Dealing with homeowners associations is never a fun task, especially when they begin to make claims that feel exaggerated or untrue.
A Reddit user in the r/f***HOA subreddit opened up about a stack of violations they received out of nowhere from their HOA. While some of the complaints seemed reasonable, the user was shocked that they came out of nowhere after years with no issues.
The post detailed what the HOA was sending violations about. It included minor things like a slightly overgrown lawn, a broken basketball hoop, and a slightly dirty garage door. The user explained that while none of the violations seemed fair since the issues were quite minor, they still addressed and fixed all of the problems.
Weeks later, the user received more violations, stating that the issues had not been addressed — even though the homeowner had addressed them. The user has a hunch that their neighbor, who has a habit of staring at them over their fence, has been the source of the sudden slew of violation letters.
"For the life of me I can't figure out who I p***** off or why," the original poster said. "I'm a quiet neighbor, I do my yard work, and mind my business."
This is one of many instances of homeowners dealing with HOAs that are not only unfair but also prevent them from making sustainable changes. Grass lawns, for example, are often standard in HOAs, and when people try to switch to a natural lawn to protect local ecosystems and reduce the need for water and pesticides, they are met with HOA obstacles.
Additionally, maintenance for a green, grass lawn can go against city legislation. In this article from Texas Monthly, a homeowner explained how their HOA demanded that homeowners keep their lawns green. Yet, in the sweltering summer in Austin, Texas, the city had mandated homeowners to only water their lawns once per week to address the overuse of water in high heat.
Pushing back against HOAs can be intimidating and require time and effort. However, this guide offers numerous ways you can find success, including where to access an HOA's rules and bylaws, as well as a sample letter that can be used to get a conversation started.
Commenters on the Reddit post were supportive in that the violations seemed like they were coming out of spite rather than real concern.
🗣️ Should HOAs be able to force homeowners to change their yards?
🔘 Absolutely not 💯
🔘 Yes — it's part of the deal 🤝
🔘 Only in extreme circumstances 🏚️
🔘 We should ban HOAs 🚫
🗳️ Click your choice to see results and speak your mind
"You should keep the envelope along with the letter … it might be useful later," one user commented about building up evidence.
The OP responded: "Asking for proof is my next step … I've been thinking about setting up cameras, I'm going to have to at this point."
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