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Post by Zee on Mar 27, 2016 0:59:21 GMT
Never in a million years would I move into a HOA. Yet another thread illustrating why.
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Post by melanell on Mar 27, 2016 1:47:44 GMT
I really feel like the builder was in the wrong, here. He's created a mess where one side is always going to be unhappy, and both rightly so.
Friend D. has every right to feel upset that the HOA is hassling her when she was promised that this would be okay by the builder.
On the flip side, the HOA has every right to be ticked off that something they specifically state is not allowed is happening.
No matter who "wins" this dispute, it's possible it will leave a bad taste behind for everyone involved and it's an awful way for someone to come into a new neighborhood and meet people. (As we've already seen.) Even if she gets her huge fence (And is that tall a fence allowed by the HOA??) is that something she really wanted? And is it really going to appease the folks on the HOA board or any of the other neighbors who may have at one point or another wished for something the HOA didn't allow and they had to suck it up, but now see her being given an exception? Many people choose to live in an HOA neighborhood to avoid certain things happening. What's the point of them living here and paying fees only to have exceptions granted by a builder hoping to make a sale?
I feel bad for both sides in this situation, and I'm annoyed with the builder.
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Post by moveablefeast on Mar 27, 2016 2:37:14 GMT
I live in an HOA neighborhood and am VP of our board. We are in a development of about 130 townhouses in a very densely built neighborhood.
I like my HOA. I like that it helps enforce a certain amount of consistency across the neighborhood. We all have things that make our homes unique but we have consistent colors, yard maintenance and snow removal done by the HOA, and a means of recourse when someone lets their dog shit everywhere or has ten junk cars on blocks in the street.
That said, we would act on the CCR and architectural docs first. If that's what the doc says then without a variance from the HOA/ARB the trailer goes. We would consider an official request for a variance. It would be case by case.
Last month a homeowner replaced his roof with the wrong shingles and it was out of keeping with the neighborhood - we all have gray shingles and he put red ones on. He applied for a variance and we said no and he had to replace it. It was egregiously ugly and not in keeping with the look of the neighborhood. But another neighbor asked to have a variance and put a patio and French door on the front of the house and we said yes even though no other house in the neighborhood has that feature. If you can't see it from the street we will approve a variance on almost anything, except things like chicken coops or goats (those were requested once).
I probably would vote against a variance for a trailer because it sets a precedent in the neighborhood. We struggle with parking all the time. If it was already agreed to by HOA representation then I would consider all options. Maybe the pad can be enclosed with a fence, or relocated. Maybe the homeowner can be given a grace period to figure out what to do. Maybe the homeowners existing fence solves the issue. I would rather solve it amicably than be a hardass for the sake of being a hardass.
Just my further thoughts on this one.
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Post by lisacharlotte on Mar 27, 2016 4:16:39 GMT
I will not live in an HOA neighborhood. We have a neighborhood association that is very active, but no authority over any homeowners. We just make sure our neighborhood is a caring community. We call the city for any ordinance violations. You want to paint your house purple? It's not going to lower the value of your neighbor's house here. People want to live here due to location and active community. Besides, all the houses were built between 1912-1930. Identical paint colors and roofs ain't gonna happen. Truthfully, not a fan of neighborhoods where the only way to identify your house is by the number on the approved Tuscan Taupe painted door.
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Post by christine58 on Mar 27, 2016 12:14:55 GMT
Last month a homeowner replaced his roof with the wrong shingles and it was out of keeping with the neighborhood - we all have gray shingles and he put red ones on. That's just stupid....Why does it matter?? Oh right everything has to look the same. I get your points about the dog poop and numerous junk cars but really?? Roof color??? HOAs remind of the The Stepford Wives movie.
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Post by Really Red on Mar 27, 2016 12:26:26 GMT
Sounds like the builder is liable for this one. Your poor sister. I would never want something like that in my neighborhood, which is why I am part of an HOA. But your sister has something in writing from a builder who sounds as if he wanted to sell a house at any price.
Wow. Definitely a builder issue.
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Post by moveablefeast on Mar 27, 2016 12:31:37 GMT
Last month a homeowner replaced his roof with the wrong shingles and it was out of keeping with the neighborhood - we all have gray shingles and he put red ones on. That's just stupid....Why does it matter?? Oh right everything has to look the same. I get your points about the dog poop and numerous junk cars but really?? Roof color??? HOAs remind of the The Stepford Wives movie. The design is intended to promote a sense of visual harmony in a very densely built neighborhood. Some materials such as roofing and exterior paint colors were designed as a color palette which homeowners are provided before purchase, so this is something you agree to before you get to closing. You make your exterior unique with your landscaping, decorations, porch furniture, and so on. Or you choose to live where there are no architecture guidelines, which is fine too. I don't think it's stupid for a community where large groupings of houses are visually connected to have guidelines governing the major design elements of those houses - here there are 12-16 homes in clusters on culs-de-sac and the design is intended that you would have a set of harmonious color schemes on those homes, not 12-16 selected at random. If you prefer the look of a neighborhood without a master design, then you choose that. But you can't buy into a neighborhood with a master design and then complain that you hate that you can't put red shingles on the house because the design stipulates gray. I get that some people don't want to have any restrictions on what they do with their houses. That's fine, it's just not the way the architects and planners of this neighborhood designed it and so if you want red shingles or a bright blue front door or purple siding then this is not the neighborhood you are looking for. I on the other hand like a neighborhood where the houses look "related" - with a similar design but not identical. But the point is that when you buy a house in a neighborhood governed by documents such as CCRs and architecture guidelines, it isn't stupid for the HOA to enforce those. If you don't want that, then you need to choose somewhere else. I don't really understand the Stepford comment as this is a neighborhood of small townhouses priced below the median value for townhouses in our county - this is not a mark of ostentatious design, just a little community of houses that was designed with common features and maintains those common features.
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Post by Merge on Mar 27, 2016 13:44:38 GMT
Last month a homeowner replaced his roof with the wrong shingles and it was out of keeping with the neighborhood - we all have gray shingles and he put red ones on. That's just stupid....Why does it matter?? Oh right everything has to look the same. I get your points about the dog poop and numerous junk cars but really?? Roof color??? HOAs remind of the The Stepford Wives movie. Everyone is free to choose where to live. I didn't see any of us who prefer an HOA community calling the lack of one "stupid." It doesn't matter why it matters to some - the fact is that they bought a house in a certain kind of community and should be able to expect to have the standards of that community upheld. From my perspective, I can see why if you allow one neighbor to use red shingles, you must allow another to paint her house purple, and another to park his business truck covered in logos in his driveway, and another to replace her entire lawn with red lava rocks ... and pretty soon you don't have the look and feel of the neighborhood you paid for any more. As moveablefeast mentioned, the newer communities with HOAs are often densely built. Houses in arm's reach of one another, very little setback from the street ... these are not usually communities where everyone has at least an acre or more and you are somewhat insulated from your neighbor's house by distance. Our current neighborhood is 60+ years old and though there are deed restrictions, no house is identical to any other. I do wish there were restrictions in place regarding the number of cars on the property (neighbor has six or so, three of which are being repaired at any one time, which makes it look like we have a used car lot next door) and things like putting cardboard or foil in the front windows to block the sun, which frankly just looks trashy. I personally would be pea livid if I bought in a new HOA neighborhood and found out after the fact that my neighbor had been given a variance to park her huge travel trailer on her property, right next to my house. I would fight that tooth and nail.
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Post by melanell on Mar 27, 2016 13:46:50 GMT
I will not live in an HOA neighborhood. We have a neighborhood association that is very active, but no authority over any homeowners. We just make sure our neighborhood is a caring community. We call the city for any ordinance violations. You want to paint your house purple? It's not going to lower the value of your neighbor's house here. People want to live here due to location and active community. Besides, all the houses were built between 1912-1930. Identical paint colors and roofs ain't gonna happen. Truthfully, not a fan of neighborhoods where the only way to identify your house is by the number on the approved Tuscan Taupe painted door. That's how it is here. I don't really know why at some point newer homes all seemed to be done in shades of only beige, white, or gray. But apparently many people really like that look. I love the older homes in our town that are peach, green, blue, red, yellow, and yes, even pink and purple. I think orange & turquoise may be the only colors that I don't recall ever seeing around here. And I enjoy the different colors I've been seeing as some people have switched over to metal roofs. I like the green, blue, & red---particularly when paired with a white, gray, or beige house! For things such as junker cars, unkempt lawns, etc, our town has ordinances that cover those. And the town does react swiftly if there is a complaint.
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Post by melanell on Mar 27, 2016 13:49:46 GMT
Stepford references tend to be made in instances where things or people are supposed to look the same, or very close to the same. The value isn't what would make it Stepford-like in someone's opinion, just the sea of similar looking homes. I would imagine that is what the person who originally said that was thinking.
Sometimes, homes that are densely built can have similar architectural looks that unify them, but the colors vary widely. Iconic examples would be the famous San Francisco row houses or the gingerbread homes of Martha's Vineyard. They are houses that are very nearly on top of one another, and are done in every color you can imagine, but are unified in that they are all the same type of home, with similar detail work. And even though one can clearly see the unifying factor in these homes, I don't typically hear comments about them being all the same or being Stepford-like. There seems to be something about the one neutral color palette that makes some folks feel that things are orderly and pristine, yet gives a very negative feeling to others.
Thank goodness we all get to choose which neighborhood we live in, right?
But in this case, it just seems unfair that the builder seemingly ignored the rules of the HOA to make the sale. It's not fair to the people who purchased homes in this HOA because they do like the uniformity, and it's not fair to the woman who is now getting flack for the exception she was granted.
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Post by peasapie on Mar 27, 2016 14:17:18 GMT
I actually love my HOA. I don't want someone using tires as lawn edging, and having some rules helps assure things stay looking good when you have the stray neighbor who has other ideas.
I feel sorry for your friend. This sounds like a lose/lose scenario.
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Post by freecharlie on Mar 27, 2016 14:29:00 GMT
Ok, since the RV is going to be on the side of the house, why do people have a problem with it?
How does that affect anything?
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Post by Zee on Mar 27, 2016 16:01:09 GMT
Red shingles when everyone else has gray? THE HORROR. Lol
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Post by leslie132 on Mar 27, 2016 16:39:35 GMT
We built in a new plan. Our plans HOA was run by the builder until it hit 67% occupancy. Until it hit that percentage ALL matters were approved thru the builder. If the builder told her she could have it, wrote a letter, and says he is still in charge of the HOA then I think she has a great chance for that to be grandfathered in. She should stand her ground!
She should really meet her neighbors and explain to those who question? It is not an easy investment to make when you build/move. I hope she finds friends and comfort in her new home. In our plan some people REALLY care about the bylaws and then others couldn't care less.
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melissa
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 3,912
Jun 25, 2014 20:45:00 GMT
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Post by melissa on Mar 27, 2016 17:13:32 GMT
We built in a new plan. Our plans HOA was run by the builder until it hit 67% occupancy. Until it hit that percentage ALL matters were approved thru the builder. If the builder told her she could have it, wrote a letter, and says he is still in charge of the HOA then I think she has a great chance for that to be grandfathered in. She should stand her ground! THIS! In a new development, the builder controls the HOA until a certain occupancy is reached. Anything the HOA does after the control is passed on from the builder does not automatically negate whatever the builder allowed. If I were in this situation, I'd find an attorney friend to send a nice letter with the proof.
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Post by moveablefeast on Mar 27, 2016 17:21:36 GMT
Red shingles when everyone else has gray? THE HORROR. Lol The problem isn't the red shingles - red shingles are perfectly fine - it's that a person who bought a house in a neighborhood with architectural standards then expected to circumvent the standards to suit his own desires or needs. Maybe the red shingles were cheaper, maybe he just likes red shingles, I don't know. But when you buy a house in our neighborhood, you agree to the guidelines - the red shingles are not the point at all. The brand, color, and installation specifics are in the CCRs and that is a binding document for each homeowner, and *that* is the point. We also said no for a variance to things like a frat house putting its letters on the outside of their house, a construction company parking 8 vans on the street, and political signs in the neighborhood. All small things but taken together they are part of the culture of the neighborhood. Like I said, I figure lots of folks don't want to have those kinds of guidelines on their homes. That's fine, but you can't pick a place with restrictions and then get pissy that the restrictions restrict you.
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Deleted
Posts: 0
May 21, 2024 0:25:34 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Mar 27, 2016 20:08:12 GMT
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Post by librarylady on Mar 27, 2016 20:17:50 GMT
Our city would have taken care of those with as much speed as an HOA. Our code enforcement officers do a great job.
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Post by myshelly on Mar 27, 2016 20:58:12 GMT
That's just stupid....Why does it matter?? Oh right everything has to look the same. I get your points about the dog poop and numerous junk cars but really?? Roof color??? HOAs remind of the The Stepford Wives movie. The design is intended to promote a sense of visual harmony in a very densely built neighborhood. Some materials such as roofing and exterior paint colors were designed as a color palette which homeowners are provided before purchase, so this is something you agree to before you get to closing. You make your exterior unique with your landscaping, decorations, porch furniture, and so on. Or you choose to live where there are no architecture guidelines, which is fine too. I don't think it's stupid for a community where large groupings of houses are visually connected to have guidelines governing the major design elements of those houses - here there are 12-16 homes in clusters on culs-de-sac and the design is intended that you would have a set of harmonious color schemes on those homes, not 12-16 selected at random. If you prefer the look of a neighborhood without a master design, then you choose that. But you can't buy into a neighborhood with a master design and then complain that you hate that you can't put red shingles on the house because the design stipulates gray. I get that some people don't want to have any restrictions on what they do with their houses. That's fine, it's just not the way the architects and planners of this neighborhood designed it and so if you want red shingles or a bright blue front door or purple siding then this is not the neighborhood you are looking for. I on the other hand like a neighborhood where the houses look "related" - with a similar design but not identical. But the point is that when you buy a house in a neighborhood governed by documents such as CCRs and architecture guidelines, it isn't stupid for the HOA to enforce those. If you don't want that, then you need to choose somewhere else. I don't really understand the Stepford comment as this is a neighborhood of small townhouses priced below the median value for townhouses in our county - this is not a mark of ostentatious design, just a little community of houses that was designed with common features and maintains those common features. When you say "master plan" and "harmonious colors" yes to me that equals scary Stepford Wives. That's exactly what Stepford Wives are. Everyone is the same. Everyone wants everything to be the same.
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Post by padresfan619 on Mar 27, 2016 21:04:15 GMT
I have friends who live in an HOA community and are fined every week because they don't move their trash cans in by 10 am. They are both full time working parents, how the hell are they supposed to be home at 10 am on a Thursday morning? I think they are insane for putting up with it. The only time they aren't fined is in the summer when they can pay a neighbor kid to take their cans in.
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Post by Merge on Mar 27, 2016 21:29:44 GMT
The design is intended to promote a sense of visual harmony in a very densely built neighborhood. Some materials such as roofing and exterior paint colors were designed as a color palette which homeowners are provided before purchase, so this is something you agree to before you get to closing. You make your exterior unique with your landscaping, decorations, porch furniture, and so on. Or you choose to live where there are no architecture guidelines, which is fine too. I don't think it's stupid for a community where large groupings of houses are visually connected to have guidelines governing the major design elements of those houses - here there are 12-16 homes in clusters on culs-de-sac and the design is intended that you would have a set of harmonious color schemes on those homes, not 12-16 selected at random. If you prefer the look of a neighborhood without a master design, then you choose that. But you can't buy into a neighborhood with a master design and then complain that you hate that you can't put red shingles on the house because the design stipulates gray. I get that some people don't want to have any restrictions on what they do with their houses. That's fine, it's just not the way the architects and planners of this neighborhood designed it and so if you want red shingles or a bright blue front door or purple siding then this is not the neighborhood you are looking for. I on the other hand like a neighborhood where the houses look "related" - with a similar design but not identical. But the point is that when you buy a house in a neighborhood governed by documents such as CCRs and architecture guidelines, it isn't stupid for the HOA to enforce those. If you don't want that, then you need to choose somewhere else. I don't really understand the Stepford comment as this is a neighborhood of small townhouses priced below the median value for townhouses in our county - this is not a mark of ostentatious design, just a little community of houses that was designed with common features and maintains those common features. When you say "master plan" and "harmonious colors" yes to me that equals scary Stepford Wives. That's exactly what Stepford Wives are. Everyone is the same. Everyone wants everything to be the same. If you can't differentiate between requiring the exterior of houses to maintain a similarity of design and the people inside actually being all the same, I don't know what to tell you.
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Post by myshelly on Mar 27, 2016 21:41:08 GMT
When you say "master plan" and "harmonious colors" yes to me that equals scary Stepford Wives. That's exactly what Stepford Wives are. Everyone is the same. Everyone wants everything to be the same. If you can't differentiate between requiring the exterior of houses to maintain a similarity of design and the people inside actually being all the same, I don't know what to tell you. It's not that I can't tell the difference. It's that I am making a judgment about what kind of people would want the exteriors of all the houses to be the same.
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Post by moveablefeast on Mar 27, 2016 21:50:00 GMT
If you can't differentiate between requiring the exterior of houses to maintain a similarity of design and the people inside actually being all the same, I don't know what to tell you. It's not that I can't tell the difference. It's that I am making a judgment about what kind of people would want the exteriors of all the houses to be the same. But I didn't say same, I said harmonious, and pointed out that not only do different models of houses have different architectural features but that people can and should have their own decorating style on top of those features. The paint colors and materials are standard but there are lots of variations to be had. My neighbor has a large bump out with brick facing. I have a bay window and a stone raised planting bed, with two Adirondack chairs in the yard. My neighbor on the other side has a large brick patio, a cherry tree, and a large planting of hostas. The end unit has a gazebo on the back corner of the house. But the shingles are all the same, yes.
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Post by Zee on Mar 27, 2016 21:50:18 GMT
And feel the need to control every aspect of the neighborhood, right down to the color of the roof or whether a logoed company van sits in the driveway or what type style can be used for the house numerals.
I am kind of surprised that you're so liberal on this issue, though, myshelly. I'd think someone who irons underwear would also be someone who wants every house to match.
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Post by myshelly on Mar 27, 2016 21:51:35 GMT
And feel the need to control every aspect of the neighborhood, right down to the color of the roof or whether a logoed company van sits in the driveway or what type style can be used for the house numerals. I am kind of surprised that you're so liberal on this issue, though, myshelly. I'd think someone who irons underwear would also be someone who wants every house to match. Nope. I'm extremely anti-HOA.
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Post by Zee on Mar 27, 2016 21:52:07 GMT
It's not that I can't tell the difference. It's that I am making a judgment about what kind of people would want the exteriors of all the houses to be the same. But I didn't say same, I said harmonious, and pointed out that not only do different models of houses have different architectural features but that people can and should have their own decorating style on top of those features. The paint colors and materials are standard but there are lots of variations to be had. My neighbor has a large bump out with brick facing. I have a bay window and a stone raised planting bed, with two Adirondack chairs in the yard. My neighbor on the other side has a large brick patio, a cherry tree, and a large planting of hostas. The end unit has a gazebo on the back corner of the house. But the shingles are all the same, yes. They allow Adirondack chairs to just sit around in the yard all day, where anyone passing by could see and be offended by them? I bet they can only be tan, willow, or ecru. Tell me you're a rebel with one pink and one blue chair!
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Post by Zee on Mar 27, 2016 21:53:06 GMT
And feel the need to control every aspect of the neighborhood, right down to the color of the roof or whether a logoed company van sits in the driveway or what type style can be used for the house numerals. I am kind of surprised that you're so liberal on this issue, though, myshelly. I'd think someone who irons underwear would also be someone who wants every house to match. Nope. I'm extremely anti-HOA. You never cease to interest me. Never change. I love it!
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Post by myshelly on Mar 27, 2016 21:54:20 GMT
Nope. I'm extremely anti-HOA. You never cease to interest me. Never change. I love it! I guess I'm not sure why you're surprised. I may have said I iron, but I've never once said I believe everyone should have to iron. That's the difference to me.
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Post by moveablefeast on Mar 27, 2016 21:56:24 GMT
But I didn't say same, I said harmonious, and pointed out that not only do different models of houses have different architectural features but that people can and should have their own decorating style on top of those features. The paint colors and materials are standard but there are lots of variations to be had. My neighbor has a large bump out with brick facing. I have a bay window and a stone raised planting bed, with two Adirondack chairs in the yard. My neighbor on the other side has a large brick patio, a cherry tree, and a large planting of hostas. The end unit has a gazebo on the back corner of the house. But the shingles are all the same, yes. They allow Adirondack chairs to just sit around in the yard all day, where anyone passing by could see and be offended by them? I bet they can only be tan, willow, or ecru. Tell me you're a rebel with one pink and one blue chair! Sorry, they're both cedar.
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Post by myshelly on Mar 27, 2016 21:57:17 GMT
They allow Adirondack chairs to just sit around in the yard all day, where anyone passing by could see and be offended by them? I bet they can only be tan, willow, or ecru. Tell me you're a rebel with one pink and one blue chair! Sorry, they're both cedar. Of course they are. That's exactly what I thought they would be.
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