Just Say No
“Sadly, if you can’t ‘fight the fight’ ($$$) — then you are probably doomed to failure.”
M.J. Sadler
The industry has been saying for years that the problems with HOAs are due to the lack of education on the part of board members, homeowners, managers and I agree. One of the reasons CAI was founded in the first place, lo those many years ago, was, in part, to “educate” everyone. Almost three decades later they are still singing the same song.
The fact is that HOAs are not there to control your neighbor’s behavior but yours. They do NOT protect and enhance your property values. That is just a myth. In some cases they depreciate your values because the commons are unkempt and the financials are a disaster, not to mention having to cover the costs of outlandishly expensive litigation that neighbors have no business entering into. The amenities they tout as allowing you to live the life of Riley are in fact a burden on private property, YOURS.
What can you do about it? Just say NO. Say No when buying a house... Tell your realtor to only show you uncontrolled houses. Contact your local government and tell them the free ride is over... NO more tax dollars for no services. Tell ’em that if you are forced to leave the American Zone, your wallet goes with you (you’ll need it on the other side). Tour model homes in brand new developments and tell the builders/developers NO to the HOA. Contact your state legislators. Tell them you want NO more enabling legislation allowing HOAs to be built... in fact tell them you want NO more HOAs, period. Tell the press, NO more HOAs.. enough is enough. You have the power and the ability to stop this disaster.
M.J. is right. If the only hope is to go to court, chances are most people will run out of money before they get within a mile of the court house. As consumers, as tax payers, as constituents you have more power and more clout than you realize. Just say NO. Don’t try to make it work as that would be an exercise in futility.
So, let’s “educate” people. Remember, there are more of us than there are of them.
Message for M.J. (or any home ‘owner’ in a development governed by a home ‘owner’ association)
I talked to people from 5 different states yesterday, 4 of them had either been foreclosed on, were in the process of losing their homes or were being set up to get trapped in the collections death spiral which will ultimately lead to an attempted foreclosure, if not an actual one. None of them are in a financial position of defending themselves. It goes back to your comment, M.J., that you are only entitled to as much justice as you can afford. These folks couldn’t afford much, if any, justice.
If there are any associations out there that are not currently mini replicas of full blown world wars, they are either defunct or just one election/manager/attorney/new homeowner away from it. That is not news to anyone here. The underlying mechanisms are there in all of them and it is a matter of time before someone decides to make life miserable for a/some neighbor(s) – just because they can – or to flex some muscle because they have become intoxicated on a little power. It is the concept that is just not working. Your personal experiences, M.J., over the last 2 decades are a not so silent testament to these truths. The horrors you have been through, not to mention the pots of money it has cost you — so far — the mini triumphs along the way that have since been quashed, the stress you have been under, and all the other personal abuses and harassments you and your family have been subjected to, seem to be never ending.
My comments were directed at one sentence you made: “Sadly, if you can’t ‘fight the fight’ ($$$) — then you are probably doomed to failure.” And I agree with you. I don’t know any way to return control of homes and lives and family back to the individual homeowners other then to take a page out of CAI’s book and “educate” housing consumers that they are about to “leave the American Zone” and not to do it. All the pretty talk about “community” and property values is just that, pretty talk with no basis in fact at all. It’s a scam folks, don’t do it... Just say NO!
It is my personal belief that every homeowner and every potential homeowner should know your story along with the stories of Wenonah and Mrs. Sullivan and the folks I talked to yesterday and the ones I talked to today and the people who will be emailing me and every other advocate with a web page out there, with stories that will break your heart. Some people are still buying into the lies of “community” and “property values” and many people are of the opinion that everyone who finds themselves at war with their neighbors did something to deserve it. These people need to know the truth.
If it can happen to you, it can, and very well may, happen to them too.