Ward Lucas is a longtime investigative journalist and television news anchor. He has won more than 70 national and regional awards for Excellence in Journalism, Creative Writing and community involvement. His new book, "Neighbors At War: the Creepy Case Against Your Homeowners Association," is now available for purchase. In it, he discusses the American homeowners association movement, from its racist origins, to its transformation into a lucrative money machine for the nation's legal industry. From scams to outright violence to foreclosures and neighborhood collapses across the country, the reader will find this book enormously compelling and a necessary read for every homeowner. Knowledge is self-defense. No homeowner contemplating life in an HOA should neglect reading this book. No HOA board officer should overlook this examination of the pitfalls in HOA management. And no lawyer representing either side in an HOA dispute should gloss over what homeowners are saying or believing about the lawsuit industry.
For some reason I don’t get many emails from New York, even though condo and co-op problems there are as bad as elsewhere.
But here’s an interesting lawsuit involving a New York condo dispute, in which the board appears to have intentionally targeted one homeowner, possibly as an attempt to get him to move out and sell his home to one of the board members.
With this kind of nastiness, what do you think that does to the character of a condominium? Does a Homeowners Association of any kind actually protect property values?
I seem to be getting more and more calls from reporters around the nation asking about HOA problems. Most of them are skeptical when I talk about how massive the national HOA scam is. So it really helps them to read newspaper columns like the one I’ve linked below.
It’s written by a seemingly level-headed HOA board member who’s discovering just how underwater he is in trying to deal with the difficulty of straightening out a crooked HOA.
It’s well worth reading the link…and possibly forwarding it to others.
Many of the Homeowners Associations in Boulder County Colorado have roads that are falling apart. In fact, they’re downright dangerous. A group of homeowners decided to sue the county to force them to repave the rotting public roads.
Well, it seems that some of those public roads aren’t so public after all. The Colorado Court of Appeals has ruled against the homeowners, and told them to pay to maintain their own roads.
What do you think that does to property values? No, your HOA was never intended to protect property values. Never!
Well, ya’ll, I was one of the first to predict this one!
Journalist Jeff German, who I’ve long said deserves a Pulitzer for his reporting on the HOA organized crime scandal in Las Vegas, came out with a big expose’ a couple of months ago. He reported that the Chief Justice of the Nevada Supreme Court had tipped off one of the biggest suspects in the FBI investigation of rigged HOA board elections and phony insurance mitigation work.
Chief Justice Nancy Saitta tipped off her good lawyer buddy, one of the two biggies in the Nevada scandal, that the FBI was coming. That lawyer, Nancy Quon, was able to destroy most of her files before the feds banged on her door. Keep in mind that this was the biggest federal investigation in Nevada history into official corruption. Forty-three people were indicted, some of them are still serving time. And here’s a Nevada Supreme Court Justice doing the unthinkable. Well, that’s Nevada for you!
In any event, Chief Justice Saitta has decided to become former Chief Justice Saitta. But there’s blood on her hands. Four people, including the lawyer she tipped off, committed suicide. Actually, I still believe two of the suicides might have been something a little more serious. In Nevada when the Mob comes knocking they usually kneecap you. Then, maybe, you commit suicide.
Scum like Chief Justice Saitta shouldn’t be allowed to resign. They should be sent to the same prison where their co-conspirators are serving time.
I think I’ve linked to this YouTube video before. It’s an oldie but goody, but it’s a perfect example of the kind of corruption that’s rotted out the core of America’s housing structure. Give an HOA member power over her neighbors and homeowners get threatened fined, sued, and stolen from. This board president is in charge of a half million dollar budget, and her husband is a longtime convicted felon. This board even hires a gun-toting felon to enforce its wishes against homeowners.
Whew! If you think you’ve seen it all, then take another look:
