An Arizona woman is learning what kind of power her HOA has. She stores lots of stuff in it, but it’s rarely opened. Somehow, her Homeowners Association got a picture of all her junk and sent her a violation notice. It said that garages should be used for cars only.
But it’s not until she got the media involved that the Lawn Nazis back down. The link below says it all.
There are so many layers of dishonesty and corrupt dealing in the HOA business that it’s hard to get a real handle on it. But little by little, some media outlets are beginning to pay attention.
The article linked below is from the Miami Herald. An investigative reporter has ‘discovered’ that many Florida HOAs are breaking state law by charge super high resident application fees. Really? Dishonest HOAs? “Say it ain’t so, Joe.”
http://therealdeal.com/miami/2016/06/04/many-condos-charge-illegally-high-application-fees/
Homeowners rights advocates like Deborah Goonan, Sara Benson, Nila Ridings and others are noting that more and more mainstream news outlets are beginning to be aware of the national Homeowners Association scam. Yes, they’re writing about it, but they’re still getting it wrong.
This is a multi-billion dollar scandal and these idiot reporters are just saying that homeowners have to be more aware and do more DUE diligence. The Fox Business article linked below is another example of a reporter learning that “there’s something out there!”
But the very structure and promise of Homeowners Associations is a complete lie. You can’t just ‘investigate’ to see if your HOA is being operated properly. A balsa wood doll house might look strong enough to stand on. But the strength it promises is a fabrication. Your HOA promises to protect your property values, but in tens of thousands, even hundreds of thousands of HOAs across America property values are plummeting. If you think your values are being protected then you’ve bought into one of the biggest lies ever sold to the American homeowner.
WAKE UP PEOPLE!!!!!!
(link to Fox Business article on the need to investigate before you buy)
This one is so amazing it’s not even amazing! I would even go so far as to call the California Legislature racist!
Assembly Member Donald Wagner introduced a bill to make the state’s Open Meetings law apply to the boards of Homeowners Associations. The CAI and its minions of lawyers and lobbyists descended on the Legislature like flies on a carcass. Only one member of the Housing Committee voted in favor of allowing homeowners to know what their boards were doing.
California has many homeowners whose English-speaking skills are limited. Under current California law, you’re not even allowed to bring an interpreter or representative to a board meeting.
There are lots of reasons not to live in California. This is just another of them.
(link to story on vote against openness)
https://ad68.asmrc.org/press-release/16196
I originally wasn’t going to link to this survey written by Arizona Realtor Jill Schweitzer. Polling organizations like Zogby, which is often used by the Community Associations Institute, are famously flawed because of the leading questions asked by the survey. Still, because this website is in the business of educating clueless homeowners, I’ve reconsidered.
Take the poll. It can’t hurt. And who knows? It might educate someone.
(poll on neighborhood satisfaction)
