.
This thread just reinforces my desire to avoid a HOA if at all possible. Unfortunately that's not easy. Most of the nicer houses in the area where I'm looking have HOAs (and the restrictive covenants that come with them). We may end up buying a cheap house with no HOA and just saving until we can build the home we really want.
For what it's worth....
A lot can be location dependent. If I lived where I really would like to on 1+ acre where all the other lots were similar size, I really wouldn't care. What most people miss is that zoning restrictions will take care of a lot of issues that the HOA will double-up on.
However, in the kind of practically-zero-lot-line neighborhoods where I now live, or in any neighborhood where housing units are physically attached, I wouldn't live without an HOA. Too easily problems with the neighbor become problems for me when in that kind of proximity. Again, some of those things may be addressed by code with the county or city, but in those cases I would prefer an HOA.
Yeah, they're a pain in the ass where I live, sending me letters if I don't change the bulb in my yard light post, but overall they are pretty unobtrusive, and in truth I appreciate those lights in other people's yards when I'm walking the dog at night. They tell me what color to paint the house and I ignore them, etc. My only complaint is that I'd actually rather them RAISE the dues and quit hitting me with a yearly assessment. I'd just rather pay $10/month more and be done.
:o heh, that's what I meant.
I actually figured that, and tailored my response accordingly!
I'm on our board and it never ceases to amaze me how people will see something and assume that it is nefarious. That and they will make up all sorts of conspiracy theories about how the evil board is out to get them while the reality is we don't even know they were thinking about something. Seriously - the crazy shit we get accussed of is just plain bizzare.
M_P
Yes. Somehow, one of my neighbors found out or realized I was concealed carry permit holder. Not hard since several newspapers publish the lists in Virginia. (Legislation pending to stop that.) Very few people know I carry except the few real friends I have in the neighborhood.
They posted on Craig's List "rants and raves" that "gun-toting HOA members are lurking in the bushes spying on you." They said that my owning and carrying a gun as HOA President amounted to some sort of intimidation.
I replied that I was pretty sure I knew who they were (and that was true) and what they posted amounted to an accusation of criminal acts, and that this was libel, and that damages are "assumed" in Virginia when there is unjust accusation of a criminal act. Never heard from them again.
John_Wayne777
02-01-10, 12:07
The phrase "No good deed goes unpunished." was not, I believe, coined on theory. Whenever steps up to try and do the right thing there are inevitably those who try to step on their face.
Se la vie.
I don't remember the exact quote, but somewhere a wise man once said that the only people who should have power are those who detest the exercise of it.
I'm on our board and it never ceases to amaze me how people will see something and assume that it is nefarious. That and they will make up all sorts of conspiracy theories about how the evil board is out to get them while the reality is we don't even know they were thinking about something. Seriously - the crazy shit we get accussed of is just plain bizzare.
M_P
Denying it and covering it up doesn't make it any less true, regardless of what facts you present.
My wife, and therefore, I got involved in our local HOA in TX. That was a nightmare. The funny thing was, there were very few people in the neighborhood who actually worked and held down jobs while the rest were fairly wealthy retirees. So, strike one is being non-nosy, working people fielding all the complaints of people who had nothing better to do than watch what every neighbor was doing and report it to us.
Then we had a unique situation in regards to water - the HOA and local water system were run by the original developer who was an old-school Texan who took sh!t from no one - if you lived out there you lived by his rules. He promised that all who lived there could have full access to the water at the rate of $50 a month for unlimited use. He died, his wife - reportedly drunk all the time - sold the water system and remaining lots for almost nothing to another developer. The developer immediately creates a water wholesale company and a water retail company who work together to screw the HOA. The lots that he develops are reported to have cost him between $500 and $1000 each and he is then selling them for $15000-$20000 each. The HOA sues to have the water restored to $50 a month and loses - water is now $72 per month for a connection and $5.50/1000 gallons. It was giant mess...
Spooky
FlyAndFight
02-01-10, 14:08
My first home was in a "gated" community with HOA. I was young and didn't know much about home ownership at the time. I lasted about 6 or 7 years there and ended up selling and buying a "regular" home. No HOA for me ever again...
I do remember lots of nepotism and shady backroom deals going on between the HOA leadership and the maintainance, security and landscapers. Plus the maintenance fees kept rising almost uncontrollably.
My first home was in a "gated" community with HOA. I was young and didn't know much about home ownership at the time. I lasted about 6 or 7 years there and ended up selling and buying a "regular" home. No HOA for me ever again...
I do remember lots of nepotism and shady backroom deals going on between the HOA leadership and the maintainance, security and landscapers. Plus the maintenance fees kept rising almost uncontrollably.
Not saying this is the case in your situation but...
It's always amazing to me how things seem different from different sides of the desk. We had people accusing us of all sorts of shenanigans that we couldn't have masterminded if we'd tried, but once the gossip wheels start turning 'round the neighborhood it gets blown out of proportion. Meanwhile the board members start to see every homeowner as a scumbag scofflaw with an unregistered car, a garbage dump on their patio, and 15 months in arrears on their dues.
:eek:
Business_Casual
02-01-10, 14:56
Denying it and covering it up doesn't make it any less true, regardless of what facts you present.
Yeah, we've got flying saucers and shit in the basement.
M_P
FlyAndFight
02-01-10, 16:14
Not saying this is the case in your situation but...
It's always amazing to me how things seem different from different sides of the desk. We had people accusing us of all sorts of shenanigans that we couldn't have masterminded if we'd tried, but once the gossip wheels start turning 'round the neighborhood it gets blown out of proportion. Meanwhile the board members start to see every homeowner as a scumbag scofflaw with an unregistered car, a garbage dump on their patio, and 15 months in arrears on their dues.
:eek:
I understand exactly where you're coming from, Rob. But in my case, it was blatantly obvious. My backdoor neighbor was a member of the board and would fill me in on what was going on.
For example, the "security company" was actually composed of a few of the HOA president's family members. I believe that the "uncle" was the one who would park his golf cart under the shade of a particular tree during the day and catch some zzzz's.
Bids for work, particularly repair work and landscaping after Hurricane Andrew (1992) went to the "friends and family" circle as well, instead of to the lowest or even best qualified bidder.
I was there from the beginning of that development, having purchased pre-construction and my house was literally the only house on the block for a couple of years. I also remember projects that never went anywhere even though money was supposedly allocated towards them.
As soon as the developer handed over the maintenance baton to the HOA, it was downhill from there...
Yes. Somehow, one of my neighbors found out or realized I was concealed carry permit holder. Not hard since several newspapers publish the lists in Virginia. (Legislation pending to stop that.) Very few people know I carry except the few real friends I have in the neighborhood.
They posted on Craig's List "rants and raves" that "gun-toting HOA members are lurking in the bushes spying on you." They said that my owning and carrying a gun as HOA President amounted to some sort of intimidation.
I replied that I was pretty sure I knew who they were (and that was true) and what they posted amounted to an accusation of criminal acts, and that this was libel, and that damages are "assumed" in Virginia when there is unjust accusation of a criminal act. Never heard from them again.
I am surprised you didn't press the issue. They violated your privacy and could have put your family at risk.
HelloLarry
02-02-10, 08:51
Between the slobs and the busybodies, I feel for you.
I am surprised you didn't press the issue. They violated your privacy and could have put your family at risk.
I am really a non-confrontational person ... ;)
In all seriousness, I let it go as someone just showing how stupid they were. The permit holder info is public record in VA, so they didn't LEGALLY violate my privacy. Accusing us of being "peeping Tom's" was a little over the line, but I didn't want them to be able to say "See how threatening they are! I am SO intimidated!"
Hope you take it easy on them.
I would sooner live in my car than give my neighbors legal authority over MY property, but to each his own. I do realize that in some areas it might be hard to live in a good neighborhood without a HOA, but I sure wouldn't choose to.
Have been on the board of 2 different HOA in the past 25 years. Had similar experiences to yours both times. I was so frustrated with the last one that I refuse to even attend the meetings as a resident. I have never experienced such back bitting, selfishness and pettyness over money. You can never make everyone happy and it always becomes personal.
Same here. I was VP on our HOA, and one term was enough for a lifetime. We later moved to a single-family home, no more associations! It's not sufficient that you try to be reasonable, competent, and fair, working for the common good.
Hope you take it easy on them.
I would sooner live in my car than give my neighbors legal authority over MY property, but to each his own. I do realize that in some areas it might be hard to live in a good neighborhood without a HOA, but I sure wouldn't choose to.
There is no excuse for your yard in a community of duplexes looking like Sanford and Son's junk yard. Everyone claims "times are hard" and apparently that somehow translates into throwing trash in your yard.
We live in the County - and a few miles down the road in the City they have ordinances about lawn mowing, etc. No one cries foul there about people telling them what to do with their property there. But somehow people in my meighborhood claim it's their God-given right to do whatever they want with NO regard to anyone. Unfortunately, in a dense community you just can't live like that. if you want to, but a house in the boonies where cars on blocks in the front yard are the norm.
I swear someone will be raising goats before the end of the year.
Outlander Systems
02-03-10, 07:48
I swear someone will be raising goats before the end of the year.
Hey, times are tough, bro. ;)
HOA = No thank you!
I wouldnt want the aggrivation or stress!
I keep my home clean and tidy one my own but if someone knocks on my door and say's I cant have a a certain thing in my front/back yard or they dont like the paint I choose then
****'em!
Not like anyone knocks on the door with the friggin black lab hanging around the front yard!
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