In recent days I have been involved in a conversation about Home Owner Association fees. The overwhelming consensus is that they are not good. And in some cases, they border on evil, to the point of having government intervention to make them illegal. This is a discussion about HOAs – good or bad.
This conversation was sparked by an articled that was recently posted on realtor.com – ‘My House Was Sold on the Courthouse Steps for $3.24 (realtor.com) where the owner’s house was sold on the courthouse steps for $3.24 because the owner didn’t pay the $800 HOA fees. Now the fee had increased to $10,000 because of various fines that were levied against her, not because of the actual fee itself. Instead, it was because of a rule she supposedly violated.
This article further went on to discuss the control that many HOAs in the USA have over the owners who are in these communities. I’m sure elsewhere as well, but this article was focused on the USA.
Read Rules First
Now first off, these people in the communities with the oppressive rules should have been presented with a copy of the rules before buying in that community. And if you didn’t like the rules then don’t buy there. Some of this absolutely must fall on the buyer.
Government Intervention?
In some areas people are calling on governments to intervene and even go so far as to outlaw them. So here is where I’m going to get a bit controversial.
First, one of the things we all want is less government intervention in our lives. However when it comes to something we don’t like the first thing we do is ask the government to outlaw it. Shouldn’t there be other measures in place first?
Second, as I’ve already mentioned, buyers have some responsibility here. Yes, I understand that they may get into trouble financially, medical issues may interfere with their responsibilities to pay the fees, but I don’t think it’s the fees that are being discussed here, it’s the fines that are causing the issues. The owners should have read over the documents prior to buying. The prospective buyers should have had lawyer review them to ensure the buyer knows exactly what the HOA contains.
Mechanisms
Of course, over time, circumstances change. HOA rules and regulations should have some mechanism for owners to have these circumstances addressed. These mechanisms can include a payment plan that works for all parties. If HOA rules and regulations don’t have any mechanisms to address issues, other than having the home seized and sold out from under them, then these HOA rules and regulations are not for the owners. Instead they are for some power-crazed group of people.
On the other side of this scenario is where people don’t pay their HOA fees, either due to some unforeseen circumstances or on purpose, the HOA still has financial responsibilities that must be addressed. So again, the HOA rules and regulations should have some mechanism in place. These are to not only to protect the owner but also to ensure that the financial obligations of the community are met by the board members or the management board.
HOAs – Good or Bad
HOAs in and of themselves are neither good nor bad. They just are. The good or bad part comes in based on which side of the equation you are on – you either paid or you didn’t.
Now consider the benefits you receive from an HOA. In some cases, all outside maintenance is done for you, which may include pool maintenance, gardens, road maintenance, common element building maintenance (inside and out), roof maintenance, building envelope maintenance and more that I’m sure I haven’t thought of. These benefits are extremely beneficial to specific people. People who want to focus on living their lives. People who don’t want to do yard work or home maintenance. There are definite advantages.
It is extremely important that buyers are presented with the rules and regulations before signing on the dotted line. It is equally as important that not all HOA rules and regulations are lumped under one umbrella. They aren’t all the same. And thinking they are just may rob you of an experience you might otherwise have had.
HOAs aren’t either good or bad, in and of themselves. They just are. It’s our reaction to them that determines if they are good or bad.
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