In article ,
says...

On Thu, 21 Feb 2013 10:56:28 -0500, iBoaterer wrote:

In article ,
says...

On Wed, 20 Feb 2013 23:03:24 -0400, Wayne B
wrote:

I kind of wish he would show up at our house, preferably with a
crowbar in his hand.

I always assume people are basically good and given the chance they
can at least be civil, at best, be friends.
I am usually the guy who dives in the middle of our little HOA
squabbles and I can generally at least get a handshake and an
agreement to peacefully disagree. .

I avoid that. I will NEVER live in a subdivision that has an HOA.

This is really the best of both worlds. It is an HOA with no deed
restrictions or lien power. We basically enforce the dues with the
ramp keys. You don't pay, you don't get a key.
We still have about 90% participation.

My neighbor lived in a subdivision not far away that had an HOA. One
rule they had was that the garbage can could only be visible from the
street on garbage day. Okay. Trouble is, his house sat up on a hill, the
next street down ended at a cul-de-sac that, if you looked up, you could
see the back of his house. Well some HOA member that thinks he's the
Perry Mason of the subdivision sees his garbage can from the street
below, and the result in a letter reprimanding him and threatening to
fine him because the garbage can can be seen from the street. I have
heard, seen and been a part of a bunch of ****ty HOA's. I don't care
about having someone tell me what trees I can plant, how to plant them,
what color mulch I can use, what color I can paint my shutters, or when
to wash my car. Think as a homeowner you have a chance of arguing your
case with the HOA? Good luck!

http://tinyurl.com/aj3n7l8

Funny, many of the people who whine about their constitutional rights
don't worry about them so much when they are members of an HOA!

In article ,
says...

On Thu, 21 Feb 2013 14:11:20 -0500, iBoaterer wrote:

In article ,
says...


I avoid that. I will NEVER live in a subdivision that has an HOA.

This is really the best of both worlds. It is an HOA with no deed
restrictions or lien power. We basically enforce the dues with the
ramp keys. You don't pay, you don't get a key.
We still have about 90% participation.

My neighbor lived in a subdivision not far away that had an HOA. One
rule they had was that the garbage can could only be visible from the
street on garbage day. Okay. Trouble is, his house sat up on a hill, the
next street down ended at a cul-de-sac that, if you looked up, you could
see the back of his house. Well some HOA member that thinks he's the
Perry Mason of the subdivision sees his garbage can from the street
below, and the result in a letter reprimanding him and threatening to
fine him because the garbage can can be seen from the street. I have
heard, seen and been a part of a bunch of ****ty HOA's. I don't care
about having someone tell me what trees I can plant, how to plant them,
what color mulch I can use, what color I can paint my shutters, or when
to wash my car. Think as a homeowner you have a chance of arguing your
case with the HOA? Good luck!

http://tinyurl.com/aj3n7l8

Funny, many of the people who whine about their constitutional rights
don't worry about them so much when they are members of an HOA!

That is why we are a voluntary HOA, not a deed restricted community.
Basically there are no rules about what you can do on your property
beyond what is in the county and state law.
We only have rules about the common elements (a park and a boat
facility with rental docks and a ramp).
Those are pretty loose.

There are still a dozen people here who hate my guts because I led the
majority that voted down trying to reinstate deed restrictions and a
lien based HOA. (the original covenants expired in 1978)
It actually was not even close, more than 2 to 1 against.

I wouldn't mind rules on common areas as you say, that just makes sense
if you have those sorts of areas. My neighbor couldn't wait to get out
of his, his family didn't even use the pool, because there were so many
unattended wild kids that it just wasn't fun to go there.