Relocating to GA - tell me about HOA's (Atlanta, Marietta: houses, neighborhoods)

[Swright]

Hi we will be moving from very rural, northwest California. We've been looking at houses on the internet and noticing many HOA's. We have heard mostly bad things about HOA's. Should I avoid them? It's not like we want to park a rusted out truck on blocks in our front yard but we do have 2 large dogs and don't want to be pariahs if they occasionally bark.

We will be working in Marietta and I have been reading posts regarding the best places to live but would enjoy other input. We have no children at home so school district is not that important other than for resale value but a relatively short commute is something we want. Being near a park or someplace to walk our dogs and a large fenced yard are our #1 priorities.

Thanks for any input.

[sandlovertoo]

Mostly HOA's are more concerned about keeping the yards cut,not painting the house some far out color and to keep up with the pool and tennis courts.It all depends where it is you live,they all have different rules.But the dog thing not a big deal.

[deathcabber]

Some of them can be like small facist governments and some can be ok...they are nice when it comes to establishing rules about upkeep in the neighborhood, that way the place stays looking nice.

[OhioNative]

IMHO, I feel that an HOA is a necessity in Georgia. I don't know if it is the rapid growth or turnover in subdivisions, but it seems that neighborhoods go downhill fast in metro Atlanta, obviously depending on price range. HOAs are sometimes the only way to protect your property values, in my opinion.

[BobKovacs]

Originally Posted by Swright

Hi we will be moving from very rural, northwest California. We've been looking at houses on the internet and noticing many HOA's. We have heard mostly bad things about HOA's. Should I avoid them? It's not like we want to park a rusted out truck on blocks in our front yard but we do have 2 large dogs and don't want to be pariahs if they occasionally bark.

Well, you may not want to, but your neighbor might, and having and HOA will keep him from doing so.

I'd much rather have an HOA than not- it's not a matter of what you'd do, but what the morons who might move in around might do if someone doesn't keep them in check. Just be sure to read the HOA regs completely befor you buy, to see what they have in the way of restrictions, especially as they pertain to dogs/noise, which seems to be your major concern. You may find that even in a non-HOA community you'll have issues with neighbors calling the police if your dogs are too noisy anyway- most towns have noise/nuisance ordinances outside of the HOA regs.

Bob