The Home Ownership Thread

[Douglas]

My heater is gas, and it seemed to work through the major outage we had two times ago, but not this last one. I can't figure why that would be. It does stand to reason that the thing would have an electric switch or thermostat, but why it should work one time but not the other is puzzling.

Our HOA is quite strong. I know of at least two slate rooves that are going up now, forced by the HOA.

$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

 

[Piobaire]

You need to get idfnl to talk to your HOA.

 

[otc]

HOA's still don't make sense to me.

I understand them in condo buildings and coops, but I am not sure why I would want some private government that's not bound by the constitution telling me what I can and cannot do with my private property and levying "taxes" to pay for things that would be paid for by property taxes (which you still pay) in a regular neighborhood.

I mean it makes sense why they were good for the developers, and good for the municipalities (who get to provide less services and collect extra taxes on any HOA shared facilities)...but I am not sure why it is good for the property owners.

 

[Piobaire]

Well, we've had this HOA talk before. There is no doubt that some HOAs are onerous and that some HOA boards become intrusive, an "in crowd," etc. I am happy with my HOA as it creates a baseline of rules for our little society to follow. Our streets are not dedicated so it maintains them, the common area landscaping, our gate system, etc. It ensures that the reasons I moved into this little neighborhood will continue to exist in a material fashion. I do not have to worry about a host of things I would not want to have in my neighborhood and gives my neighbors the same peace of mind. For me, this particular neighborhood with an HOA makes sense, or at least at this time. If I decided I want to work on vintage cars in my front yard I will have to move...just like my neighbors would have to move to do that too.

 

[idfnl]



What would make trigger an HOA to put in such a specific rule about how to put up a fence, I wonder?

Consistency across the neighborhood.

Its understandable, but I'm personally not a fan of such limitations. The stone wall the neighbor did that I mentioned earlier is really quite beautiful but against HOA rules. While she needed to modify it for rain water drainage, its a great addition to the street. To think that something nice like this could have been prevented is stupid.

Another thing you are probably dealing with here is that many people really hate fences and want continious yards. If you have a few of them on your board then they have an ax to grind.

Out of curiosity, why'd you put the fence up? Do you have a dog or something?

Our HOA is quite strong.

Did you know this going in to the purchase?

I don't see any reason for you to be proactive, if you truly believe you are in the right. If they go to court, the burden of proof is theirs.

Some folks are really chicken little about this petty bullshit and run to lawyers and waste money, many times if you ignore them they will go away. Let them show how serious they are before you spend money. Just read the provision and make sure you're in the right and gauge your exposure.

 

[Hannerhan]



HOA's still don't make sense to me.
I understand them in condo buildings and coops, but I am not sure why I would want some private government that's not bound by the constitution telling me what I can and cannot do with my private property and levying "taxes" to pay for things that would be paid for by property taxes (which you still pay) in a regular neighborhood.
I mean it makes sense why they were good for the developers, and good for the municipalities (who get to provide less services and collect extra taxes on any HOA shared facilities)...but I am not sure why it is good for the property owners.

My first home was about $120k in a cheap cookie cutter suburban neighborhood. the HOA was $200 per year and it was absolutely worth the money just to keep the deadbeats (which inevitably start popping up within a couple of years after the new homes are occupied) from having overgrown lawns or building ugly garage additions, etc. Also the community had a private pool which was nice for all the homeowners.

Then I lived in an infill neighborhood for 5 years wtihout an HOA. The freedom and lack of cost was nice, but the neighbors whose houses looked like **** were not so great.

Now we are in the process of building a home in another infill neighborhood, but this is a small development with an HOA and ~15 lots in it. The HOA dues are now $2k per year which is a real number, but I still appreciate its existence because I believe it will keep everyone in check and ultimately keep my property values high.

It's a free country so one can choose wehther he/she wants to deal with an HOA, but I think they serve a purpose generally speaking.

 

[idfnl]



HOA's still don't make sense to me.
I understand them in condo buildings and coops, but I am not sure why I would want some private government that's not bound by the constitution telling me what I can and cannot do with my private property and levying "taxes" to pay for things that would be paid for by property taxes (which you still pay) in a regular neighborhood.
I mean it makes sense why they were good for the developers, and good for the municipalities (who get to provide less services and collect extra taxes on any HOA shared facilities)...but I am not sure why it is good for the property owners.

This.

We have county codes for what is safe and legal to build. Do I want to give a **** about some old **** who doesn't like red front doors or black shutters? Or forcing me to have paneled windows or limiting the size of the # plate on my door?

There are already codes in place with what you can do with historical neighborhoods.

Some baseline rules are understandable at times, upkeep of the yard for example, but its over the top. If someone wants to put a 50' windmill up or some massive satellite dish, ya ok, I don't want to see that on my street but the **** do I care what color someone paints their door?

 

[idfnl]



The HOA dues are now $2k per year which is a real number, but I still appreciate its existence because I believe it will keep

A bit of polite nudging can be just as effective.

For exmple, on a friend of mine's street, this lady's husband left her and the yard turned into an overgrown mess with foot tall grass and **** overgrown everwhere.

This lady had 2 teenage boys and a lawnmower (how do I know? It was just parked there in the front yard) so there was really no excuse for this.

Know what my friend and 2 other neighbors did? They fired up their mowers and cut the grass together while they watched from the window. Yard was maintained from that day forward. While this is not an example of polite nudging, the point remains.

I live in a great neighborhood, everyone does an excellent job of maintaining their yards and homes and we have a weak HOA.

If someone wants to be a pig, there is not much you can do to stop them.

 

[dfagdfsh]



A bit of polite nudging can be just as effective.
For exmple, on a friend of mine's street, this lady's husband left her and the yard turned into an overgrown mess with foot tall grass and **** overgrown everwhere.
This lady had 2 teenage boys and a lawnmower (how do I know? It was just parked there in the front yard) so there was really no excuse for this.
Know what my friend and 2 other neighbors did? They fired up their mowers and cut the grass together while they watched from the window. Yard was maintained from that day forward. While this is not an example of polite nudging, the point remains.
I live in a great neighborhood, everyone does an excellent job of maintaining their yards and homes and we have a weak HOA.
If someone wants to be a pig, there is not much you can do to stop them.

Awesome!!!!

 

[SkinnyGoomba]



A bit of polite nudging can be just as effective.
For exmple, on a friend of mine's street, this lady's husband left her and the yard turned into an overgrown mess with foot tall grass and **** overgrown everwhere.
This lady had 2 teenage boys and a lawnmower (how do I know? It was just parked there in the front yard) so there was really no excuse for this.
Know what my friend and 2 other neighbors did? They fired up their mowers and cut the grass together while they watched from the window. Yard was maintained from that day forward. While this is not an example of polite nudging, the point remains.
I live in a great neighborhood, everyone does an excellent job of maintaining their yards and homes and we have a weak HOA.
If someone wants to be a pig, there is not much you can do to stop them.

Huge fines usually help more.

 

[Rambo]

you guys who don't like HOA's - never buy a house or condo in Florida

 

[Douglas]

I was being facetious about the fence rule.

Of course I knew my HOA was strong. It was a selling point for me.

HOAs can protect the value of your home by helping to ensure continuity and the strength of your neighborhood. They compare very favorably to municipal laws and restrictions, because IMO they are essentially a smaller, more adaptive, more responsive, more responsible form of government. I'd much rather deal with my HOA to get approval on something than the city of Baltimore, that's for damned sure. Everyone in the HOA is in the same boat, has made the same investment, and people are more aligned than can happen at the municipal level.

Like governments, they can get out of control, but I'd much rather be governed in the minutia of what sort of windows or fences I can put up by an HOA, and I don't want the government making sweeping laws about chainlink fences. That's dumb.

 

[Hannerhan]



If someone wants to be a pig, there is not much you can do to stop them.

Except if you have an HOA whose rules deal with the problem.

 

[idfnl]



I was being facetious about the fence rule.
Of course I knew my HOA was strong. It was a selling point for me.
HOAs can protect the value of your home by helping to ensure continuity and the strength of your neighborhood.

Interesting point, is there research on that? If there is a provable link between the two I might be swayed.

To the rest of your post, I dont understand how you can solicit approval from a body that has not real govenring power? You're the homeowner.

 

[Ataturk]

HOAs are different from government in that they're voluntary and usually small enough that you can have a real choice about whether you want to be part of one or not (or which one). I'm not really a fan of cookie-cutter neighborhoods and, hey, I don't have to live in one. But people can if they want.

That being said they're also much better about enforcing rules. You can have neighborhood covenants without an HOA (like I do), but they're a lot less dynamic (i.e., they can't change rules on you...). It's also quite difficult and expensive for individuals to enforce them, which often leads to violations getting by. For example, a neighbor of mine wholesales cars and keeps half a dozen of them parked in his driveways at any given time, but nobody cares enough to file a lawsuit to stop him.