My HOA has gone off the deep end... Apparently I can't let my grill cool down anymore.

[alkemyst]

Originally posted by: hanoverphist

Originally posted by: sourceninja
I'm on the HOA board where I live. We have very relaxed rules, basically anything goes. The other day we had a meeting where people showed up to complain that a guy who just bought a basically shit house and fixed it up to look very nice parks his semi truck (not the trailer, just the truck) in his driveway 1 weekend a month. His wife and kids live there, he's only home 1 weekend a month and they bitch.

The house used to be a dump. These people are an asset to our property value. I actually told the lady to get bent.

i have a friend in westminster, co that is on his HOA and they operate about the same. he was under fire at first for pointing out some funds missing due to other members, but once it wass all said and done those people were no longer on the board and things are pretty nice. all their landscaping is taken care of, water is paid also. i was amazed they had a choice in their landscape design as well.


not all HOAs are evil, but you gotta know what youre getting into before committing.

sourceninja, improved home or not if commercial vehicles are flagged on your HOA agreement, as the president esp; you should follow what your homeowner's want.

My dad used to own a very nice boat, he has the largest home in his neighborhood and keeps the lawn and paint perfect. He doesn't assume it's ok to have the boat overnight...we carted it back to the storage facility despite being tired from working on it all day. Now that I own a home in a non-HOA area and was able to have a driveway that extends into my backyard behind a fence...the next boat can be worked on and stored here and no one would be the wiser....even though I could do it just as well in plain view.

Most people that break the rules in an HOA have nice houses.

 

[mugs]

Originally posted by: Lothar

Originally posted by: mugs

Originally posted by: Fayd

Originally posted by: Muadib
I was this close to buying a house with an HOA. After telling some people from work, and now seeing this thread, I must rethink my choice.

investigate the HOA in the place before making any rash decisions. as has been said, some can be reasonable. (i personally wouldnt want to live anywhere with a HOA, but...)

:thumbsup: My HOA is very reasonable. Our house was vacant when we bought it, and the person that was selling it did not do anything to maintain the exterior. The grass was about a foot high on the day we closed, and that day happened to be the day that the HOA finally hired someone to mow it and sent a bill to the previous owner. There were times last summer when the lawn didn't get mowed as often as I'd like, because we were focused on other projects in the house. No one ever complained. My neighbor across the street has a terrible lawn, no one complains. I leave my garbage can outside next to my garage door, no one complains. My wife and her mother left the front doors wide open a lot last summer to let the house "air out" - no one complained except me. We're working on getting our house into good shape, making room in the garage for the garbage can, etc. But I'm pleased that no one has complained about petty things. It's nice that the HOA is there in case someone does something that would really drive down property values, but as of now it doesn't seem like the HOA actually enforces any rules.

I also did not want to live in an HOA at all, but after a year of looking for a suitable house we found the one we wanted, and it was part of an HOA. Most of the houses we looked at were not.

So are your HOA's just collecting membership fees to line their own pockets?
If they are not actually enforcing anything, then what are you paying your membership fees for?

The HOA board members don't get paid. HOA fees primarily cover maintenance of common areas.

 

[Squisher]

Originally posted by: sourceninja
I'm on the HOA board where I live. We have very relaxed rules, basically anything goes. The other day we had a meeting where people showed up to complain that a guy who just bought a basically shit house and fixed it up to look very nice parks his semi truck (not the trailer, just the truck) in his driveway 1 weekend a month. His wife and kids live there, he's only home 1 weekend a month and they bitch.

The house used to be a dump. These people are an asset to our property value. I actually told the lady to get bent.

Same here. The thing is though I was just lucky, it's not like I interviewed people to find out what the HOA was like. Even if I had, prospective neighbors have a vested interest to see the house occupied so they're likely to tell you everything is hearts and flowers.

 

[Gooberlx2]

Originally posted by: Lothar
So are your HOA's just collecting membership fees to line their own pockets?
If they are not actually enforcing anything, then what are you paying your membership fees for?

Mine pays for community upgrades (getting a lap pool), park maintenance, rec center, "movie night" in those parks, July 4th fireworks, etc...

Not sure how much is left over for after they've paid their bills. I pay $18/month, Townhomes probably pay closer to $100, but the HOA is responsible for all exterior maintenance and insurance.

But, yeah, pretty reasonable people on our HOA. Meanwhile, I do try to keep up-to-date on any issues so that I can contest any unreasonable proposed rules (of which there have been none so far).

 

[hanoverphist]

Originally posted by: nerp

Originally posted by: icingdeath88
I just got a notice from my HOA of a new rule that says that no "immobile vehicles" are allowed to be parked here, including vehicles with "one or more flat tires." what the hell, that means that if I have a flat tire, i can't park it at my house? these people are out of control. they asked for a key to my condo. i told them they couldn't have one. but if there's a safety issue they can sue me over it. asses. these are the same people that leave my storage room unlocked after they inspect it. (too lazy to change the locks). like i'm giving them a key to my house.

and we're just not allowed to have grills. not on balconies (kinda understandable), not outside or in garages, etc. they have 2 really crappy grills by the pool that anyone can use, but for a busy weekend forget it. and you have to have your own propane tanks, but another rule says you can't store propane tanks in the residences, so unless you also have a garage, you're screwed.

also, the only way that this HOA crap will get under control is if people actually are willing to pay more to live in places without overzealous HOAs. this uses the property values thing against them. frankly "getting involved" isn't an option for those of us with real lives. it is for the old retired douches though. which are about 70% of my neighbors (tampa, fl).

Tampa blows.

most cities have the same rules. i have to call and re-explain that the cadillac in front of my house is a project car, and that it will be fixed over time as i restore it. i do need to make sure the tires stay aired up and no cobwebs at all tho. they finally stopped trying to force me to keep it ass end in so they cant see the registration is expired tho, but only when the alternative wass the front end open and taken apart as i work on it. cities have rules on how your house can appear to the street as well, not just HOAs. hell, tempe has rules against window ac units facing the street. the fine was more than the AC unit lol.

 

[bobdole369]

Originally posted by: bobdole369
At least they didn't call the fire department. I was grilling exactly 10 feet from the back door and the FD showed up. Apparently some asshat decided I could use some of my own medicine ( I routinely call FD on others who barbecue on screened in patios/balconies).

Unluckily for the asshat I was following the fire code to the letter (with a fire extinguisher standing by).

Wow it's a good thing you are around to call the Fire Department on them, god knows what could happen. You are an asshole; I don't blame them for being pissed at you.

Any of the aforementioned asshats are grilling on the second story screened-in balcony with CHARCOAL, with open flames licking at the ceiling. The first guy I called FD on - his screen caught fire, thats why I called. The second guy - didn't understand english. Have you ever heard of something called carbon monoxide poisoning? When people grill on their screened in balconies it leaks CO back into the dwelling. Entire families die this way. Not to mention the possible raging 3 alarm fire that would have resulted.

BTW these aren't actually in my own condo association, but the one next door. No landlord - its another set of condos. I grill off the back patio (first floor, just a concrete pad no screen), pulling the grill 10 feet from the building like you are supposed to. CO hugs the ground so its even dangerous to grill on that concrete pad.

So how is my saving lives and preventing millions of dollars in damage being an asshole? How about the guy who kills not just his own family, but 3 others near him by burning the place down? I say that guys the fucking asshole and I'm goddamn Superman.

honestly....what a dick.

See above

QFT...how about letting them know or the landlord instead of dragging the FD out.

The FD WANTS you to call when folks grill on the balcony. Its a serious problem that costs thousands of lives every year. Killing buildings full of people? Because you are too lazy to go downstairs and do it there 10 feet from the building like the fire code says?

Balcony grillers are fucking assholes.

 

[TraumaRN]

Originally posted by: hanoverphist

Originally posted by: nerp

Originally posted by: icingdeath88
I just got a notice from my HOA of a new rule that says that no "immobile vehicles" are allowed to be parked here, including vehicles with "one or more flat tires." what the hell, that means that if I have a flat tire, i can't park it at my house? these people are out of control. they asked for a key to my condo. i told them they couldn't have one. but if there's a safety issue they can sue me over it. asses. these are the same people that leave my storage room unlocked after they inspect it. (too lazy to change the locks). like i'm giving them a key to my house.

and we're just not allowed to have grills. not on balconies (kinda understandable), not outside or in garages, etc. they have 2 really crappy grills by the pool that anyone can use, but for a busy weekend forget it. and you have to have your own propane tanks, but another rule says you can't store propane tanks in the residences, so unless you also have a garage, you're screwed.

also, the only way that this HOA crap will get under control is if people actually are willing to pay more to live in places without overzealous HOAs. this uses the property values thing against them. frankly "getting involved" isn't an option for those of us with real lives. it is for the old retired douches though. which are about 70% of my neighbors (tampa, fl).

Tampa blows.

most cities have the same rules. i have to call and re-explain that the cadillac in front of my house is a project car, and that it will be fixed over time as i restore it. i do need to make sure the tires stay aired up and no cobwebs at all tho. they finally stopped trying to force me to keep it ass end in so they cant see the registration is expired tho, but only when the alternative wass the front end open and taken apart as i work on it. cities have rules on how your house can appear to the street as well, not just HOAs. hell, tempe has rules against window ac units facing the street. the fine was more than the AC unit lol.

Wow....those are some crazy rules...Worst thing I can think of for my town is the warning you get if you leave your car parked on the street for more than 5 days in a row. Jeez. I mean all my neighbors...they are good people we all watch over each other(so much so that my neighbor confronted my parents when they came to check on my house while I was on vacation because they hadn't met them). I'm glad I dont live in a place with these crazy rules. Call me old-fashioned but I like the fact that I can sit in my backyard with my neighbors, have a small campfire, and a cold beer for all.

 

[dr150]

The reason I've always avoided condos was b/c of the stupid EXPENSIVE HOA fees.

It's just another way to scam a person out of their dough and have CONTROL over you.....run by douches.

In addition, condo construction quality is SHYTE!!

Man, talk about lose/lose!