Calling all members from Hemlock Farms (Dallas, Penn: HOA, houses, established neighborhood)

[vrwl]

As an update to my previous postings about moving from Dallas, TX to NEPA:

Based on numerous postings of advice asking us to reconsider our interest in Saw Creek Estates, we have now shifted our focus to another community which has been recommended by several people here in the forum, Hemlock Farms. However, there is one huge obstacle in our way and I was hoping someone could help us out. We can't find any sort of PDF file detailing the rules and regulations for homeowners within that community.

Before we expend a huge amount of long-distance effort on any interest in Hemlock Farms, we want to know well in advance what the rules and regs are for that community. I have specifically asked our Realtor for a copy of them in advance, and she said she is unable to provide them. Apparently the only way she knows of to get a copy of the rules/regs is to put a contract down on a house and then a copy will be provided to us.

This is completely unacceptable. I don't want to spend months researching an area, researching homes available in that area, schedule vacation time off from work and go to PA to look at houses, find one we love, and THEN find out the community has rules that we can't abide by for some reason or another.

So please.... if anyone here is a homeowner in Hemlock Farms and is willing to share a recent copy of the rules/regs for that area (or an online link where I can download them for myself), I would really appreciate a private message from you. I will not divulge where I got the "secret documents", but it is hard enough to do all this from 2000 miles away and any help we can get in advance to avoid any unnecessary wasted time (AND wasted vacation days) would be much appreciated.

[LI2PA]

Originally Posted by vrwl

As an update to my previous postings about moving from Dallas, TX to NEPA:

Based on numerous postings of advice asking us to reconsider our interest in Saw Creek Estates, we have now shifted our focus to another community which has been recommended by several people here in the forum, Hemlock Farms. However, there is one huge obstacle in our way and I was hoping someone could help us out. We can't find any sort of PDF file detailing the rules and regulations for homeowners within that community.

Before we expend a huge amount of long-distance effort on any interest in Hemlock Farms, we want to know well in advance what the rules and regs are for that community. I have specifically asked our Realtor for a copy of them in advance, and she said she is unable to provide them. Apparently the only way she knows of to get a copy of the rules/regs is to put a contract down on a house and then a copy will be provided to us.

This is completely unacceptable. I don't want to spend months researching an area, researching homes available in that area, schedule vacation time off from work and go to PA to look at houses, find one we love, and THEN find out the community has rules that we can't abide by for some reason or another.

So please.... if anyone here is a homeowner in Hemlock Farms and is willing to share a recent copy of the rules/regs for that area (or an online link where I can download them for myself), I would really appreciate a private message from you. I will not divulge where I got the "secret documents", but it is hard enough to do all this from 2000 miles away and any help we can get in advance to avoid any unnecessary wasted time (AND wasted vacation days) would be much appreciated.

Have you tried calling the number on their website?
I hope this link works Rules

[vrwl]

Thanks for that link, but unfortunately, that's not what I'm looking for. Those are the bylaws of the Homeowner's Association (election of officials, how they spend your dues, the formation of the HOA, and all the info about the HOA itself), but it's not the rules & regs that the actual homeowners have to abide by.

No, I haven't called the HOA yet, that will be my next step if I can't find an online resolution to the problem.

[LI2PA]

NP...I tried. You may save some time just by a quick telephone call though...good luck

[fisheye]

The only thing I found was: Hemlock Farms Community Association - Management Contacts. At least it has all the people to contact.

I found this one old City-Data thread: http://www.city-data.com/forum/north...ms-please.html. And here is one other link: http://www.city-data.com/forum/north...ake-other.html.

Hope this helps.

[jimazee]

Originally Posted by vrwl

Thanks for that link, but unfortunately, that's not what I'm looking for. Those are the bylaws of the Homeowner's Association (election of officials, how they spend your dues, the formation of the HOA, and all the info about the HOA itself), but it's not the rules & regs that the actual homeowners have to abide by.

No, I haven't called the HOA yet, that will be my next step if I can't find an online resolution to the problem.

I would want to be sure that whatever was provided was the latest, genuine, and 'official'...as such I would want it from an appropriate 'official' source.

[vrwl]

I tend to be less fond of phone calls because there is a lack of documentation about the conversation. And me with my aging memory, I just find I forget details, and so I always prefer written to verbal when communicating about important, detailed topics. With fisheye's link, I have just sent the Hemlock Farms Community Manager an email requesting a copy of the rules/regs. We'll see what they have to say regarding my request. I'm hoping that there's no trouble receiving the information I requested, but because they don't publish the information online, I'm suspecting I'm going to run into some snags along the way.

[LI2PA]

Originally Posted by vrwl

I tend to be less fond of phone calls because there is a lack of documentation about the conversation. And me with my aging memory, I just find I forget details, and so I always prefer written to verbal when communicating about important, detailed topics. With fisheye's link, I have just sent the Hemlock Farms Community Manager an email requesting a copy of the rules/regs. We'll see what they have to say regarding my request. I'm hoping that there's no trouble receiving the information I requested, but because they don't publish the information online, I'm suspecting I'm going to run into some snags along the way.

I know what you mean, I sometimes can't think of everything while I'm on the phone, but I just figured you could request a copy of the rules. I do hope they honor your request, I wouldn't want to join a community without knowing what's in store. I too wanted to buy in a community, but although we would have enjoyed the amenities, we didn't think it would be worth the extra expense. I have owned my own house on Long Island for 33 years and I don't think I could tolerate some of the restrictions so many communities in the Poconos have, but hey that's just me. I wish you the best in finding what home is right for you.

[vrwl]

Originally Posted by LI2PA

I know what you mean, I sometimes can't think of everything while I'm on the phone, but I just figured you could request a copy of the rules. I do hope they honor your request, I wouldn't want to join a community without knowing what's in store. I too wanted to buy in a community, but although we would have enjoyed the amenities, we didn't think it would be worth the extra expense. I have owned my own house on Long Island for 33 years and I don't think I could tolerate some of the restrictions so many communities in the Poconos have, but hey that's just me. I wish you the best in finding what home is right for you.

Thanks so much. We've had the opposite issue here in Texas where we live right now. We've got a beautiful brick home in an established neighborhood where all houses sit on one acre or more lots. But just our luck, we've got a couple of neighbors, one on each side of us, that make us dream of community living. One the one side, we've got a family where the dad has now decided to start a John Deere tractor refurbishing business in his backyard. The problem is that he's on a corner lot, so everyone that drives through the neighborhood can see a big long row of tractors parked in his backyard along with the shop where he does the repairs. It just doesn't look nice at all.

On the other side of us, we've got a guy who appears to REFUSE to mow the grass that grows over his septic tank in his backyard. Right now, as I type, the grass has got to be at least 3 feet tall. My biggest issue for both of these neighbors is that I have to LOOK at this crap. My living room is on the back side of my house, so every time I look out the windows, I have to see John Deere tractors (big ones, not riding lawn mowers) and the 3 foot tall grass. With no HOA, we have no one to complain to, no one who will make these eyesores more presentable, and I worry about how all of this will affect the resale value of our home.

I am SO READY for some rules and restrictions about how people keep their homes up. Here's a picture of our house from last Xmastime, right after my husband finished putting up the lights, so you can see the reason we're so concerned about how the homes in our neighborhood are kept up. We don't have a junky house, and we wish other people would be just as careful with their neighborhood and their investment.

[Abundantly_Above]

I hope you can get a copy of the regs so you can have peace of mind, but IMO, there's not much difference between communities. I have owned in three different communities in three different states, and they're all about the same. I compared the regs in Saw Creek Estates, Penn Estates, and the Glen at Tamiment, and didn't see much difference there either. The only thing I would want to know for sure (and you can tell from the MLS listing) is whether the community board has to interview you and approve you for living there. That doesn't seem to be the norm in NEPA and that is a very good thing, IMO.

Based on your postings in your original thread, I don't think the regs at Hemlock Farms will contain anything that concerns you. No shooting firearms, dispose of trash properly, ask permission before removing trees or building fences, no permanent outdoor structures, and fines for not following the rules (including speeding through the neighborhood.) Those kinds of rules only bother people who are a) like your current neighbors and don't want to take care of their property, and b) people who want total freedom to do whatever they want on their land at any time. You're neither of those types, and I think you'll be very happy in Hemlock Farms. Good luck to you!