HOA drama

"Chariotoflove" (chariotoflove) 02/27/2019 at 17:25 • Filed to: can't we all just get along?

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I am watching a drama playing out in real time in my inbox. Our HOA was planning to pay to replace homeowner fences that look toward the outside of the neighborhood with uniform fencing that matches everyone else’s. The problem is that a couple of the people like their fence and declined to take the offer.

The drama is that the Board voted to go ahead anyway with the houses that accepted the offer.

The treasurer is now publicly outing the Board for what he thinks is unethical use of HOA funds for personal gain. You see, two of the members on the Board have fence that would be replaced at community expense. He feels that this is an apparent impropriety and misuse of HOA funds for personal gain now that the original goal of uniformity is at present unattainable.

A fire storm has ensued in which the members of the board are sniping back and forth over the group forum and accusing each other of various bad behaviors.

Get your popcorn, kids!

Akio Ohtori - RIP Oppo > Chariotoflove 02/27/2019 at 17:28

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Not that you asked for advice, but my friend’s HOA solved this problem by paying to put in a hedge on the outside facing side, thus (eventually) obscuring the mis-matched fences.

Honeybunchesofgoats > Akio Ohtori - RIP Oppo 02/27/2019 at 17:32

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Must. Avoid. Allowing. Character. In. Neighborhood. 

Chariotoflove > Akio Ohtori - RIP Oppo 02/27/2019 at 17:34

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I really like that idea.  Unfortunately, we don’t own the strip of property toward the CVS where we could do this.  If we could, I’d suggest it.

Chariotoflove > Honeybunchesofgoats 02/27/2019 at 17:35

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No one resists The IT.

WilliamsSW > Chariotoflove 02/27/2019 at 17:36

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I’m just thankful that I live in an area where HOA’s for single-family homes are relatively uncommon.

facw > Chariotoflove 02/27/2019 at 17:38

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Sounds like the treasurer is right. Possibly they didn’t word their challenge well (initially you’d want to be “I don’t think this makes sense now”, or “I think this might look bad”, as opposed to saying “You’re stealing from the community”, though you might have to go there eventually). But replacing the fences was probably not a great idea in the first place, and certainly makes no sense if they don’t get the community look they set out for.

Jetstreamer > Chariotoflove 02/27/2019 at 17:38

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Be sure to poke the fire every once in a while to keep it from dying out. 

CaptDale - is secretly British > Chariotoflove 02/27/2019 at 17:39

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Dumb HOAs are dumb!

Kiltedpadre > Chariotoflove 02/27/2019 at 17:42

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If you live in the center of the neighborhood I suggest asking if you can get in on the free fence action. That seems like a good way to make sure the shit storm continues.

farscythe - makin da cawfee! > Chariotoflove 02/27/2019 at 17:49

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how do you live with this shit?

my house my rules

ITA97, now with more Jag @ opposite-lock.com > Chariotoflove 02/27/2019 at 17:57

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Have they started challenging each other to duels in the street yet?

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > Chariotoflove 02/27/2019 at 17:59

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CAN’T WE ALL JUST GET ALONG

You spelled “A LAWN” wrong.

Spamfeller Loves Nazi Clicks > Chariotoflove 02/27/2019 at 18:01

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And this is exactly why my first line to the real estate agent is: “ABSOLUTELY NOWHERE WITH AN HOA.”

Chariotoflove > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht 02/27/2019 at 18:17

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:D

Chariotoflove > WilliamsSW 02/27/2019 at 18:20

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Yeah.  The problem in communities like ours is that everybody lives on top of each other, and also we have common ground.  That’s good in that you have neighbors like I do with a strong sense of community, and you have the opportunity for things like parks.  The bad is that you need to have regulations in this case because even reasonable minds don’t always see eye to eye.

Chariotoflove > facw 02/27/2019 at 18:21

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This is what I think, and I think the treasurer is right. It appears in appropriate, and he tried to convince his fellow Board members in private before doing this.

Unfortunately, he’s giving in to the inflammatory sniping like everyone else.

Chariotoflove > Jetstreamer 02/27/2019 at 18:22

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I thought about it, but my wife wouldn’t find it at all amusing. 

Chariotoflove > CaptDale - is secretly British 02/27/2019 at 18:22

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We usually have a pretty good one, as they go, but in this case everyone has an acute case of the dumbs.

Chariotoflove > Kiltedpadre 02/27/2019 at 18:23

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Hmm.  Noted.

Chariotoflove > farscythe - makin da cawfee! 02/27/2019 at 18:24

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How?  Well posting this is one of my ways.

Chariotoflove > ITA97, now with more Jag @ opposite-lock.com 02/27/2019 at 18:25

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If only! I should suggest it.

Chariotoflove > Spamfeller Loves Nazi Clicks 02/27/2019 at 18:27

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This is a valid position to take.  We have had people in the past who didn’t want to pay their dues or observe the rules.  To those people, I always said, “you shouldn’t have bought in here then.”

vicali > Chariotoflove 02/27/2019 at 18:30

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Bring in the Speedbumps!

Wait do you have snow?

Maxima Speed > Chariotoflove 02/27/2019 at 18:31

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I will live in a cardboard box under the bridge before I live in an HOA.

ITA97, now with more Jag @ opposite-lock.com > Chariotoflove 02/27/2019 at 18:31

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At the very minimum , this seems like it calls to be settled via feats of strength.

Chariotoflove > vicali 02/27/2019 at 18:32

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I posted about the3 speed humps a couple of weeks ago. They’re coming.

No snow, but you better believe I’d find a way to create an outline like that if I could.

No one in my community would care.

Chariotoflove > ITA97, now with more Jag @ opposite-lock.com 02/27/2019 at 18:33

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A fence building contest.

“Boy I’m tired!  Wait, what were we arguing about again?”

Chariotoflove > Maxima Speed 02/27/2019 at 18:34

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I’ve seen condos with that aesthetic. And they still had HOAs.

ttyymmnn > Chariotoflove 02/27/2019 at 18:35

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People suck. 

Chariotoflove > ttyymmnn 02/27/2019 at 18:36

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Ban people.

SilentButNotReallyDeadly...killed by G/O Media > Chariotoflove 02/27/2019 at 18:40

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So...they are all fighting over an erection? Seems appropriate.

Chariotoflove > SilentButNotReallyDeadly...killed by G/O Media 02/27/2019 at 18:41

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With studs.

CaptDale - is secretly British > Chariotoflove 02/27/2019 at 18:52

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Yeah I understand that

AestheticsInMotion > Chariotoflove 02/27/2019 at 19:02

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That’s my cue! My condo has an HOA.

And when we had our fence painted, the painters left a foot wide outline unpainted around the sings on the fence instead of removing the signs. 8 months of looking at that before someone came back to finish the job.

We also have motion detecting lamps in the parking lot.

...that turn OFF when they detect motion. It’s been 6ish months?

I could go on for hours.... 

Spamfeller Loves Nazi Clicks > Chariotoflove 02/27/2019 at 19:06

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Oh, believe me, if I had an HOA sprung on me? I’d be the guy, with the lawyer, suing it back out of existence. And telling them exactly where they can fuck off to, and precisely how, in graphic detail. Possibly on my front lawn.

Chariotoflove > AestheticsInMotion 02/27/2019 at 19:09

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Ugh.  Way to spend your dues.

Brickman > Chariotoflove 02/27/2019 at 19:09

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Man, im glad I live next to a state highway that no one cares about. I plant and build what I like :)

Love hearing HOA stories and how their little slice of American values is screwed by associations. Wants every home the same, yard the same, same fence. Sounds like communism .

WilliamsSW > Chariotoflove 02/27/2019 at 19:10

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Yeah, we have a lot of that, being in the older part of a small town that’s near the Metra line. Lots are mostly fairly small, but vary widely, and lots of parks nearby.

I suspect that the problem HOAS weren’t set up well by the developer, and cover too many people - board meetings often attract the lowest common denominator, so the more people you have, the worse it gets, maybe?

Chariotoflove > WilliamsSW 02/27/2019 at 19:12

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The HOA was set up by the developer, and we have had to live with that.  We get smart and service-minded people running, and they really should be appreciated for what they sacrifice.  I was a VP for 4 years, and it’s usually thankless.  But we have always had a very contentious and hot headed group amongst us, and big issues don’t get settled quietly.

Chariotoflove > Spamfeller Loves Nazi Clicks 02/27/2019 at 19:13

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I would fight to the death anyone who tried to impose one on me once I’d been living there.

facw > vicali 02/27/2019 at 19:14

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I’m fairly convinced Torch got taken on that one. Or maybe he thinks it’s bullshit too, but k new HOA hate and tarmac dong would bring the page views.

facw > AestheticsInMotion 02/27/2019 at 19:17

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Is your HOA resident run, or do you contract out to some sleazy property management company? Resident run HOAs can be nuts, but I’d still think them preferable to dealing with some hired slum lord.

Chariotoflove > Brickman 02/27/2019 at 19:17

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It’s mostly fear that if people are allowed to exercise their own tastes outside of specific parameters, then they will do something distasteful that hurts everyone else. All you need is one David Tracy saying “I should be able to have all the rusting clunkers in my driveway I want” to make people draft a set of covenants and restrictions.

We have a gated community with all the houses built by one builder, and it leads people to think that we need to view and  market the whole neighborhood as a single entity or our property values will go down.  I think this is a fallacy, and I tell people, but no one wants to hear.

facw > Chariotoflove 02/27/2019 at 19:18

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Did the speed humps they picked end up being bicycle/wheelchair/etc. friendly?

Spamfeller Loves Nazi Clicks > Chariotoflove 02/27/2019 at 19:20

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Oh, I’m not going to kill them.

Motherfuckers do not escape my wrath anywhere near  that easily.

Chariotoflove > facw 02/27/2019 at 19:22

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Yes! I sent an email to the president about those issues, and we had a long conversation about it. The Board released a map of where the humps are planned, and they should have gaps of around 36" between them and be well marked so neither I nor one of our neighborhood  kids has to face plant.

zipfuel > Maxima Speed 02/27/2019 at 21:21

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But then you still have to deal with the HOBOA ...

“His pizza box addition is an eyesore and attracting  racoons !!”

LimitedTimeOnly @ opposite-lock.com > facw 02/28/2019 at 08:35

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I’ve lived for 13 years in a 2,000 residence planned development, with an HOA. As you can imagine, a lot of the day-to-day activity, facility and rules work is contracted out. Generally, the contracted company is fairly relaxed and I haven’t heard any horror stories, so it seems to be working well. After I got a violation for not mowing my lawn for two weeks (travel and rain issues) I complained loudly, it got removed, and I’ve never been bothered again. If anything they are a bit slack, but I’d rather err on that side of things.

I think that there is a benefit to contracted HOA management - they can be fired by the community if they screw up, more easily than changing the board, and so they are concerned with generally doing a good job.