Sounds like ours. We have common property at a beautiful lake. The 14 members of the community take turns being the officers and board. No monetary compensation. Our HOA dues are about $300 a year, and pay for insurance, anything new or needing repairs at the beach front property. We knew all about this before we purchased the property. And we have great neighbors.
6 Likes
Yes, sorry, that was not artfully worded. HOA is mandatory; the board is made up of resident volunteers.
My biggest hangup about HOAs was the ongoing expense, but I didnāt realize that part of that money offsets expenses that save you money ā landscaping, sure, but also the HOA carries the insurance on their roof, for instance.
Their kids said they couldnāt believe that they bought a place with an HOA as they have never lived where they had one, despite several moves. The kids said this would only work if they ended up running the HOA, and they are on their way to doing so ā heās the new VP, and sheās āhelpingā with the financial stuff. She said she couldnāt help herself; she wasnāt going to leave others in charge of how she spends her money. I agree.
1 Like
Yes, the level of reserves was the most recent point of contention. Differing ideas of how much to have in reserve. They dipped into the reserves to pay for an unexpected expense. Some people wanted to do a one-time assessment fee. Some wanted to raise the quarterly fee, which my friend says is too low anyway. Some wanted the reserve to stay smaller than best practice. Thatās the kind of thing that might drive me crazy ā what if I end up with neighbors with whom I disagree but end up with the ability to decide how I spend or donāt spend my money?
1 Like
The other problem with small HOAs is that it is difficult to make decisions. My daughter was renting a condo in a 5 condo building (so 5 members of the HOA). She was the top floor and her roof was leaking (raining into her apartment). A new roof was needed (I donāt know the details of how they were going to pay for the new roof whether reserves or a one time fee to cover it). Her unit owner, of course wanted the new roof up ASAP (as his condo was getting the damage). He offered a roofer who would do it quickly. But no, the HOA had to get a lot of estimates and dragged their feet picking one to do the work. So, something that could have been done quickly instead took months and months. I think this is typical of small HOAs. It is hard to get agreement on things.
3 Likes
We have lived in No HOA and HOA communities (all houses, no condos), small dues, large dues, have been on HOA boards. Right now we live and own part year in a No HOA spot and part year in an HOA spot with large dues (and lots of services) and dozens of pages of restrictions. We have found the HOAs to be well run and responsible; the irresponsible ones seem to be the members who want to live outside basic rules or refuse to pay even $50/yr because of things like they donāt like the mulch color/ certain plantings in common areas. Within the past few years many homes in our No HOA area have been turned into $500-$800 per night daily/weekly airBNBs (noisy, trash left at curbs for days) and some houses have many accessory things in their yard, including one with two shipping containers and a dump trailer. Iāll take an HOA and some dues and restrictions.
3 Likes
We almost bid on a townhouse, but after reviewing the paperwork, we bailed. The roof was approaching its last years, and there was a covenant that all roofs on all 12 townhomes had to be replaced simultaneously. The problem? No HOA! Most of the units were rented out, so good luck trying to find the actual ownersā¦ we decided to skip that property. The condo we did end up buying has an HOA, a cap on how many units can be rented to strangers, and is managed professionally. There is a property manager living nearby so that any issues with common areas are tackled promptly. Iāll take that kind of an HOA vs none.
3 Likes
One of my lifeās main tenents is to avoid all HOAās. Forever.
3 Likes
We have owned our townhome with an HOA for many years. Our HOA is run by a board of owners and a management company (160 units). For the most part we are happy with the HOA and the services it provides. We have a lovely pool area, 2 tennis courts and beautiful trees and landscaping. We have gotten new roofs, new decks, all the outside painting and up keep of our wood doors and windows. Yesterday the workmen were oiling our front door and repainting our french doors. Decks and balconies are schedule to be repainted in the next couple of months. Our water and trash are also part of our HOA payment.
5 Likes
These are exactly the same headaches of a local government when it comes to streets, sewers, security, parks, etc. In the public sphere, they call it zoning, policing, taxes, etc. Democracy is the worst system of government except for all the othersā¦it has the same set of pros and cons whether itās nominally public or private.
We are looking for a place in Las Vegas, and weād like to have access to a shared pool in order to moderate water use in the desert. That will mean an HOA, with all its tradeoffs. All we can do is try to find a well-run community or else build a tiny plunge pool.
7 Likes
We have an HOA in our current neighborhood (new construction when we moved 20 years ago). Itās not bad at all - $200 a year fees, mgmt company hired by HOA takes care of common ground maintenance, capital expenses, etc. Thereās mild oversight by an architectural review committee to ensure exterior modifications are consistent - but not onerous at all.
4 Likes
Until your neighbor paints their house fuscia and has an 18 wheeler parked in the driveway! 
I figure if a communityās HOA rules are all things someone would not want their neighbors to do, it it probably a match for them.
9 Likes
I have seen many sides of HOAās. Colorado has many and it is hard to avoid them. Friendās neighbor built a huge red barn blocking all the views. The neighbor had opted out of the HOA since he was there before it started. Then he built the barn.
I think that an HOA may even change with time, the board, the state law, and the cost of attorneys.
1 Like
CC&Rās tell an HOA homeowner what they can and canāt do. Some follow, some donāt.
Iāve read my fair share of CC&Rās in my life and Iāve seen plenty of HOAās or architectural control committees āin actionā and I can safely say, without hesitation, that Iād run far and fast from them.
Life is too short. I donāt need or want 50, 100, 200, etc. āpartnersā in my real estate transactions.
But to each their own.
1 Like
In our area, you almost always have an HOA in the nicer neighborhoods. But Iām glad to be in a low key one, $35/year to maintain and insure the fence that is on common area near a bigger road.
There is a committee I think to approve paint colors etc, but we have made no changes. In our 30 years here, Iāve heard no complaints (except some people further from the fence who would prefer not to pay the annual $35 fee).
In Southern California all the developments in the last 25 years have HOAs. Ours is $180 a month and they maintain all common areas, clubhouse, gym, two pools, volleyball, tennis, baseball, playground, etcā¦ Itās a lot of money, but if you want a newer home, you really have no choice. I have seen the HOA act against people whoāve done weird things to their house. One guy put solar panels all over the street facing roof slope, nope, you canāt do that and he had to remove and put them on the sides.
3 Likes
Thereās a house, a barndominium to be exact that is being built that I drive by frequently.
The owners sold their house next door last year and now are building. With their huge RV in the front yard.
Thatās the reason I like my HOA. Even though some of their rules make no sense. You can built a play set, you can build a playhouse but you canāt build a shed unless itās attached to the house. So people have these lean toās or they leave their yard tools underneath the deck on their walk out basement. Because that looks better?
4 Likes
Our AZ HOA/social membership is almost $400/month, but we live in a manicured resort with pools, restaurants, playing courts, full-service spa, pro-shop, concert venue, club spaces/studios, etc. Golf members pay more. The HOA keeps our 2500-home private country club community landscaped, irrigated, paved, and lighted, as well as provides security services and seasonal-home checks. Each model type has a choice of eight paint schemes so no one is locked in to one look forever, but you must pick one of those schemes when you decide to repaint. With 25 models x 8 different color/combo palettes per model, the community looks coordinated and well put-together without being repetitive. The HOA is pretty lenient about any changes/additions that āimproveā the look of your property. They have approved ramadas, casitas, pools, and landscaping (as long as it adheres to desert/water standards, no grass).
What I detest are gates. I vowed years ago never again to live in a gated community, but here we are. Gates provide only a pretense of security and are a PITA for residents who have to wait for them to swing open at a glacial pace every time you want to leave or enter.
Our cabin HOA in Maine is $300/year for annual unpaved road grading and maintaining the common area path for river access.
9 Likes
HOAs seem to run the gamut. Our is $25 a year - pays for grass cutting in a couple of common areas and signs as you enter the neighborhood.
I donāt really even remember the covenants, other than no fences in the front yards. And in 25 years here only one house did it, and they were made to take it down.
I just looked up our covenants and I am not sure they enforceable by the HOA, but the county does enforce things in the covenant (and not in them). No farm animals, junk in the yard, tall grass, really bad roof, etc.
We donāt have anything about house colors
We own common property with our neighbors. Our HOA is $300 a year or soā¦and really pays for maintenance of that property, and insurances.
The trouble Iām having - and maybe folks can help - is finding good ways to search for potential places to lives when I have the entire country to choose from. I work from home (technology, no need to go to an office except maybe once-ever-two-years, then I just fly if necessary) so I can literally live anywhere in the US. The only thing I can say for certain is I donāt want to live in NJ or FL (live/lived in both of those already).
Now that the kids are just out of college and off on their own, itās time for me (just me) to find where to liveā¦
I much prefer a āsmall townā feel, ideally with some sort of town center. My problem with FL (at least the places Iāve lived, and my parents live) was it was just gated community after gated communityā¦ very spread out, and nothing but strip malls. No ādowntownā or sense of community.
The town(s) in NJ I lived in definitely had the small-town vibe to it (Westfield, Springfield, Cranford, for those that may know the area).
I donāt really have specific things Iām looking for - could be desert, could be mountains, could be cold or warm. Iād start of renting, but if youāve ever tried to just blindly search in a random state you know nothing aboutā¦ its not easy!
Any ideas on how to search, where to look, etc?
1 Like