Our Good Buddy Greg Chumbley is at it again!
This guy must be a living nightmare to Abusive HOA Boards!
http://www.sueyourhoacheaply.us/
Category Archives: Free Speech
Shake-Up in Holly Lake HOA in Florida
guest blog by Deborah Goonan
Bob Norman of Channel 10 has taken on yet another rogue HOA in Florida.
One of the oddities of some HOAs in Florida is that the Board of Directors retains the authority to screen and reject buyers and tenants. But what are the criteria used to arrive at those decisions?
The “HOA screening” issue has been a contentious one in Florida, as many would-be buyers or tenants have sued or filed formal complaints of discrimination.
For example, last year, one Venice HOA enacted restrictions for unmarried couples seeking to buy or lease a home! The Board claimed the July 2013 amendment was an erroneous oversight, but has never offered a reasonable explanation of how or why the single-people-or-married-couples-only restriction was approved. The media picked up on the outrageous restriction, and that prompted the HOA to amend its declarations to eliminate the discriminatory restriction.
Holly Lake HOA, located near the Everglades in South Florida, is the latest site of buyer-tenant review controversy. But this one involves a Board member apparently profiting from his position. It seems that Board Treasurer Paul Morales has been approving plenty of applications to purchase (or lease) units, but nearly all of those buyers have been family members and business affiliates. Meanwhile, it has been alleged that other buyers or tenants lacking direct ties to Morales have been rejected without satisfactory explanation.
Bob Norman’s review of public records seems to support those claims. Check out the video report. HOA members are calling for a criminal investigation, and have put pressure on Morales and colleague Ed Patton (President of the Board), prompting both men to choose not to run for reelection for the Board. Coincidence?
Another bit of irony: Florida Statute stipulates that convicted felons cannot serve on the Board; however, it does not require background checks for Board candidates. Yet Florida Statute fully allows Board to screen and background check their tenants and buyers! Talk about a double standard. Guess what? It just so happens that Morales faced federal charges in 2000, involving a past real estate deal – charges that were mysteriously dropped.
As usual, requests for access to financial records have been ignored, and one owner has been harassed for daring to ask questions. Also predictable, although the conflict of interest seems obvious to anyone with two active brain cells, there has not been any determination of illegality.
Link to Channel 10, Bob Norman, Holly Lake HOA story
link to Herald Tribune, Casa di Amici COA story on amendments to restrictions
PR2 HOA reaches confidential settlement w/City House, Frisco, TX
guest blog by Deborah Goonan
Several weeks ago, I told you about a pending legal dispute between Plantation Resort 2 HOA vs. City House, a non-profit organization that assists homeless youths. Several months ago, City House purchased and remodeled a 5-bedroom home in PR2 HOA, for use as transitional living for young adults in need of a home. Shortly after the purchase, PR2 notified City House that it would not be permitted to use the home as intended, citing violation of its Restrictive Covenants.
Earlier this week, WFAA Channel 8 was notified that a confidential, out-of-court settlement has been reached. The video and transcript is linked below.
The dispute centered on PR2 HOA’s restrictions. The attorney for the HOA, Chad Robinson, had argued that the proposed use of the residence City House now owns – as transitional living for up to 8 young women that would otherwise be homeless – does not fall within their definition of “single family use.” Monica Velazquez, attorney for City House, has maintained that “single family use” pertains to how the property is used, not the people who live there. City House planned to use the residence to meet basic housing needs of its residents, all of whom work and attend school, but share expenses for rent, utilities and meals. The dispute was headed for court, where a judge would decide the matter.
But, in typical HOA fashion, a legal settlement has been reached, complete with a sealed file and a gag order. Rob Scichili of City House states that they have decided not to pursue the expense of litigation and to instead move away from PR2 HOA, where they are clearly unwelcome anyway.
Sound familiar? Ah, yes, the old HOA playbook: “We have rules here, and if you don’t like them, MOVE.” The HOA gets its way once again. Of course, with a confidential settlement, the public will never know the details of what was discussed by the parties involved. And that’s just the way the HOA likes it. I certainly hope that City House was at least able to recover its closing costs, remodeling costs, and relocation expenses.
Watching the video report made my blood boil. The arrogance of the two neighbors interviewed, with their not-in-my-back-yard attitude, was nothing short of outrageous, in my opinion.
Do all PR2 residents share these NIMBY views? Probably not, but they will all have to pay for the attorney fees and the legal settlement. They will all have to live with negative publicity for their HOA. Hard to say what effect that might have on their property values.
It seems like we publish at least one blog on NAW each week, featuring yet another story of HOA discrimination, harassment, or bullying. Talk about a huge deterrent for a buyer (or tenant) to living under the HOA regime. Anyone who cares about social justice, fair play, kindness, or compassion will be sorely disappointed under corporate governance by CC&Rs.
(link to WFAA Channel 8 news report on legal settlement)
The previous blogs can be found
Here http://neighborsatwar.com/2014/10/texas-judge-decide-meaning-family-hoa/
and here http://neighborsatwar.com/2014/11/judge-rules-frisco-city-house-can-stay-hoa-civil-case-pending/
New Contest for America’s Worst Neighbor!
Please send me your submissions! ABC 20/20 did a story on these two couples on January 2nd. Amazingly bad neighbors.
I’m going to start soliciting similar nominations from you for the year’s worst neighbor…not sure what prize I’ll award for the most nightmarish neighbor…maybe a free copy of Neighbors At War, but these two couples are a prize.
God bless them. What would the rest of us do for entertainment without idiots like these?
(nightmare neighbors in New York)
Another Brag About Website Numbers
Hi Gang,
Since you’re all part of what’s getting our message out there, here’s an end-of-the-year look at website numbers.
A record 514,000 logins were recorded in 2014. And 4.8 million pages of material were either downloaded or read.
When you submit a guest blog here, just know that you’re having an impact.
Happy New Year!
