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.
How in the world did we ever get by 20 or so years ago without a HOA monitoring us? When I grew up there were no such things as HOAs and there were also no polka dotted houses, cars on blocks in front of the house, or unkempt lawns. City ordinances would take care of any problem properties if there were any. People helped each other if they were unable to mow their lawn or shovel their sidewalks. People were proud of their property and did their best to keep it looking respectable. I don't think those times have changed, but what I think has changed is people believing that without a HOA managing your business the neighborhood will go to h*ll. I think the developers are still laughing all the way to the bank about that one.
Where I live now there are many HOAs and it has become difficult to find homes outside of one. I personally find the Stepford homes look to be incredibly bland and also somewhat creepy. I have been told by more than one realtor friend that not being in a HOA is becoming a very common request by their clients. And these are for homes in the $400k and above price range. So maybe buying outside of a HOA today will actually gain you more in property value in the future as more people try to avoid a HOA and pay more to buy outside of one?
Side note: In a recent HOA conversation with a man that just moved up from Texas, I was informed that without HOAs there would be complete anarchy in neighborhoods. I started laughing until I realized he was absolutely serious. Anarchy? Really? Uh, ok.
It's as if some of you believe an HOA's only purpose is to control what color you paint your front door. That's such a small part of what our HOA does. Most of their responsibilities revolve around maintaining the community's common spaces, including our pools, tennis courts, volleyball courts, playgrounds, and walking trails. They hire our lifeguard staff, handle our insurance needs, negotiate maintenance contracts, and manage our facilities, among many other complex issues that have nothing to do with paint colors. It's like a mini city council, and it's a big job with serious responsibilities.
When my neighborhood was built forty years ago, it was in an unincorporated part of the county, which meant that services were limited. The neighborhood developer planned the community to provide amenities that just were not available locally. That required a homeowner's association once the developer pulled out to provide ongoing maintenance. It wasn't some evil plot to prevent residents from having clothes lines or from parking cars on the street.
Furthermore, even people who live in HOA neighborhoods help each other shovel snow and mow their lawns. Geez!
Last edited by randomparent; 07-07-2016 at 09:55 AM..
As I drove down streets, it was lovely, as I mentioned. But then it began to be a bit creepy. There was no....personality shown by anyone. Conforming is one thing. Over-conforming can be creepy.
Mind you, this was a nice neighborhood. The homes would be more expensive were it not for an HOA, I believe. I came from a pricier neighborhood, BTW. No HOA....and that was a big draw for the VERY wealthy. They were coming in and building unique homes, but still older unique homes were remaining. It was all very interesting. Not tacky in the least. As I said, multi-million dollar homes were just a stone's throw away. Don Henley, Ross Perot, Prez Bush, and others live in the broader general area.
If you drive thru Highland Park, one of the wealthiest "towns" in the nation, you won't find conformity. You'll find different styles of architecture, different colors, different landscaping.
When people spend a certain amount on a house, you can pretty much know that there won't be art made of junk sitting in the front yard. If a neighbor insists on it, well, there are worse things.
Yeah, I don't know if I can handle an HOA. I'll have to think about it.
What are the lot sizes? variety on large acre plus lots is not the same as variety on quarter acre lots.
I believe many ppl buy into HOAs or gated communities because the areas are NOT SAFE as it seems in many warmer areas (at least to my research). Or what it seems, the HOAs are more expensive, so it keeps us riff raff (priced) out.
I also live in NY- Otsego Cty. We don't lock the doors and leave keys in the cars- everyone does. No one bothers you or steal things from the yard. Kids leave their bikes out, the mower stays out, etc. We have million dollar homes and neat well kept single- wides on beautifully kept yards.
No HOAs here either.
I think ppl should concentrate more on the ppl in any given area than spend extra for a false sense of safety. I'd take a safe blue collar neighborhood over a fancy HOA any day.
I never thought of it like that (my main purpose for wanting to buy into an HOA condo/building is to ensure that some set of basic rules are in place to deter otherwise would-be riff raff from messing things up, aesthetically-speaking). Having written that, while I wouldn't want to live in a gated community, the building that I'm buying in now does have a security guard on duty 24/7, which is a plus . . . not that things are "unsafe" around here.
On another note, if I could find something like what you have, without an HOA, I'd like that as well . . . it would certainly save me money. However, I'm not sure if I'd choose that over an HOA as nothing would be there to prevent riff raff from coming in and creating an eyesore directly across from me. Of course, the possibility of such occurring goes down as the wealth of a community increases. But I note that many wealthy areas (especially areas that weren't designed specifically to house the wealthy) also generally have a good amount of not-so-wealthy folks there, who may be more likely to let their properties fall into disrepair, etc.
It's as if some of you believe an HOA's only purpose is to control what color you paint your front door. That's such a small part of what our HOA does. Most of their responsibilities revolve around maintaining the community's common spaces, including our pools, tennis courts, volleyball courts, playgrounds, and walking trails. They hire our lifeguard staff, handle our insurance needs, negotiate maintenance contracts, and manage our facilities, among many other complex issues that have nothing to do with paint colors. It's like a mini city council, and it's a big job with serious responsibilities.
When my neighborhood was built forty years ago, it was in an unincorporated part of the county, which meant that services were limited. The neighborhood developer planned the community to provide amenities that just were not available locally. That required a homeowner's association once the developer pulled out to provide ongoing maintenance. It wasn't some evil plot to prevent residents from having clothes lines or from parking cars on the street.
Furthermore, even people who live in HOA neighborhoods help each other shovel snow and mow their lawns. Geez!
If it was just what you described then I think most ppl wouldn't have a problem- I wouldn't. It's like having a maintenance crew/ gardeners/ etc. That's OK an it doesn't matter if it was thru a (HOA) fee or hired out privately.
Unfortunately, most HOAs have the HOA Nazis that have nothing better to do but rule your life, and decide what you can and can't do. THAT is the problem.
I don't even recognize what the rest of you are describing, and I would laugh at anyone who said they wanted to buy in my neighborhood because it keeps the riffraff out. This is not a gated community, and anybody can purchase a house here.
I never thought of it like that (my main purpose for wanting to buy into an HOA condo/building is to ensure that some set of basic rules are in place to deter otherwise would-be riff raff from messing things up, aesthetically-speaking). Having written that, while I wouldn't want to live in a gated community, the building that I'm buying in now does have a security guard on duty 24/7, which is a plus . . . not that things are "unsafe" around here.
On another note, if I could find something like what you have, without an HOA, I'd like that as well . . . it would certainly save me money. However, I'm not sure if I'd choose that over an HOA as nothing would be there to prevent riff raff from coming in and creating an eyesore directly across from me. Of course, the possibility of such occurring goes down as the wealth of a community increases. But I note that many wealthy areas (especially areas that weren't designed specifically to house the wealthy) also generally have a good amount of not-so-wealthy folks there, who may be more likely to let their properties fall into disrepair, etc.
I don't understand the point of a guard if you live in a safe area. What is he/she guarding? And you see that as a plus? I'm not making fun of you or picking on you, or anything, I just don't understand. I'd feel more unsafe knowing there was a guard out there, because I'd be thinking why I needed one. Plus would would-be criminals be thinking- Hey, these ppl need a guard, hummm, what do they have???
I also believe that even wealthy ppl can have slobs or let places go to seed, because they are never home. I've seen some very poor, humble homes that are in mint condition, and well maintained.
I don't understand the point of a guard if you live in a safe area. What is he/she guarding? And you see that as a plus? I'm not making fun of you or picking on you, or anything, I just don't understand. I'd feel more unsafe knowing there was a guard out there, because I'd be thinking why I needed one. Plus would would-be criminals be thinking- Hey, these ppl need a guard, hummm, what do they have???
I also believe that even wealthy ppl can have slobs or let places go to seed, because they are never home. I've seen some very poor, humble homes that are in mint condition, and well maintained.
I guess it's to each his own.
Note, when I write "safe," I mean low violent crime and low crime in general, not the lack of violent/other crime. But even in "safe" areas, crime does occur, even if its more so non-violent crime. Having a security guard helps to deter from that, thereby decreasing the chance that I'm a victim of one of these crimes, even if the likelihood of such occurring is "rare." On top of that, and in line with that, the guard just provides greater peace of mind. I'm in Honolulu . . . while safe, its still a "big" city with enough unsavory characters around.
I actually have the opposite thought process, somewhat. While would-be criminals may think "Hey, these ppl need a guard . . . what do they have?" they may also be deterred from doing anything because of the guard. But such thoughts could pop into such would-be-criminals' heads regardless, especially given that the building I'm buying in is in an affluent part of the city. So the guard plays an important role in that regard.
My parents live in a gated community. A couple of years ago, law enforcement broke up a theft ring that was tracking and breaking into houses when homeowners were out of town. Thieves buy homes in gated communities with security details, too.
My parents live in a gated community. A couple of years ago, law enforcement broke up a theft ring that was tracking and breaking into houses when homeowners were out of town. Thieves buy homes in gated communities with security details, too.
Sure, they do. But that's a potential problem (i.e. the "insider threat") that you'd have with a gated community/community with a security detail as well those communities without. But I'd imagine that the insider threat is generally lower than the outsider threat in these instances. And the gated community/security guard certainly helps to deter the outsider threat (the security guard can also help to deter insider threats).
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.
