The daughter of a Nashville family nearly died after accidentally getting a window blind cord wrapped around her neck. But their HOA won’t let them put up safer blinds.
This one is personal to me because a close friend had this happen to his child. His son was playing in the basement standing on a chair pretending the window blind cord was a lasso. My friend heard things suddenly go quiet and went downstairs to check. His son was hanging by the neck, the cord wrapped around his throat. He saved his son and the paramedics took the child to the hospital. He lived. But many others across the country have died.
How does an HOA board have the gall to forbid the use of safer blinds?
Don’t ever tell yourself the world of Homeowners Associations can’t get any wackier. The stories are sometimes too outrageous to believe. Here’s another.
The president of the Coronado Place Homeowners Association in Tucson is handing out speeding fines and then threatening to shut off the water if those fines aren’t paid. Under Arizona state law, that’s illegal. But it took public exposure by a great reporter at KVOA News to embarrass this women into backing down.
Christmas. What a wonderful holiday. I love it as much as I love Hanukkah and the Seder and all the other religious holidays. In fact, I love any religious person’s special days. It’s just what we do in America.
But why, oh why, are Homeowners Associations coming down so hard on holiday lights? I get it that some light displays are over the top. I get it that gorgeous light displays bring more traffic into a neighborhood. But the greater spirit I see during the holidays satisfies an inner part of my soul. Homeowners Associations, as far as I know, are the only entity in America where expressing your religious beliefs is verboten.
Florida is choked with Homeowners Associations and their regulations can sometimes be draconian, such as no drying of clothing on the backyard clothes line. Here we are facing a worldwide energy crisis, we’re supposedly facing global warming. Yet HOAs threaten to fine, lien and foreclose on homes where somebody tries to save energy by hanging some towels out on the line.
Florida actually passed a law prohibiting HOAs from enforcing such prohibitions. HOAs and property managers should know the law. But they’re more comfortable bullying than in recognizing homeowners’ rights. The story linked below is about a Fort Myers homeowner who did know the law. But she’s now being targeted by the Cross Creek Estates Homeowners Association.
She’s going to lose, of course, because HOAs know that by the time a controversy has been settled the homeowners who try to stand up for their rights have to spend a fortune on legal bills. That’s why I frequently refer to the ‘national HOA scam.’ It’s all about funneling money into the pockets of lawyers, all the while claiming to protect property values.
At least this lady is getting a little emotional support from the news media. If you have friends in Florida just let them know about that state’s Right-To-Dry law. And drop this lady a note thanking her for her courage.
I blogged about the Cobblestone Community Homeowners Association a few days ago, but the update linked below is worth reading. While I can refute this reporter’s claim that “Most homeowners’ associations work and work well….” Hmmm, this leads me to believe this reporter is a novice. In truth, every Homeowners Association is one vote away from disaster. They don’t protect property values, they don’t ensure personal security, they don’t protect you from embezzlers on the board or in the management company.
The lawyer quoted in the story says he’s frustrated. Of course he is. He knows how dangerous HOAs can be!
