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August 1, 2005
The Difference Betwen Condos and HOA's
My sister called me a few weeks ago and during the conversation, casually mentioned that she was thinking about running for the board of her homeowner's association. She wasn't very happy with the current board, as it seemed they weren't doing very much and were unresponsive when asked about it. At first I laughed, and when she got defensive (thinking that I didn't believe she could handle it), I had to point out that her bylaws limited pets to two, which meant she would have to get rid of three of hers. She has had three dogs and two cats for over two years and the association hasn't bothered to notify her that she's in violation of the CC&R's. I then asked if she really wanted the board to get "active" and she had to admit that if they did, she would probably end up in a fight with them over the pets. I should point out that I also live in an HOA which I believe has never enforced a single restriction in its 25 year history.
People who buy a home in an HOA really think they are simply moving into a neighborhood that happens to have a group of people who try and get other people to attend social functions. They really think that their home is their castle and immediately get their back's up if someone has the gall to challenge them on something they've done or haven't done. Look at the American flag cases that have hit the news in recent years. Almost all of them were in HOA's. "How dare you tell me what I can or can't do in my front yard!" It rarely has anything to do with patriotism, but is more a reaction to this "entity" that thinks they can stop me from doing something that I want to do. Patriotism is what pop's up when the media gets involved.
It's different in condo's. Someone else hires the people that cut your lawn and fix the roof, and then there's that assessment that comes every month, as opposed to the quarterly or annual HOA bill. Condo owners know that the association is supposed to be doing things, because very often, that's the reason they moved into one in the first place. The rules govern much more in a condo so that whichever way you turn, you're probably going to bump into one. I think that because people who buy into a condo aren't quite sure what they're buying, that they take a little more time reading the documents or at least asking a few questions. People who move into HOA's don't bother because they're buying a home in a "neighborhood".
I really believe that most of the litigation that will occur between owners and boards in the upcoming years, will be largely in the HOA arena. Until all of the states require some sort of forced recognition on the part of a home buyer, that they are purchasing a home in an association that has rules, governance of HOA's will swing violently between full enforcement and no enforcement, depending on the who is sitting on the board. Condo's seem to have leveled that swing off by forcing board's to be active on a continual basis, even if only for maintenance items.
As usual, the developers and real estate agents play a major role in all of this by playing down the "assocation" role in their developments. The only time it gets mentioned is if there are some amenities involved that can be seen as an attraction. At closing, the association documents are quickly shuffled off to the side to make sure they don't interfere with the transfer of ownership.
Legislators don't help. Almost every state has a strong condo act, that usually requires developers to provide buyers with all of the information about the association in advance of closing and often includes an out for the buyer if those docs don't meet with there satisfaction. Most states don't have the same requirements for HOA's. As I mentioned earlier, my HOA has been around for 25 years. When I bought this house 15 years ago, no one could find a set of the documents, no one knew who was on the board and no one could tell me what the assesment was. It hasn't changed much today. Well, they do collect a $15 annual assessment for the summer block party.
Posted by joewest at August 1, 2005 10:38 PM