I'm seeing less and less reasons to continue to maintain a HOA. I'd rather see it change to a voluntary organization, especially in rough economic times. I keep my property clean and well-maintained, so I don't see the point in having anyone tell me to do what I already do, under threat of violence. As for those who fail to maintain and clean their property, I see it as their right, since it's their property and not mine. I believe that most state, city and county ordinances are sufficient in maintaining safety and sanitary situations.
I am here to say, I am not sure of the HOA’s job. My guess is, it’s an effort to line their pockets, so someone can sit behind a desk and write letters from tattle tailing neighbors, and charge too much for mowing grass, but I could be wrong. I guess this is the price you pay to live in civilization, and even though I knew about the HOA before moving, I didn’t know about the fluctuating fees, and nosy neighbor clause. My advice is to get a copy of the HOA guidelines for a neighborhood you are considering, along with several yearly projections of their estimated costs (if it’s an established neighborhood) and see if the fees have changed from year to year, so you can get an idea of how they manage things. And, if you get the chance, have a chat with the people living there, it will give you a feel for what you are getting into. We will see if the economy gets better, what kind of surprise fee change we will get! The HOA=government at its finest.
Home Owners Associations Is it a Dictatorship, Government?
Are HOA dues a form of violent threats?
Extortion: Making a threat of violence which refers to a requirement of a payment of money or property to halt future violence is sufficient to commit the offense. This is a common reaction to forced taxation, but can apply to a variety of scenarios, including mandatory owners associations. Threat of legal action up to and including taking away possession of one's home is a threat of violence. This is why I believe that a voluntary owners association is more practical and supports individual property rights and freedoms. I believe that a homeowners association should simply encourage residents to maintain and keep property clean, without that threat of violence. If residents chose to participate and improve or maintain the community beyond their homes, that should be a choice, not a mandate. It is the people that make a community work, not the threat against them, which improves or maintains the community.
Should others have the right to dictate how you live your life?
A Chicago suburbanite has been growing his front yard for food. And it raises a lot of questions about the legality of food independence. So far, the act of growing food for personal use is not illegal; rather, it is left up to neighbors to decide what is best for their neighborhoods. More or less, this is probably the best and most democratic method of neighborhood sustainability for now, except when trouble comes days like ours where a serious economic decline in which unkempt front lawns of abandoned or repossessed houses invite a further plunge in already slumping real estate values.Urban Agriculture: Chicago Suburb Gives a Yarden the Stinkeye
Most people are not happy with these HOA's and their Communist / Nazi dominating overseeing warlord attitude concerning you as an individual property owner and your rights.
Some states like Arizona now compel builders to have HOA's, which are regulated by a general real estate term called CC&R's (covenants, conditions & restrictions).
Homeowner Association Rant blog
Sign a petition to take some of the bite out of homeowners associations: Permanently Stop Homeowner and Property Owner Association Foreclosures
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