Can you believe this HOA! (Winchester, Stephens City: Home Depot, neighborhoods, school)

[mdcrim]

I have to mow my lawn at least once every two weeks in the heat of the summer and more frequently in the spring and fall.

I got a notice from my HOA when I first moved in-for my trash can being out. I didn't know (didn't read the HOA docs) that the trash can had to be stored in the garage. No harm, no foul. They were just advising me of the rules.

I personally like having an HOA. They keep the neighborhood looking nice by enforcing basic standards.

[SouthernBoi]

Originally Posted by nixau27

We just moved here from TX and we closed on the house in Wakeland Manor, Stephens City the last week of July. It's a bank owned house and it has been vacant for a couple of months before we bought it; we had some things done inside the house and we barely moved into the house and had our household goods delivered the 2nd wk of Aug. Last Friday,barely a month of occupying the house we got 3 letters from the HOA advising us to mow the lawn, put the trash receptacle somewhere not visible (we had 200+ boxes and we barely finished unpacking!) and how tall the weeds were and informed us that they would be sending someone w/in how many days, if no action was taken and they would bill us accordingly. Great neighborhood! Welcome to the neighborhood! Welcome to NOVA!

Welcome to NoVA, where everything you learned about hospitality growing up is thrown out the window. NoVA is the only place in the south where they pride themselves on being northern....

[tgbwc]

Originally Posted by mdcrim

I personally like having an HOA. They keep the neighborhood looking nice by enforcing basic standards.

Agreed. We purposefully bought with this in mind. I know my neighbor won't have a car up on blocks or let their house fall into disrepair. If we lived where the there were larger lots and it was more rural, maybe I would feel differently. My main thing is that the HOA remain consistent with the rules and enforcement. We also like the events that are held by the HOA, and the facilities it provides such as the pool and clubhouse.

[irisheyes13]

Originally Posted by Yankeesfan

I'm sorry but it wasn't a week, it was a month, surely you could have found time or hired someone to mow the lawn at least once.

That's exactly what I was thinking when I read this..

After some experiences we have had at other locations where we have lived, I look for a HOA when I am looking for our next place to live.

[SouthernBoi]

Originally Posted by irisheyes13

That's exactly what I was thinking when I read this..

After some experiences we have had at other locations where we have lived, I look for a HOA when I am looking for our next place to live.

How can you sit there and criticize without knowing all the details? He did not indicate that the grass was a foot high or anything like that, and some HOA's are so anal that they will bring out a ruler and give you an infraction for it being .5 an inch higher than what is ruled. There is a point where yeah, the grass is too high and it looks trashy, but that may not be the case. All he was looking for was someone to give him the benefit of the doubt, but as usual, NoVA people are quick to condemn him. Not everything is black and white you know, and honestly, some people (HOA's included in this) need to chill and give a person a break.

[HEATHER72]

Originally Posted by SouthernBoi

How can you sit there and criticize without knowing all the details?

The original poster made it clear that the grass had not been cut in at least 3 months. A couple (2?) months for it being vacant and then another month of the home being in their possession. I know we're all busy in our real lives but cut the grass or hire some one.

[irisheyes13]

Originally Posted by SouthernBoi

as usual, NoVA people are quick to condemn him.

Not sure what the criteria is to be called a NoVA person but, I have lived here for 12 months so would not consider myself a NoVA person. My comments were based on the "details" the OP provided.

[Yankeesfan]

SouthernBoi is always posting complaints about living in NoVa, so don't let him bother you. Like Irisheyes, I was looking at the fact that the grass hadn't been mowed in at least a month, or three months, and it's just not reasonable to expect neighbors not to get upset about that. (I suspect that if the OP's neighbor had come here and posted that the grass next door hadn't been mowed in that long and the HOA was doing nothing about it, he may have posted that it was typical of incosiderate people in NoVA not to take care of their lawns!)

[SouthernBoi]

Originally Posted by Yankeesfan

SouthernBoi is always posting complaints about living in NoVa, so don't let him bother you. Like Irisheyes, I was looking at the fact that the grass hadn't been mowed in at least a month, or three months, and it's just not reasonable to expect neighbors not to get upset about that. (I suspect that if the OP's neighbor had come here and posted that the grass next door hadn't been mowed in that long and the HOA was doing nothing about it, he may have posted that it was typical of incosiderate people in NoVA not to take care of their lawns!)

If the grass hadn't been cut prior to him moving in for the 2 months then that does not fall on him, a responsible HOA would have hired someone to cut it if they knew that the lot had been vacant for some time. It does not cost much, you could hire a neighborhood kid or someone outside of Home Depot to cut it for $10. HOA fees go into a fund for general neighborhood maitainence, and a vacant lot would have fell under that category. If it had been him who left it there growing for 3 months than that is another story. He could have been experiencing financial problems and could not afford to buy a lawnmower or pay someone to do it, you do not know, all I was saying is that you should give a person the benefit of the doubt, something that seriously lacks in this area. And yea, NoVA sucks and I have a right to say that, and judging on the usual responses to any "NoVA sucks" posts, I am not alone. Least of all I will not be silenced by someone who is a Yankee fan, that pretty much throws all credibility of any judgement of a person out the window...

[SouthernBoi]

Originally Posted by irisheyes13

Not sure what the criteria is to be called a NoVA person but, I have lived here for 12 months so would not consider myself a NoVA person. My comments were based on the "details" the OP provided.

That actually wasnt meant to be geared towards you, I meant to grab what you quoted in your post. I agree with the whole HOA thing, I was just saying some are overly anal about things.