The HOA at Lexington Crossing | Flickr - Photo Sharing!
Check out this situation. Click the link above and you will see a photo. Click the link below that says "Car Stuck in Garage by HOA" and you will read the story behind it. I'm sure somebody will tell me it is just one of those "isolated incidents."
Says the homeowner whose driveway was blocked by the HOA as shown in the linked photo:
Car Stuck in Garage by HOA
"Hey all -
maybe someone can help me...
Can an HOA block my egress and ingress? They have placed three large stone pillars in front of our driveway, preventing us from leaving and my wife's car is in the garage. Her car has been stuck there for over four days so she can't work. We are beyond frustrated. The HOA president basically told us best of luck - see yea - your cable will be next to go.
We are paying our association dues - but can't keep up with all the new assessments and now with the 3k in their attorney fees we owe over 5k."
Read more: http://www.city-data.com/forum/atlanta/1298523-car-stuck-garage-hoa.html#ixzz1OjiKwZPs
----------------------
Why did this happen? What management company was this HOA using? Read on. He explains. If you look at page 3, entry number 23, of the city-data.com forum linked above, you will see that he says:
"We had an assessment done on our place last year for $1000 - I paid $500. I did not pay the other half. I Was 2 weeks late. They then doc'd me $800 in attorney fees. I called the management - Associa management and worked it out to pay an extra $100 a month until I could pay it off.
They then had another $1500 assessment done to rebuild the roofs. I could not keep up and feel behind - but made my payments plus $100 and I will continue to do so and try to make it more".
Read more: http://www.city-data.com/forum/atlanta/1298523-car-stuck-garage-hoa-3.html#ixzz1OjjXnUZ7
11 comments:
> I called the management - Associa management
Regular readers of this blog are aware that Associa is the largest HOA management company in the United States, and is owned by Texas state senator John Carona (Republican - Dallas).
For those following a link to this web page from elsewhere, Senator Carona (Republican - Dallas) has been the topic of several of this blog's recent posts:
"Sen. John Carona Defends Controversial HOA Rule" (Friday. May 27, 2011)
"Look What I Just Got In My In Box…" (Saturday. May 28, 2011)
"HOA Reform Group Targets Law That Allows Texas Assocations To Repossess Homes Over HOA Rules" (Saturday. May 28, 2011)
DA Looks Into Channelview Complaints" (Saturday. May 28, 2011)
The Next Foreclosure Fight" (Sunday. May 29, 2011)
"Since HOAs are very local and small, participants are often neighbors and hence have incentive to settle disagreements in a civil manner."
-Brian Schwartz
"Free-market Alternatives to Zoning"
The Independence Institute (Golden, Colorado)
February 28, 2009
"HOAs...are also an example of how private alternatives can easily replace government edicts."
-Scott McPherson
"Are HOAs Anti-Freedom?"
The Future of Freedom Foundation (Fairfax, Virginia)
Freedom Daily. November 2004
Privatization of housing is a “government giveaway” that imposes privatized governance and justice upon its members which is the opposite of democracy. Because it eliminates many of its members constitutional rights, protections and privileges in order to render members as helpless as possible, by design.
Consequently when contract governance under corporate law is used to manage CID housing as compared to a manufacture, retailer, airline, railroad or other for profit business. The association Boards may impose tyranny upon its members while others support and profit from the dysfunctional governance model that we call privatized housing or housing/condo associations.
Ziz ist NOT der izolated inzident.
Zis ist CAI's new haus arrest policy.
Ziz saves der unit owners many marks because der HOA does not need der kooler, ya?
But schtill you are gerfunmakin at CAI ven ve try der less harsh leinient punishments!
Sgt Schultz
CAI General Staff
Fred Fischer said;
"Consequently when contract governance under corporate law is used to manage CID housing as compared to a manufacture, retailer, airline, railroad or other for profit business. The association Boards may impose tyranny upon its members while others support and profit from the dysfunctional governance model that we call privatized housing or housing/condo associations."
Oh, how unfortunately true. Especially, for those forced into homelessness, financial ruin, lives, careers, family's, health and more devastated. These fraudulent, many times illegal, foreclosures. If know one knows, or if no one is allowed to know, terrifying the victims into silence, who are the innocent to turn to? The locales, where these foreclosures are illegal, really need to investigate and prosecute. Don't you think?
The greed of some is
"Privatization of housing is a “government giveaway” that imposes privatized governance and justice upon its members which is the opposite of democracy."
Ummm....housing is nearly all privatized. Don't you mean local government?
Sgt Schultz @ June 9, 2011 6:26:00 AM CDT,
Report to General Berger's boot camp immediately.
There you will learn about "Tactical Warfare: Pursuing Collections", "increasing the amounts you can charge for late fees and interest to the 'highest amount permitted by law'” to use as a "bigger hammer" against homeowners, and how to "Be Aggressive With Your Foreclosure Actions".
FYI: Sometime in the past 4 months, General Berger removed her 2010 boot camp video that was at www.youtube.com/watch?v=6a4VpUrJ38c; straight down the memory hole. Her other videos can be seen at www.youtube.com/user/kgblawfirm .
It is interesting that Donna Berger would describe "pursuing collections" as "Tactical Warfare" (her words on her "HOA Boot Camp" web page).
In a 2007 survey by Service Magic of 3,000 customers, 19% of homeowners "have been in what they call a 'war' with their HOA."
On the upside, 24% responded positively about HOAs. However, while a primary purpose of HOAs is to force neighbors to keep up the appearance of their homes, 54% of respondents said they’d rather live with a “sloppy neighbor” than deal with an HOA. Here are the results to this question:
What is your opinion of homeowners associations?
They’re great 8%
They’re okay 16%
Minor annoyance 21%
Major headache 48%
No opinion 7%
Plus, 78% of those responding to the poll said they might consider NOT buying a home because it would be under the jurisdiction of an HOA.
Service Magic's video about their own survey gives the industry talking points. The only "experts" presented in their video are an HOA attorney and a realtor.
I just wrote the PR VP for Associa and asked point blank if Assoica had anything to do with placing blocks in a homeowner's driveway to prevent ingress and egess. I believe in finding out the facts.
If Associa did have anything to do with this, then I would urge all associations to avoid this property manager like the plague.
In Florida, blocking ingress and egress is illegal, since there is a statute on point. I'm not sure it wouldn't be in other states as well - I can see a reasonable argument of "false imprisonment".
Um, what about association attorneys who would not purchase in HOAs?
;-)
Post a Comment