Tag Archives: homeowner

A Conversation the Homeowner Doesn’t Know is Going On

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“Oh. you’re moving into the neighborhood? I don’t really want to interfere with your attempt to lease or buy a home in this HOA. But I work for the government. And it’s my job to make sure the landlord didn’t make any misrepresentations to you when he agreed to lease or sell his home to you.

“For example, did the owner tell you whether the ratio of HOMEOWNERS to TENANTS was out of whack here?  Since renters have a reputation for not properly maintaining their homes, FHA loans and company reimbursements may not be available to anyone in the neighborhood.

“And did the landlord tell you that several people own multiple properties in this HOA? He didn’t? Mortgage companies don’t like to hear that, because if the owner defaults, he may do so on more than one property at a time. So this whole neighborhood could be redlined. You didn’t know that either?

“Ah, and one final thing. Did the landlord tell you that you, the tenant, could be hit up for special dues and assessments if the HOA’s kitty is underfunded? Yes, Real Estate law requires buyers and renters be informed about all possible defects before a contract of any kind is signed.

“Oh! You don’t want to live here after all? We hope we weren’t the ones who scared you off.  By the way, don’t tell the landlord we had this chat. Bye bye.”

Ward Lucas
Author of
Neighbors At War: The Creepy Case Against Your Homeowners Association

Your HOA Can Give You Post Traumatic Stress Disorder

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I had to laugh when I read the seemingly scientific paper written by Professor Gary Solomon. It was hilarious, so tongue-in-cheek and so incredibly well delivered. Page after page was so creative, inventive and…… WTF? Was he being serious? I tracked him down at his home in Nevada to compliment him on his prize-winning work of creative fiction.

He put me straight in the first fifteen seconds. “That’s not fiction,” he said. “It’s real. It’s a real medical syndrome.”

I was absolutely stunned. Here was a well-educated, well-known Professor of Psychology saying that Homeowners Associations were actually capable of generating physical illness in some of their residents!

Professor Solomon said he had lived in a community with an HOA and he noticed that some of his neighbors were suffering from various symptoms like obsessive rumination, depression, physical health problems, and paranoia. The symptoms were similar to those often associated with PTSD or Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Battle fatigue caused by life in an HOA? Seriously, Professor, you’ve got to be kidding?

Nope. He’s not. Dr. Solomon has named the anxiety disorder experienced by homeowners as HOA Syndrome.

Dr. Solomon says the cause of HOA Syndrome is the fear of harassment, and powerlessness in the face of threats of fines, fees and lawsuits. Other symptoms of this anxiety disorder include anxiousness, depression, worrying, sleeping disorder, paranoia, fear of going to one’s own mailbox, hyper-vigilance and stress.

I think I have it.

Ward Lucas

Author
Neighbors At War: The Creepy Case Against Your Homeowners Association