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Old 04-11-2014, 12:36 PM
 
Location: NYC
113 posts, read 136,344 times
Reputation: 315

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The funny part is that this fence is in my fenced in backyard. Nobody can use it anyway. I can't understand it.
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Old 04-12-2014, 12:33 PM
 
5,048 posts, read 9,585,378 times
Reputation: 4180
Do you have your plat from the sale? If the suveyor didn't put in stakes, call him back out to add those to the survey. That might do the trick. Oh, and make those holes noticeable so that you can find them even if those stakes stangely disappear overnight.
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Old 04-12-2014, 04:15 PM
 
Location: Portland, Oregon
10,988 posts, read 20,510,182 times
Reputation: 8261
It is against the law for someone to disturb surveyor stakes, we have surveyor's drive an iron rod into the ground or install a steel marker.

The Fair Housing Act can require a HOA to make reasonable accommodation for a person with a disability. I am a bit confused.. is the person with the disability a visitor or a tenant? If a visitor do they stay in the unit from time to time because of respite care? If the person with a disability is a visitor the OP may have a challenge forcing the HOA to change its position.
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Old 04-12-2014, 05:21 PM
 
10,553 posts, read 9,629,169 times
Reputation: 4784
Quote:
Originally Posted by cully View Post
I think in view of the fact that yours is the only one with this fence on common property they could adjust for that sake...making it in line with the others. And it seems like the area is miniscule, is it?

How is the area it's on common though? Do people need to pass through it or what purpose does it being common serve?
Yes, I don't understand this either. You said the gate would be in your yard and no one else could use it, so what common property is the homeowner's association talking about?
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Old 04-12-2014, 08:47 PM
 
Location: NYC
113 posts, read 136,344 times
Reputation: 315
The person with the disability is my daughter. She's mentally challenged. It's very far to walk out of the development and I won't let her do it on her own. If I put the gate she can walk right out and her transportation can pick her up there.

I don't understand it either Ellemint. They just kept telling me no and the only reason they gave me was that the turned down the original owner.

Now..after the meeting..they told the management company to tell me that that area of my yard is a common area. I can't understand that as my yard is fenced in. Nobody uses it but me.

I'm just waiting til I close now and I'll have the guy from the Mayor's office on Disabilities come and look at it.

I'll keep you guys updated. It's very frustrating.
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Old 04-14-2014, 06:05 AM
 
Location: NC
6,032 posts, read 9,189,893 times
Reputation: 6378
You are using all the wrong entities to investigate. Has it been surveyed? Do you know which portions you own versus common area? Is there any documentation?


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Old 04-14-2014, 06:26 AM
 
Location: Madison, AL
3,297 posts, read 6,245,130 times
Reputation: 2678
Condo associations are subject to Fair Housing laws. If other owners are being allowed gates, and you are not based on the need of a disabled resident (in this case, your daughter), I would hire an attorney and scream Fair Housing from the rooftops.

Many condo associations are not subject to ADA regulations because those areas are NOT typically considered places of "public accommodation". You would need to have an attorney review the condo docs.

This condo association does not want to mess with the Feds concerning FH, that I can tell you. One of my friends is an attorney here that deals specifically with Fair Housing suits. Her experience is that they are so hair trigger sensitive that any allegation is investigated, and the burden lies heavily on the accused, not so much the accuser. Costs to defend a fair housing suit are generally expensive and many times not covered by any liability insurance according to her experience.

There was a fair housing suit here recently involving a local real estate company where someone simply called and left a message inquiring about a property, and the secretary did not relay message to an agent. Customer filed a fair housing suit and it took almost a year to resolve and over $20k in legal fees to prove that the secretary was just negligent....which is why she was fired about a week after this occurrence, she was not forwarding ANYONE messages and simply not doing her job. But they still had to defend themselves and it was nasty, stressful, and expensive.

Last edited by LCTMadison; 04-14-2014 at 06:37 AM..
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Old 04-14-2014, 09:34 AM
 
1,101 posts, read 2,729,470 times
Reputation: 1040
I have lived in residences covered by HOAs for the last 16 years. I think you are getting off on the wrong foot with the board. You have barely taken occupancy and you are already fighting with them. When periodic exterior maintenance is due on your unit, don't be surprised if the board "inadvertently" skips your place.

The initial problem is that you didn't do sufficient homework on the parking situation in your community. And, as many people not familiar with HOAs would do, you assumed that because the neighbors had gates to the main roads, you would be allowed to have one as well. Of course, those might have been granted by an earlier, less stringent board. The bottom line is that you have to do major research before buying into such a community.

It sounds like a lot of the advice on here is being given by people who have never lived in such communities and think they know everything about them. An HOA is not a democracy and, even in a highly regulated place such as NY, they have tremendous leeway to do what they want. Boards can be arbitrary, secretive, unforgiving and unfair. Residents have few rights. On the other hand, living in a condo or attached townhome can remove a lot of headaches from daily life, and the units are usually cheaper per square foot than a single-family home. Remember that the board, however bad you may think it is, is assuming those headaches on your behalf.

What you need to do is quiet down, live in the place for a while, put up with the parking issue, get to know the board members and then petition for the gate. It was your responsibility to find out about the parking issue before you signed the contract. Now, you want to put the burden on someone else for your lack of research.

I also read in one of your posts that the guest parking spaces are always filled. Now, if those spaces are deeded specifically to you, then you have a legitimate complaint. If they are available to all residents, then it was up to you to visit the complex during busy times of the week and look around at the number of available spots before you decided to buy.

HOA living is certainly not for everyone.
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Old 04-14-2014, 09:46 AM
 
1,101 posts, read 2,729,470 times
Reputation: 1040
Quote:
Originally Posted by ellemint View Post
Yes, I don't understand this either. You said the gate would be in your yard and no one else could use it, so what common property is the homeowner's association talking about?
If it is like my complex, where I own my own plot of land and shares in the common areas, you do not have the right to do anything you want with your own property. Depending on the bylaws, installing your own gate on your own land might be considered by the board to be as egregious as painting your unit purple on the outside.

This comment is a good example of how people don 't understand the workings of HOAs. You may own your own property, but that doesn't mean you can do anything you want with it. When you buy, you are agreeing to submit to the rules and regulations covering everyone. In my community, an architectural committee has to approve some changes and installation of a gate could certainly fall within our guidelines. Even if you see similar installations on your neighbors' properties, you still have to go through the review process. And you might be turned down because, as I said in another post, fairness is not always an attribute of an HOA board. Yes, you can sue the HOA but you have to remember that you are also suing yourself. There are many cases where residents lose and end up having to pay the HOA's legal fees.
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Old 04-14-2014, 06:45 PM
 
Location: NYC
113 posts, read 136,344 times
Reputation: 315
You are forgetting that I have a disabled child. All the normal stuff goes out the window when it comes to that.

When I signed the contract I was under the assumption I would have no problem since half of the people in the development already had gates installed.
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