This is one more example of the rapid decline of Texas' recognition of individual property rights. Laws, land grabs, etc. are being rationalized under the theory of "good for the community" (aka good for those in positions of power, but not the actual property owners)
Check out the following link for a legislative "Committee on Urban Affairs" 'public' hearing:
This hearing was initially "invited testimony only" - meaning that this was a public hearing in form and not substance. The purpose of the hearing was to give greater powers to a very small group of people to a) impose deed restrictions in neighborhoods where they lapsed long ago; b) impose deed restrictions to new areas by annexation. Although the TLO website does not reveal the witness list, the prime proponents of this are developers and employees of the city of Houston.
Although deed restrictions do not imply "HOA" per se, the purpose behind this was to amend deed restrictions to impose HOAs and to enable HOAs to annex territory that was not subject to the deed restrictions in the first place. When the municipality does it, it is referred to as a compensable "taking". When the taking is done by a private government, it would otherwise be considered "theft" except for legislation that proposes empowering HOAs to do just this. No compensation will be paid. Neighborhood after neighborhood is being forced into mandatory HOAs. These HOAs aren't "improving property values", but they are giving the city and the developers a way to manipulate entire neighborhoods without being subjected to constitutional scrutiny.
Here was the 80th Legislature interim charge that was the basis for the Urban Affairs hearing: "Research and update legislation that permits residential neighborhoods whose deed restrictions have lapsed to reinstate those deed restrictions or create needed deed restrictions through a petition committee by expanding them to more areas"
"Needed deed restrictions"? Needed by who? Wake up folks, HOAs aren't here to preserve property values for the owner - they're here to provide value for everyone else at the owner's expense.
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This is one more example of the rapid decline of Texas' recognition of individual property rights. Laws, land grabs, etc. are being rationalized under the theory of "good for the community" (aka good for those in positions of power, but not the actual property owners)
Check out the following link for a legislative "Committee on Urban Affairs" 'public' hearing:
http://www.legis.state.tx.us/tlodocs/80R/schedules/html/C4802008082011301.HTM
This hearing was initially "invited testimony only" - meaning that this was a public hearing in form and not substance. The purpose of the hearing was to give greater powers to a very small group of people to a) impose deed restrictions in neighborhoods where they lapsed long ago; b) impose deed restrictions to new areas by annexation. Although the TLO website does not reveal the witness list, the prime proponents of this are developers and employees of the city of Houston.
Although deed restrictions do not imply "HOA" per se, the purpose behind this was to amend deed restrictions to impose HOAs and to enable HOAs to annex territory that was not subject to the deed restrictions in the first place. When the municipality does it, it is referred to as a compensable "taking". When the taking is done by a private government, it would otherwise be considered "theft" except for legislation that proposes empowering HOAs to do just this. No compensation will be paid. Neighborhood after neighborhood is being forced into mandatory HOAs. These HOAs aren't "improving property values", but they are giving the city and the developers a way to manipulate entire neighborhoods without being subjected to constitutional scrutiny.
Here was the 80th Legislature interim charge that was the basis for the Urban Affairs hearing:
"Research and update legislation that permits residential neighborhoods whose deed restrictions have lapsed to reinstate those deed restrictions or create needed deed restrictions through a petition committee by expanding them to more areas"
"Needed deed restrictions"? Needed by who? Wake up folks, HOAs aren't here to preserve property values for the owner - they're here to provide value for everyone else at the owner's expense.
-IC_deLight
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