Condo-fee foreclosures become headache for homeowners - MarketWatch

Condo-fee foreclosures become headache for homeowners - MarketWatch: he new wrinkle: A legal process called a “super lien,” which got its beginnings in the 1980s and is now allowed in more than two dozen states, and under consideration by nearly a dozen more.

Super liens give homeowners associations the right to begin foreclosure proceedings against a property if the owner is seriously delinquent on HOA fees. And while mortgage lenders have traditionally had priority when it comes to getting their money back through foreclosure auctions or court judgments, super liens give HOAs the right to jump ahead of the lenders, and in some cases, even wipe out the lenders’ rights completely.

In August 2014, the District of Columbia Court of Appeals, the district’s equivalent of a state Supreme Court, ruled that not only was a condo association correct in foreclosing on a delinquent owner, but that under super lien rules the bank that holds the mortgage loses its right to the property entirely. A Nevada Supreme Court decision a month later came to the same conclusion. While those rulings only impact foreclosures in D.C. and Nevada, other state courts could follow their precedent, said Roger Winston, a real estate attorney and partner in the Bethesda, Md., office of law firm Ballard Spahr LLP.

“The court’s decisions have caught everybody off guard,” said Winston, whose firm represented lenders in the Nevada court decision. “It’s quite a mess out there.”

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At the end of the story, Jason Tufaro, vice president with Matt Martin Real Estate Management in Frisco, Texas, predicts that lenders will factor in the risk of being bumped by HOA super liens and price that risk accordingly into loan rates.

Winfield, Alabama, declares God owner of their town

The mayor and city council have declared that God owns their town. And you think your HOA board is out of control?

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2015/01/city-officials-declare-god-owner-of-their-alabama-town/

HOA wants Dr. Who Tardis removed from yard

"PARRISH -- 

A Parrish family's obsession with their favorite show has their homeowners association's attention.

LeAnn and Davis Moder received a letter from the association requesting their time machine and spacecraft, called the TARDIS, inspired by the popular British TV show “Doctor Who,” be removed from their driveway.

“It struck me as very, very funny," said David Moder. "It was like it was just a very formal letter, and I was like, what a nerdy problem to have like to get a letter saying your TARDIS is in violation.”The couple was married in front of the time machine."

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I like the way the article notes that the Tardis doesn't really work.

Parrish 'Dr. Who' fans told to remove their time machine from driveway | Breaking News Blog | Bradenton Herald

Parrish 'Dr. Who' fans told to remove their time machine from driveway | Breaking News Blog | Bradenton Herald:

PARRISH -- A Parrish family's obsession with their favorite show has their homeowners association's attention.

LeAnn and Davis Moder received a letter from the association requesting their time machine and spacecraft, called the TARDIS, inspired by the popular British TV show “Doctor Who,” be removed from their driveway.
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This is a first. Maybe they can alter the time stream so Privatopia never existed in the first place, at least not in America. Or CAI for that matter.

Uh, oh, Placer County treehouse kitchen must go | The Sacramento Bee

Uh, oh, Placer County treehouse kitchen must go | The Sacramento Bee: In November, acclaimed treehouse builder Pete Nelson constructed a 500-square-foot treehouse featuring a full-working kitchen, bath and loft for the Splinter family of Granite Bay on his television program “Treehouse Masters,” which airs on the Animal Planet cable channel. The episode – complete with the affable Nelson making candy with the Splinter family – aired in December.

Now the county says that because the Splinters already have a guest home on their property, they’ll have to remove the kitchen appliances and loft mattress from the treehouse before the county can sign off on the construction.
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This isn't your garden variety HOA dustup over a treehouse. This one's so elaborate county building enforcement sees it as an illegal addition.