Homeowners associations in Puyallup WA. (South Hill: bank owned, real estate, house)

[Balisidar]

Hi all,

Well we've relocated to Washington from Wisconsin and are currently in the market for a home in Puyallup.

We are looking at several homes right now in the South Hill area and some are in HOA's. The particular house we are looking at making an offer on is a bank owned house and the listing particulars don't have any information on it being in a HOA. The listing agent said he wasn't sure.

In looking around the neighborhood I've seen some play areas with Celia Gardens on signs talking about the rules of the play area. I've googled Celia Gardens with no results as a HOA in Puyallup/South Hill.

Does anyone know of any comprehensive web site for HOA's in Puyallup/South Hill? If I make an offer on the house and at closing they don't make me aware that I am purchasing in an HOA am I liable for the Dues and abiding by the rules of the HOA?

Thanks for answering.

[bigtrees]

Originally Posted by Balisidar

Hi all,

Well we've relocated to Washington from Wisconsin and are currently in the market for a home in Puyallup.

We are looking at several homes right now in the South Hill area and some are in HOA's. The particular house we are looking at making an offer on is a bank owned house and the listing particulars don't have any information on it being in a HOA. The listing agent said he wasn't sure.

In looking around the neighborhood I've seen some play areas with Celia Gardens on signs talking about the rules of the play area. I've googled Celia Gardens with no results as a HOA in Puyallup/South Hill.

Does anyone know of any comprehensive web site for HOA's in Puyallup/South Hill? If I make an offer on the house and at closing they don't make me aware that I am purchasing in an HOA am I liable for the Dues and abiding by the rules of the HOA?

Thanks for answering.

Yes, the existance of an HOA will be shown as part of the title search that is done after you make an offer on the house, and the results of the title search are given to you prior to closing. Specifically, the existance of an HOA will be a deed restriction on your property called "Codes, Covenants, and Restrictions".

If you are interested in knowning for sure if there is an HOA before making an offer, you can look at the public records. You can do a search using the parcel number at this website and review the various legal documents that may be associated with the property.
Hart Workflow™ for Public Records

I'm not sure what your experience is with HOAs in Wisconsin, but in general, HOAs here are very lax compared to many other places. I moved from Arizona where they are very strict and HOAs here are a lot different. Probably the biggest difference is we have a strong government here that has enough regulations that the HOAs don't have to be nearly as particular.

[allforcats]

DO NOT MAKE AN OFFER TO PURCHASE A HOME UNTIL YOU KNOW WHAT THE NATURE OF THAT HOME IS! If you do not know exactly what you will purchase if your offer is accepted, you will be buying blindfolded and you will be responsible for whatever it is.

Do you walk into a store to buy a refrigerator, close your eyes, point to something that you cannot see, and say "I'll buy that"? Of course not -- you're much smarter than that!
Buying real estate is not a casual event, as I'm sure you know, carrying profound and far-reaching financial and legal obligations way into your future. YOU DO NOT BUY SOMETHING ASSUMING AND HOPING THAT, SOMETIME LATER, YOU'LL LEARN EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW.

Your agent is responsible for doing the research and obtaining for you provable information as to whether or not the dwelling is a stand-alone or part of a homeowner's association. Part of your agent's job is to obtain and give you the information you need to know what you're doing. DO NOT MAKE AN OFFER UNTIL YOU KNOW. DO NOT WAIT UNTIL THE TITLE REPORT COMES THROUGH, WHICH WILL BE AT THE TIME OF CLOSING.

Homeowner associations in Washington, as anywhere, are as strict and complicated as they want to be. As a member of a HOA board of directors here, I can assure you that there is very little that is lax or casual about HOAs in this area -- the intent is to keep the properties in accordance with the rules, and the by-laws virtually always contain the legal methods to make that possible. If you like the manner in which the properties are maintained, if you approve of the financial statement of the HOA, if you approve of the assessment history and projections, if you agree with the rules and regulations of the HOA, if you like everything you learn about the HOA, excellent -- THEN make an offer. Just remember that HOAs here do have all legal rights to enforce their regulations, including putting liens on your property.

If I were in your shoes, I would NEVER consider making an offer on anything that I did not know. Get your agent to do the work required by his/her job and necessary for you to know what you are doing. If the agent is not working for you now, the agent will not be working for you through all the countless details of the process and the closing. If your agent keeps putting off detail work, or dismisses it as "unnecessary" or something that can be done "later", get another agent. This is about YOU -- make certain it's golden. I wish you well.

[bigtrees]

Originally Posted by allforcats

Your agent is responsible for doing the research and obtaining for you provable information as to whether or not the dwelling is a stand-alone or part of a homeowner's association. Part of your agent's job is to obtain and give you the information you need to know what you're doing. DO NOT MAKE AN OFFER UNTIL YOU KNOW. DO NOT WAIT UNTIL THE TITLE REPORT COMES THROUGH, WHICH WILL BE AT THE TIME OF CLOSING.

While I'd agree that your agent should get this information for you, I would offer that YOU are the one actually responsible for this information. Don't rely on your agent and then start whining if he/she doesn't provide some information that you would have liked to have. Do the research and verify everything that your agent says to make sure you are happy with it.

But allforcats is correct in saying that a responsible agent will do the research for you. If they say "I don't know", find a new agent and find one that cares.