Tag Archives: HOA Embezzlement

Trash Can Craziness Crosses State Lines

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guest blog by Nila Ridings

Bent Creek HOA in Nolensville, Tennessee is keeping a close watch on the outcome of the Turnberry Reserve trash can saga in Orlando. Remember that story? Where the board president may soon be sleeping and running the HOA business from a jail cell? Plus paying a hefty fine for ordering the theft of homeowners’ trash containers?

Up to this point, Bent Creek board members have chosen to use the legal system to fight their battle, but their covenants do not address the storage issue.  Andrea Barnes says, “Bent Creek residents are anxiously awaiting the decision by the Orange-Osceola State attorney’s office.” 

I have hoped these blogs would provide not only a resource for “who” “when” and “where” but also insight on “what” destroys an HOA.  It seems Bent Creek may have learned something here and taken a “wait and see” position.
 
The HOA where I live has this same trash container issue.  One day out of nowhere our driveways looked like the trash container stork made a massive green and yellow delivery: One for trash and one for recycling.  Combined, they take half the square footage of a compact car! Garages were not built to accommodate vehicles and trash containers at the same time.  It’s obvious this is one of those “not-so-well” thought out plans.  
 
There are many reasons these containers have become nightmares…and for the HOAs an eyesore.  And in my case, our city codes do not allow trash cans to be visible from the street.
 
Somebody, please do something to stop this insanity over trash cans before people start throwing their bags of trash in the ditches to avoid all this hassle! 
 
How do we solve this nationwide problem?  Perhaps somebody could start a “trash can home addition” that can be constructed on a Saturday afternoon and installed next to the garage? Be sure to paint it the basic HOA beige or make it look like an overgrown rose bush. Sounds like a “biz op” for some creative carpenters, doesn’t it?  Maybe they could generate some marketing by promoting it on “Shark Tank.”  
 
A special thank you to Mike Holfeld, the investigative reporter at Local 6 in Orlando for keeping us updated!
 
 
BTW, in accordance with our recent policy about re-posting public figure contact info, here’s a a list of all this HOA’s email and phone info which they’ve already published on the web:
 
Bent Creek Homeowners Association 
Board of Directors 
 
President: Bill Kottas 
Cates-Kottas Development, LLC 
 
Homeowner Representative: 
Jimmy W. Reaves 
E-Mail: JimmyReaves@Comcast.net 
 
Homeowner Representative: 
Steve Cody 
E-Mail: stevecody81@gmail.com 
 
Developer Representative: 
Cynthia Smith 
Email: cynthia_smith@rocketmail.com 
 
Elecia Lewis, CMCA 
Community 
Association Manager: 
elecia.lewis@ghertner.com 
 
Homeowner Service Center: 
615-277-0358 
 
Bent Creek Website: www.BentCreekHOA.org
 
 

Immunity for HOA President!

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This story has been batted about for a few months but It’s a fascinating look at abuse of homeowners by their Associations. It took place in Celina, Texas.

Dozens of homeowners had to replace their roofs after last year’s big hailstorm. But four or five homeowners are being fined up to $500 per day because their roof tiles are a slightly different shade from the rest of the neighborhood. The Carter Ranch Homeowners Association demands that all roofs be “weathered wood.” But there’s no single shade that goes by such a name. There are multiple colors of weathered wood. So the HOA is threatening to lien and foreclose on the homes that the HOA board deemed were the wrong shade.

The kicker to the story, though, is video of a home whose owner painted his driveway and the sidewalks past his home bright white. It’s an obvious violation of the Carter Ranch covenants. But this homeowner doesn’t get fined, liened or foreclosed.

He’s the HOA president.

(click here for WFAA story)

http://www.khou.com/news/texas-news?fId=223692861&fPath=/news/local/&fDomain=10247

 

 

How Can We React?

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It has dawned on me several times over the past few years that HOA outrages are most often reversed when a rogue HOA gets a ton of phone calls and email from angry people across the country. If you know that you, as a board officer or manager, are being watched by the whole country, you might be a little less rotten to your neighbor. In a well publicized case where an HOA official’s viciousness is widely publicized, would that official be more willing to step back and mull over the action he or she is planning to take? Certainly, when you lift up a big rock the vermin tend to scatter in the light of day.

We currently have more than 31,000 people regularly reading this blog. That means an army of folks in every state. Should we begin publicizing home phone numbers, HOA phone numbers, email addresses and management phone numbers whenever we hear of the actions of a rogue HOA board?

I’d like to hear your thoughts publicly or privately. And if we ever began such a policy it would require your help to look up and verify any numbers or addresses of those we publicize.

Your thoughts?

Latest On Blondie & The Bimbo

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Ah yes, we need an update on this one. These ‘gal pals’ in Arizona pulled a fast one a number of months back. Governor Jan Brewer signed into law an anti-homeowner law which had been introduced twice in the Legislature, and had failed twice. So Representative Michelle Ugenti (no fan of homeowners rights) introduced it a third time. But the third attempt was as disgusting a move as you could expect from a well-recognized Bimbo.

It was introduced at 12:59 AM just as the Legislature was closing out it’s last day of the session. Even worse, the bill permitted HOA management companies (professionals at appearing in court) to represent Homeowners Associations whenever a homeowner tried to take a dispute into Small Claims Court. It was a maddeningly putrid move against all homeowners.

Longtime homeowners rights advocate George Staropoli filed a lawsuit. He pointed out that Arizona State Constitution law mandates that the contents of a bill must be reflected in its title. The purpose of the law is obvious. It’s to keep corrupt politicians from jamming corrupt legislation down the throats of citizens before anyone knows what’s it’s all about. In this case, the HOA secret was hidden inside a bill that pertained to state elections. Remember the line from a certain leader of Congress: “We have to pass the bill so we can all see what’s in it.” 

Well, George Staropoli was right. Most of Bimbo Ugenti’s law was struck down in court and Staropoli was awarded legal expenses.

But Staropoli went further: He asked that Ugenti be officially sanctioned for sneaking in a patently illegal special interest amendment which had failed twice before. His request was denied. So all you Bimbo watchers be forewarned: She’s gonna do it again!

If you live in Arizona, please spread my blogsite far and wide.

(click here for AZ Central news story)

http://www.azcentral.com/community/scottsdale/articles/20130927homeowners-association-bills-expected.html

 

Live, Love, and Laugh In HOA-Free Housing

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guest blog by Nila Ridings

Many people have been made homeless after HOA foreclosures. A degree in one hand, school loan in another, and living in a nightmare HOA with their parents has yet another age group seeking housing with no debt and no CC&R’s. Others find it’s time to downsize, keep only what’s necessary, and find a way to live without an HOA. Still others want to live in cooler summer and warmer winter climates…taking their house-on-wheels along with them.
Housing is achievable for all of the above.

The Tiny House Movement is rapidly growing. The designs have gotten very creative. For some, the economic factors are thought-provoking for working less and living more. The obvious reduction in the carbon footprint tiny houses is also appealing.

Needless to say you can’t park one of these in the backyard of your HOA-restricted Granny’s house. But there are current efforts to start developing Tiny House Communities. Hopefully, they’ll keep the HOA concept out of their plans!

How about it, would you live in a custom-built Tiny House?