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In the Raleigh area, all of the new housing is in HOAs and the house-lots are getting smaller and smaller, while prices and home sizes are getting larger and larger. To balance that, the area has tons of greenway walking trails, sport parks, dog parks, etc. The HOA has pools and play areas. It is almost as if there is the expectation that people will only use their homes for indoor activities plus entertaining on the deck/patio, and the yard is superfluous.
Instead of playing basketball in the driveway or cul-de-sac the kids would be expected to go to one of the public or HOA facilities. And there is good reason for this, since the houses are so close together the noise would be annoying to neighbors, and the cul-de-sac road would be interfered with for its normal use if kids gathered there. Yes, times have changed.
But there's no good reason the basketball hoops, etc. need to be at individual homes. So many kids are out of shape today, and in good part because everything is made so easy for them, so "close to home."
Wow, now I've heard it all. You are saying that kids playing sports right out in front of their house are overweight because they don't walk to the park to play the same sport? For a lot of the kids, they are really young (I'm not talking teenagers, I'm talking about kids well under 10) and the parents would sit on the front porch and watch them all play. The teens in our neighborhood are generally out riding their bikes all over the place.
In the Raleigh area, all of the new housing is in HOAs and the house-lots are getting smaller and smaller, while prices and home sizes are getting larger and larger. To balance that, the area has tons of greenway walking trails, sport parks, dog parks, etc. The HOA has pools and play areas. It is almost as if there is the expectation that people will only use their homes for indoor activities plus entertaining on the deck/patio, and the yard is superfluous.
Instead of playing basketball in the driveway or cul-de-sac the kids would be expected to go to one of the public or HOA facilities. And there is good reason for this, since the houses are so close together the noise would be annoying to neighbors, and the cul-de-sac road would be interfered with for its normal use if kids gathered there. Yes, times have changed.
I see your point on this and I somewhat agree, but I think it is getting out of hand. People are getting to the point where if they hear a mousefart outside their house, they are looking for someone to blame followed by rules to prevent further mousefarts. I think the noise of kids playing outside are all part of living in a neighborhood. It isn't like these kids are out playing at midnight or anything, they usually play until dinner time and that's it.
I agree with the HOA. It's an eyesore. Would not want that in my neighborhood either.
Basketball hoops, playsets for kids, swings, kiddie pools and other toys should be kept in the backyard.
Yep. I absolutely agree. The OP would probably agree too if his/her kids didn't have one.
Speaking of which, another thing a lot of HOAs are strict about that I can't stand to see people do is having a lot of cars parked on the street at each house.
I bought in an HOA for our vacation home on the off chance that a neighbour might be one if the City Data posters that doesn't like rules, thinks they shouldn't apply to him, and can't understand why beat up basketball hoops used once a month, poorly maintained yards or derelict vehicles on the driveway are an issue.
Also, don't forget in many HOAs there are community amenities (eg basketball hoops) provided for residents.
In a neighborhood with 400 - 700K houses, it's assumed you can afford to build a custom basketball court somewhere besides those ugly contraptions sitting out in front of the house. Even if there was no HOA, if it was my neighborhood, I'd go out after 1AM, throw the piece of garbage in the back of my P/U and haul it out to the dump. Factory workers don't belong in a neighborhood with 400 - 700K houses.
Some people just have too much money, or too much credit, but too little taste.
An HOA community can increase the value of your property as much as 20%, did you know that.
Communities that don't follow the HOA rules or they have management companies the don't enforce these rules loose as much as 40% property value, did you know that.
Most people that complain about the HOA or the rules set forth in your by-laws are the ones that cause the most trouble.
In a neighborhood with 400 - 700K houses, it's assumed you can afford to build a custom basketball court somewhere besides those ugly contraptions sitting out in front of the house. Even if there was no HOA, if it was my neighborhood, I'd go out after 1AM, throw the piece of garbage in the back of my P/U and haul it out to the dump. Factory workers don't belong in a neighborhood with 400 - 700K houses.
Some people just have too much money, or too much credit, but too little taste.
400,000-700,000 houses? Cant you get a more specific number then that? If there are that many houses how big(sq miles) is the neighborhood?
Funny, I live in an HOA and kids are playing all throughout the day.
Well, that's good to hear. Clearly though that's not the case everywhere.
We had a fixed basketball net -- cemented into the ground -- and I used it pretty much daily from 3rd grade through the end of the summer after senior year, and even a few times when I visited from college. It brought us great joy, and improved our health.
Quote:
Originally Posted by SFBayBoomer
...I don't think hoops, nets or any "bouncing ball on cement" sports should be allowed in the backyard...
Geez! But why stop there? Maybe prohibit people from having backyard cookouts too. No frisbee in the backyard. No playing.
Quote:
Originally Posted by need4speed2012
An HOA community can increase the value of your property as much as 20%, did you know that.
Meh, maybe those are the stats. My experience with mine, as well as through reading threads such as this one, have convinced me I'll never buy in an HOA spot again. And it will cost me more to get away from an HOA. Around here, the HOAs are ubiquitous in the budget housing areas. That's not to say they aren't fairly prevalent in nicer areas too, but in order to escape the HOA you need to find a nicer area that doesn't have one.
I just queried five co-workers and none of them want to live in an HOA-ruled neighborhood, whether they do currently or not. So clearly that 20% boost in property value isn't universal, if people (potential buyers) would avoid buying my home *because* it's in an HOA (meaning the market for my house is smaller).
To be clear, I am all for HOAs and the value they provide to keep the 'gunk' out. The community we live in is very well maintained mostly white collared professionals (physicians, small business owners, software engineers, etc).
We did an unofficial survey with residents via Facebook - Not one of the 30 or so who participated felt that basketball hoops are an eyesore...although the general remarks was that they are fine if the hoops are NOT on the sidewalk or street. On the driveway to the side, is fine.
Also, the folks who have the hoops get the high quality, aesthetically pleasing, professional looking ones.. not a basket jimmied on a wooden pole!
Basketball hoops aside...
Generically speaking, IF a MAJORITY of residents feel that something is OK, why should the HOA have a problem with that?
Hypothetically, lets say there is a legitimate survey conducted by a reputed neutral 3rd party... and if a majority of residents participate and vote (say 95% Yes and 5% No) in a poll and feel that something is OK, the HOA SHOULD honor the opinion.
They are paid to reflect the wishes of the majority of the people who employ them.
Democracy, anyone?
You have every right to change your documents. If it is in the CC&Rs you will need a petition to have a Special Meeting, notice of meeting, the meeting, vote to amend the CC&Rs, legal fees, recording fees, printing fees, etc. So thousands of dollars will be spent. Are you sure your neighbors will still go along when they find out the cost? Just the legal fees on our last amendment was $2500.
If you don't do it this way it only takes one person to sue the HOA for not enforcing the documents.
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