Tag Archives: HOA Nightmare Stories

Smoker’s Rights? Not In The Constitution, Buddy!

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A man in a Naples, Florida condo is steaming over his Homeowners Association voting to ban smoking on the front porch. He smokes cigars on his lanai. But under the new rules he’ll have to take his stogie indoors.

I understand his concern about personal rights, but he’s actually getting off pretty easy right now. Across the country the courts have ruled that HOAs can also ban all smoking indoors!

There are some well-recognized court cases including one in Jefferson County, Colorado where condo and townhome owners have complained that cigarette and cigar smoke seeps through walls and becomes an annoyance to others. In Naples, smokers are being ordered to take their habit indoors, while elsewhere in the country they’re being ordered to go outdoors. Whether they like it or not, smokers are discovering that the world is turning against them.

I’m not for or against the new laws, just an observer.

(link to FOX4 story on smokers)

http://www.jrn.com/fox4now/news/HOA-bans-smoking-at-Naples-condominium-255023971.html

Found: More Petitions Against HOAs

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guest blog by Nila Ridings

I’ve learned some additional information and wanted to share it with our readers.
 
Go to www.petition2congress.com and  type HOA in the “search” box.  There are numerous petitions demanding attention from the legislators regarding the subject of HOAs.  
 
One petition started by a person in Nevada declared a hunger strike!
 
On another note, today, I received an email from a gentleman named Nathan Cline.  He said, “I would sooner jump into a river of molten lava than move into a house with an HOA.”
 
Nathan, the molten lava would take you out of your misery a whole lot faster.  Living in an HOA is a slow and painful death to the body and bank account.  It’s so refreshing to hear yet another person refuses to suffer in an HOA!
 
www.petition2congress.com
 

Power In Petitions, Numbers, and Voices

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guest blog by Nila Ridings

Today, let’s talk about change.
 
When was the last time you decided it was time for a change?  
 
We easily change the small stuff; hair styles, clothing, or the store where we buy groceries.  The not so small stuff; a new car, taking a trip around the world, or going back to college for another degree.  And the biggest change of all; buying a new house, vacation home, condo, or a ranch where the neighbors can’t see you grilling steaks in your skivvies.  
 
We all know by now, buying any property with an HOA, COA, or any other association where neighbors are dictators over neighbors and your bank account is at risk for all debts of said “organization” comes as a life-changing experience.  A change you could never dream in your worst nightmare.
 
More and more of those who have suffered mercilessly in these hellholes are connecting and working hard to create changes that will benefit the homeowners.  One of those hard-working folks has created a petition that was found on the internet.  Whether you sign or not, reading the comments written by the hundreds of signers is confirmation that all across America HOA homeowners are living in misery. 
 
It’s time for our legislators to listen!
 
 
http://www.petition2congress.com/1940/stop-hoas-from-stealing-peoples-homes/view/1
 

This Bubble Will Burst

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If you wanted to sell your home in a Homeowners Association, what would be a best case economic scenario for you and your prospective buyer? You’d want that buyer to be able to get a loan, right?

If you wanted your home to be more marketable, you’d want your HOA to seem less litigious, right?

If you wanted a quick sale, you’d want all HOA homes to be owner-occupied, right?

And to get top dollar for your home, you’d want no vacancies in the neighborhood, right?

Well, let’s toss a monkey wrench into the machinery and see what happens.

The housing bubble that popped in 2008 and 2009 led to a huge number of foreclosures as mortgage companies tried to limit their losses. It also led to more Homeowners Associations liening and foreclosing on homeowners who got behind in their dues. The typical HOA has a super-priority lien on all homes within its borders. That means that when the homeowner gets a few hundred bucks behind on his mortgage, the HOA can grab that property and auction it off at the nearest courthouse for a few thousand bucks. The HOA gets paid, the mortgage company does not. And that means the mortgage company gets screwed out of the entire value of its loan.

Now, suppose you’re an executive in a mortgage company. If you know that a certain neighborhood is in crisis, i.e., foreclosures, lawsuits against owners, a high number of vacancies, a high number of rentals, and the HOA doing its own foreclosures through super-priority liens, how willing would you be to offer mortgages to would-be buyers?

Thought so.

If you happen to be the homeowner who’s trying to sell a home in a neighborhood where no potential buyer can get a loan from traditional lenders, what do you do? You lower your price, lower your price, lower your price, lower your price.

And the housing bubble bursts. The economist linked below thinks the housing Armageddon is coming.

(link to the coming housing bubble)

 

“Arizona Dave” Speaks Out Against Pending Bills

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guest blog by Nila Ridings

Dave Russell is the on-site manager at Circle Tree Condominiums in Mesa, Arizona.  He is always looking out for the safety and security of its residents and all other condo owners in Arizona.  Always! Dave is more than a manager.  He’s a condo owner.  He resigned from a full-time job (one which paid a whole lot more) and became the manager of Circle Tree. He had a goal and commitment to turn the place into premier condo living.
 
On this blog, Ward has repeatedly exposed other Arizona characters like ‘Blondie’ (Gov. Jan Brewer) and ‘The Bimbo’ (Rep. Michelle Ugenti) for their underhanded and illegal ways in which they tried to pass HOA bills into law.  
 
And of course, our other “keep it legal” and “grant the owners’ their rights” experts like the honorable and skilled HOA fighter, George Staropoli. He has labored long and hard and his tenacity has helped a lot of Arizona homeowners avoid additional nightmares.
 
Arizonans are very fortunate to have Dave and George keeping an eye on the scandalous HOA bills that seem to sneak onto the annual docket! 
 
Keep up the great job you guys!  (Standing applause!)