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If it isn't offensive, just paint the trim and then see what they do.
I built a house in a community with a FIERCE HOA several years back. Nice homes, but ridiculously cheap, matching mailboxes. The entire community agreed that the mailboxes were junk but the developer lived in the neighborhood and sat on the board. He eliminated the chance of seeing a change of mailboxes or letting residents change out independently. I essentially said "screw it" and replaced mine. The HOA sent me a letter asking me to change it back, but I didn't. After a period of maybe 30 days many residents changed their mailboxes as well. The community pretty much did what they wanted in this respect since we all agreed it was an improvement to the neighborhood.
Who keeps up then with all the fees associated with the community or the standards that are put in place for a reason?
The typical HOA elects officers annually...in the HOA I lived under, the Treasurer collected fees, and the head of the Architectural Standards Committee would approve changes and enforce standards.
Who keeps up then with all the fees associated with the community or the standards that are put in place for a reason?
In regards to standards it depends on the HOA...
you will have some that are so laid back that they don't even know their standards - in which case there is no enforcement...
there are others that know their standards, but don't hold a tight tight control, in which case they are generally complaint-driven (if someone in the HOA complains then the Board gets involved, investigates, and takes action)....
there are others that are very proactive and require everything to be submitted for approval and keep an eagle-eye out for anyone doing something without their permission...
we have all three flavors around where I live... most fall into the middle ground of being complaint-driven, but there are two that come to mind that are agressive (and make alot of people mad and get a lot of press).
To abolish an HOA you generally need unanimous consent of all the homeowners. This is very unlikely. You generally have an elite minority within the HOA that run for office and want to keep their power. My idea though is to gather a majority of homeowners together and at the next meeting vote to take away fees or make them $0. Then systematically strip the HOA of any other powers it may have. Including all of the fascist rules regarding house colors, pets, etc. Take them down to simply an HOA on paper with no power. I am thinking about doing this with my HOA. It seems that most people I know hate their HOAs so it seems theoretically possible.
The HOA's are established by the covenants. You won't be able to get rid of it unless the covenants expire. You also won't be able to drop the fees to $0, since there are probably amenities to maintain (pool, tennis, landscape, etc.). Time to start accepting responsibility, not avoid it.
Who keeps up then with all the fees associated with the community or the standards that are put in place for a reason?
Geez, does ANYONE read their Covenants and HOA Bylaws?
Standards for the community are usually set out in the Covenants for a given subdivision. Those same covenants spell out the structure of a homeowners association, the authority granted to the Board of Directors (BOD) and/or Architectural Review Committee (ARC), and the rights and responsibilities of owners within the subdivision. All of this is very straightforward. If enough owners agree, those standards MAY be changed. An example - our covenants specified no leases for rent of less than 6 months. We changed them for the 96 Olympics when everyone thought they could rent their house out for $25,000 for three weeks (of course this never happened). Changing covenants is usually a very big deal, and usually requires the written consent of a high percentage of all the owners (say 67-75%), NOT just a majority at an HOA meeting with a quorum. It also will require at least some assistance from an attorney, since the covenants are part of the land records filed with the county.
The BOD of an HOA usually sets the monthly or annual dues amount each year. For all the bitching owners do, they are NOTORIOUSLY bad about actually participating in the process, with annual HOA meetings frequently held without a quorum. Many have a clause that states that the amount of HOA dues set by the Board stands, unless voted down by the membership. No quorum at the annual meeting? You can't vote it down. You may not like it, but this allows the HOA to be self-perpetuating even if owners are too lazy to become involved.
Most smaller subdivisions (say 120 homes or less maybe) manage themselves. Once the developer is no longer involved, HOA's are governed entirely by the OWNERS. Fortunately, there are usually enough owners concerned about maintaining their own investment in their home that people will step up and become involved on the HOA and/or ARC. Those who don't step up and participate are generally the ones who complain the most about just about anything.
The BOD is charged with maintaining the subdivision and following the Covenants, which, in Georgia have the force of law. The HOA can force you to comply with the covenants and/or rules of the subdivision. The dues set by the BOD is generally at a rate that will take care of all the amenities (pool, tennis, playground, landscaping common grounds) and provide a capital reserve fund for major renovations or improvements (resurfacing pool and tennis courts are big ones). Dues also pay for things like liability insurance and insurance for the directors (required by the covenants). NOBODY on the BOD or ARC is paid - they're all volunteers and fellow homeowners. When owners get pissed off and threaten to sue someone or everyone on the board, the board and ARC is almost always covered by Officers and Directors insurance. And even if they weren't, the covenants will require the HOA to indemnify any director or officer of the association for any acts or omissions while in that position. This is mandatory - otherwise no one would step up and participate for fear of being sued.
Larger subdivisions (or smaller ones with poor participation by lazy homeowners) will frequently contract with a management company to handle the day to day management and financial affairs of the subdivision. The larger the subdivision, obviously the more to manage. It's much different having a subdivision with 80 homes, $500 annual dues and a $40k annual budget to take care of a small pool and two tennis courts, than a subdivision with 800 homes, $2000 annual dues, a $1.6M annual budget, an olympic-sized pool and mini water park, tennis center with instructors, and gated to boot with 24hr security patrols. These management companies also tend to be a little more strict about compliance with the covenants, although their level of control is still set by the BOD. Where the BOD is just owner-volunteers who generally have plenty of other things to do, the management company exists to provide services to the HOA, and has plenty of time to do nothing but that.
Bottom line - read the Covenants and the HOA Bylaws.
Geez, does ANYONE read their Covenants and HOA Bylaws?
Standards for the community are usually set out in the Covenants for a given subdivision. Those same covenants spell out the structure of a homeowners association, the authority granted to the Board of Directors (BOD) and/or Architectural Review Committee (ARC), and the rights and responsibilities of owners within the subdivision. All of this is very straightforward. If enough owners agree, those standards MAY be changed. An example - our covenants specified no leases for rent of less than 6 months. We changed them for the 96 Olympics when everyone thought they could rent their house out for $25,000 for three weeks (of course this never happened). Changing covenants is usually a very big deal, and usually requires the written consent of a high percentage of all the owners (say 67-75%), NOT just a majority at an HOA meeting with a quorum. It also will require at least some assistance from an attorney, since the covenants are part of the land records filed with the county.
The BOD of an HOA usually sets the monthly or annual dues amount each year. For all the bitching owners do, they are NOTORIOUSLY bad about actually participating in the process, with annual HOA meetings frequently held without a quorum. Many have a clause that states that the amount of HOA dues set by the Board stands, unless voted down by the membership. No quorum at the annual meeting? You can't vote it down. You may not like it, but this allows the HOA to be self-perpetuating even if owners are too lazy to become involved.
Most smaller subdivisions (say 120 homes or less maybe) manage themselves. Once the developer is no longer involved, HOA's are governed entirely by the OWNERS. Fortunately, there are usually enough owners concerned about maintaining their own investment in their home that people will step up and become involved on the HOA and/or ARC. Those who don't step up and participate are generally the ones who complain the most about just about anything.
The BOD is charged with maintaining the subdivision and following the Covenants, which, in Georgia have the force of law. The HOA can force you to comply with the covenants and/or rules of the subdivision. The dues set by the BOD is generally at a rate that will take care of all the amenities (pool, tennis, playground, landscaping common grounds) and provide a capital reserve fund for major renovations or improvements (resurfacing pool and tennis courts are big ones). Dues also pay for things like liability insurance and insurance for the directors (required by the covenants). NOBODY on the BOD or ARC is paid - they're all volunteers and fellow homeowners. When owners get pissed off and threaten to sue someone or everyone on the board, the board and ARC is almost always covered by Officers and Directors insurance. And even if they weren't, the covenants will require the HOA to indemnify any director or officer of the association for any acts or omissions while in that position. This is mandatory - otherwise no one would step up and participate for fear of being sued.
Larger subdivisions (or smaller ones with poor participation by lazy homeowners) will frequently contract with a management company to handle the day to day management and financial affairs of the subdivision. The larger the subdivision, obviously the more to manage. It's much different having a subdivision with 80 homes, $500 annual dues and a $40k annual budget to take care of a small pool and two tennis courts, than a subdivision with 800 homes, $2000 annual dues, a $1.6M annual budget, an olympic-sized pool and mini water park, tennis center with instructors, and gated to boot with 24hr security patrols. These management companies also tend to be a little more strict about compliance with the covenants, although their level of control is still set by the BOD. Where the BOD is just owner-volunteers who generally have plenty of other things to do, the management company exists to provide services to the HOA, and has plenty of time to do nothing but that.
Bottom line - read the Covenants and the HOA Bylaws.
My question that your referencing and others was a response to Jay1973 who was wanting to get rid of his HOA, I was merely asking him that if he got rid of his HOA then who would carry out the tasks put in place without the HOA. I know that they do and what they are suppose to do. I'm all for them, unfortunately my is crappy, I've been in my community for 5 months now and get told every other day that I will receive a copy of my covenants tomorrow. Needless to say I'm still waiting, also I'm still waiting on them to plant some trees that I was promised in my contract and still waiting on them to locate my payment that I sent in a month ago. But they are doing a great job besides these points
My question that your referencing and others was a response to Jay1973 who was wanting to get rid of his HOA, I was merely asking him that if he got rid of his HOA then who would carry out the tasks put in place without the HOA. I know that they do and what they are suppose to do. I'm all for them, unfortunately my is crappy, I've been in my community for 5 months now and get told every other day that I will receive a copy of my covenants tomorrow. Needless to say I'm still waiting, also I'm still waiting on them to plant some trees that I was promised in my contract and still waiting on them to locate my payment that I sent in a month ago. But they are doing a great job besides these points
Sounds like a new subdivision. Ah, the joys...
Call the closing attorney you used and demand a copy of the covenants - they should have provided them at closing.
I purchase a foreclose home with hoa. The home has a fence around it for two or more years before I purchase this home and now the hoa is trying to get me to take it down at my cost and stated that I requested for the fence and was denied. I never requested anything from the hao because the fince was up already.
Location: Jonquil City (aka Smyrna) Georgia- by Atlanta
16,259 posts, read 24,756,161 times
Reputation: 3587
Quote:
Originally Posted by Loganlane
I live in a covenanted neighborhood. My neighbor (who sits on the board) applied for a darker trim, was approved and has since had the trim painted. I applied for the same or lighter color and have been denied on three applications for approval. The reasoning of the board is that my neighbors color has had a “negative response” and will not be allowed again
I have asked to be given the same consideration as my neighbor to no avail. What are my options?
Your options are 3:
1. Suck it up
2. Move
3. Try to get the current HOA board voted out or run yourself!
Honestly, is dark trim on your house that important? If you have this kind of energy to expend, surely you could put it to better use. Fight injustice, or poverty, or illiteracy, rather than the Battle for Dark Trim Paint.
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