Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
We came from the northeast. We had an HOA and high real estate taxes. We moved here. Bought in the county (not the city) but made sure we were in the Chapel Hill School system. No HOA but a subdivision. No rules. No matching mailboxes. No Bradford pear trees. No timeline on your Christmas lights. No asking permission to put on solar panels or hang a clothesline. And best of all, lower taxes and no bleeding out monthly HOA fees that I can't write off, can't direct into the things I believe in, and appear to go down a blackhole. And, my 4 yr old loves it and has plenty of friends.
Cookie cutter neighborhoods with HOA's are not for everyone. Definitely check out the covanents and restrictions before you buy. They seem harmless and almost like protection, but once you get into the meat of them, they have things in there you never thought would or should be in there.
Here are just a few of the restrictions I have seen first hand in HOA's:
Only certain plants/trees on your property
No statues or lawn ornaments
Certain colored curtains in your front facing windows (usually white or brown)
The type of material for fences (wood, the color, the height)
No gardens in the front of your property and only small container gardens in the back that cannot be seen over the fence.
No animals that are not common pets (dogs, cats, birds)
No solar panels (although some laws in NC have changed this)
Only certain colors for doors on the front of the house (nothing bold or unsightly)
Garage doors must remain closed to keep unsightly messes out of view.
No flags
No water catchments that can be seen from over the fence.
Mailboxes have to be a standard color (black or green)
No playsets or trampolines that can be seen from over the fence.
To me that is just crazy.I would never live in an HOA neighborhood. Waaaaaay too many restrictions that I feel don't really serve a purpose.
Cookie cutter neighborhoods with HOA's are not for everyone. Definitely check out the covanents and restrictions before you buy. They seem harmless and almost like protection, but once you get into the meat of them, they have things in there you never thought would or should be in there.
Here are just a few of the restrictions I have seen first hand in HOA's:
Only certain plants/trees on your property
No statues or lawn ornaments
Certain colored curtains in your front facing windows (usually white or brown)
The type of material for fences (wood, the color, the height)
No gardens in the front of your property and only small container gardens in the back that cannot be seen over the fence.
No animals that are not common pets (dogs, cats, birds)
No solar panels (although some laws in NC have changed this)
Only certain colors for doors on the front of the house (nothing bold or unsightly)
Garage doors must remain closed to keep unsightly messes out of view.
No flags
No water catchments that can be seen from over the fence.
Mailboxes have to be a standard color (black or green)
No playsets or trampolines that can be seen from over the fence.
To me that is just crazy.I would never live in an HOA neighborhood. Waaaaaay too many restrictions that I feel don't really serve a purpose.
You must have taken that straight out of our HOA rules! We did not fully understand about HOAs when we bought our house, but knowing what we do now, when we come to look for a new home we will be searching as hard as we can to find one without a HOA or at least a HOA that actually allows you to do something with YOUR HOUSE!! Don't get me wrong, I love our home and it's a fantastic location, but I'd like to be able to decorate/landscape etc with freedom.
I'm sure there must be some HOA neighborhoods that are more flexible, so just be sure to carefully read the rules before purchasing. Good luck!
I do not know a soul who does not live in a subdivision.
All land has been subdivided from a larger parcel.
How that subdivision is or was handled is the interesting point.
And, I have never lived in a subdivision with an HOA, but also haven't lived without appurtenant restrictive covenants on my deeds for nearly 20 years.
Absence of HOA governance is certainly not synonymous with absence of zoning restrictions, or absence of restrictive covenants.
Enforcement of restrictions is just different without an HOA. Parties have to work things out between themselves, or lawyer up if necessary.
Cookie cutter neighborhoods with HOA's are not for everyone. Definitely check out the covanents and restrictions before you buy. They seem harmless and almost like protection, but once you get into the meat of them, they have things in there you never thought would or should be in there.
Here are just a few of the restrictions I have seen first hand in HOA's:
Only certain plants/trees on your property
No statues or lawn ornaments (I HAVE SEEN HOMES THAT HAVE 20 STATUES AND 15 GAZING BALLS IN THEIR FRONT YARD AND I'M GLAD I DON'T HAVE THAT IN MY N'HOOD!)
Certain colored curtains in your front facing windows (usually white or brown) YHEA, THOSE FLORAL SHEETS REALLY DON'T LOOK THAT GREAT FROM THE STREET
The type of material for fences (wood, the color, the height) IT DOES SEEM UNUSUAL THAT PEOPLE WOULD WANT A 20 FOOT FENCE...ARE THEY EXPECTING AN ATTACK???
No gardens in the front of your property and only small container gardens in the back that cannot be seen over the fence. 10 FOOT CORN PLANTS JUST DON'T LOOK THAT GREAT IN YOUR FRONT YARD
No animals that are not common pets (dogs, cats, birds) GOATS? PIGS?
No solar panels (although some laws in NC have changed this)
Only certain colors for doors on the front of the house (nothing bold or unsightly) HA HA HA...WHAT ABOUT ALL THOSE RED DOORS THAT I LOVE?!!
Garage doors must remain closed to keep unsightly messes out of view. IF YOU'D PARK YOUR DARN CAR IN THERE INSTEAD OF YOUR SNOW BLOWER, IT WOULDN'T BE SO UNSIGHTLY!
No flags WELL, THERE WERE SOME PEOPLE THAT DIDN'T LIKE THE CONFEDERATE FLAG FLYING!
No water catchments that can be seen from over the fence.
Mailboxes have to be a standard color (black or green) GREEN MAILBOXES???
No playsets or trampolines that can be seen from over the fence.
To me that is just crazy.I would never live in an HOA neighborhood. Waaaaaay too many restrictions that I feel don't really serve a purpose.
YOU FORGOT THE "NO SHOOTING GUNS" IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD RULE!
I personally like living in a neighborhood with a strict HOA. My old neighborhood had an HOA, but it was not strict at all....kind of like not having an HOA at all. My neighbor would only mow his grass once a summer...and guests to our home would ask if that house was abandoned. Three feet tall of grass next door is not going to increase your home value. No matter how nice we kept our house, the neighbor's home would detract from it. I feel like HOA's protect your investment. I see a need for them if you live close enough to your neighbor's house...although I don't really see a need for them if you live far enough that what they do to their home won't affect your property value.
I'm sure you will wish you had an HOA when your neighbor in plain site of your house paints his house bright pink and then you will never be able to sale your house when it's time.
Yes, we did run into some restrictions when building our fence, like if it was going to be wood...it had to have decorative finals and be stained within an appropriate length of time....but that protects the neighbors from having an unsightly fence to look at. Again, protecting the value of your investment.
Cookie cutter neighborhoods with HOA's are not for everyone. Definitely check out the covanents and restrictions before you buy. They seem harmless and almost like protection, but once you get into the meat of them, they have things in there you never thought would or should be in there.
Here are just a few of the restrictions I have seen first hand in HOA's:
Only certain plants/trees on your property
No statues or lawn ornaments
Certain colored curtains in your front facing windows (usually white or brown)
The type of material for fences (wood, the color, the height)
No gardens in the front of your property and only small container gardens in the back that cannot be seen over the fence.
No animals that are not common pets (dogs, cats, birds)
No solar panels (although some laws in NC have changed this)
Only certain colors for doors on the front of the house (nothing bold or unsightly)
Garage doors must remain closed to keep unsightly messes out of view.
No flags
No water catchments that can be seen from over the fence.
Mailboxes have to be a standard color (black or green)
No playsets or trampolines that can be seen from over the fence.
To me that is just crazy. I would never live in an HOA neighborhood. Waaaaaay too many restrictions that I feel don't really serve a purpose.
While I might take issue with a couple of those, most of them sound pretty reasonable and desireable to me.
I'm sure there must be some HOA neighborhoods that are more flexible, so just be sure to carefully read the rules before purchasing. Good luck!
Rules can change.
Quote:
I'm sure you will wish you had an HOA when your neighbor in plain site of your house paints his house bright pink and then you will never be able to sale your house when it's time.
That is fine until the HOA doesn't like your shade of green paint.
HOA's are fine for those that want them, but personally I will put up with some odd colors in trade for less restrictions. Freedom is more important to me than property values. Like Mike said most properties have restrictive covenants so if something is really egregious you do have options even without an HOA. Unfortunately, if you want a new home without an HOA you are pretty much out of luck.
There is a cartoon out there...I'm sure some of you have seen it...
First photo shows a beige home, nice green grass, nothing special, nothing unusual. Caption reads..."this home has a HOA".
Second photo shows a pink home with peeling paint, weeds up to your waist and a car up on blocks in the front yard...caption reads..."and this home has no HOA".
Seriously, it is sad that some people NEED all the rules to maintain their home. You'd think with all that people pay for their homes, they'd take care of them. However, I have seen too many that do not. How you live inside your home effects you and your family. How you life outside your home effects the neighborhood resale values.
Having said that I am FOR the HOA, there are areas that do not have HOAs and that is fine. People should have choices and live where they want to live!
I don't live in a subdivision (ok, technically I do, because our land was a farm in 1915, but was subdivided shortly after that, like 1920) But I love it! No restrictions, 5 1/2 acres, wonderful neighbors with kids. I wouldn't change anything, everyone always keeps their houses nice, lawns mowed (or plowed and planted with crops) and we've never had any issues people raise to defend having an HOA (junk cars in yard, etc) For us, it works, for others it doesn't. I'm not a realtor, but if you don't want to have an HOA, it's possible to find a place with kids in the neighborhood and fun things to do, just move next to me!
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
(I HAVE SEEN HOMES THAT HAVE 20 STATUES AND 15 GAZING BALLS IN THEIR FRONT YARD AND I'M GLAD I DON'T HAVE THAT IN MY N'HOOD!)
