News Brief From Center for California Homeowner Association Law

From Marjorie Murray at CCHA:

---------------

Since we’re going to the polls today,   we thought this would be a good time to post the lawsuit brought two weeks ago by the ACLU to force a homeowner association and its property manager to keep their mitts off the HOA resident exercising his constitutional right to post political signs.

Here’s the link to the ACLU lawsuit on the CCHAL website: http://www.calhomelaw.org/doc.asp?id=1246.  Keep this link handy in case someone tells you that you can’t post a political sign during an election.

Hassling homeowners over political signs could easily happen again.  The entire association industry was opposed to the Longville bill, AB1525, when it was going through the policy committees in the California Legislature.  Here’s the list of registered opponents from the Senate analysis right before the bill went to the Governor’s desk: http://leginfo.ca.gov/pub/03-04/bill/asm/ab_1501-1550/ab_1525_cfa_20030902_095635_sen_floor.html

OPPOSITION: (Verified  8/25/03)

Community Associations Institute, unless amended

Executive Council of Homeowners, unless amended

California Association of Community Managers

On the list are the three trade groups that collect homeowner money and then use it to lobby against homeowner rights in Sacramento – like homeowners’ right to constitutionally protected free speech.

If the trade groups want to lobby in Sacramento on behalf of their members, we absolutely support their constitutional right to political free expression.  

But we sure wish they’d quit using homeowner money in Sacramento to dismantle the Bill of Rights.  

CCHAL NewsBrief

November 2, 2010

Marjorie Murray, President

Center for California Homeowner Association Law

1305 Franklin Street, Suite 201

Oakland, California 94612

www.calhomelaw.org

HOAs don't enjoy blanket immunity for maintenance decisions, California Court of Appeal rules

In a ruling filed filed Oct. 29 in Affan et al v. Portofino Cove Homeowners Association, G041379, the Fourth District of the California Court of Appeal overturned a trial court ruling dismissing claims brought against a condo HOA and its management company by an owner alleging the defendants breached their duty to maintain and repair the common area plumbing, causing sewage to back up into the plaintiff's unit.

The trial court dismissed the suit citing a 1999 ruling by the California Supreme Court in Lamden v. La Jolla Shores Clubdominium Homeowners Assn. (1999) 21 Cal.4th 249. In that case, the California high court applied the business judgment rule to HOAs, holding that courts are to defer to the "presumed expertise" of HOA boards when it comes to their decisions on maintaining common areas. That means these decisions by HOA boards are not subject to second guessing by the courts when owners challenge them.

But in Affan, the Court of Appeal found the HOA failed to establish the factual prerequisites for applying the deference rule. In addition, it held, since the HOA manager is not the HOA, the rule does not apply to the manager.

Here's a key excerpt from the ruling:

It is important to note the narrow scope of the Lamden rule. It is a rule of deference to the reasoned decisionmaking of homeowners association boards concerning ordinary maintenance. It does not create a blanket immunity for all the decisions and actions of a homeowners association. The Supreme Court's precise articulation of the rule makes clear that the rule of deference applies only when a homeowner sues an association over a maintenance decision that meets the enumerated criteria.

The full decision can be read here.

Team 4: Debt Collectors Accused Of Fake Courtroom, Judge - News Story - WTAE Pittsburgh

Team 4: Debt Collectors Accused Of Fake Courtroom, Judge - News Story - WTAE Pittsburgh

I expect this idea may catch on soon with the HOA/condo bill collector law firms.

'Halloween House' in Surprise drawing boos from neighbors, HOA

'Halloween House' in Surprise drawing boos from neighbors, HOA

Neat house, although it has so many lights that it looks like it's on fire.

Getting balmy in Palm Beach

PALM BEACH GARDENS — To some people they were just ducks. To Robert and Blain Aymond they were feces-spewing, orchid-eating disease bags with wings.

The webbed-foot menaces tore up the lawn and pool screens at their lakefront home in the Frenchman's Landing community near Palm Beach Gardens, defecating, copulating and squawking with brazen aplomb.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The horror! If it seems that people who live in Privatopia have too much time on their hands and need to get a life, this story only reinforces that perception. Where else do neighbors fight each other over a bunch of ducks?

Read the rest of this story here.

There better be skin: Nudist HOA claims resident clothed too much

LUTZ, Fla., Oct. 25 (UPI) -- The homeowners association of a Florida nudist park wants to evict a disabled resident said to be disruptive and not nude often enough.
-----------------------------------------------------
You can't make up some of the stuff like this that comes out of Privatopia. Read the rest of the story here.

Residential mortgage market meltdown: the Halloween sequel

The first part of this story involved lenders issuing mortgages without adequate underwriting, producing a lot of non-performing loans. When those loans were packaged and sold as securities, financial markets realized that lots of paper bags filled with excrement were ablaze on their doorstep. That largely prompted the financial market meltdown in 2008 from which the economy is still struggling to recover.

Just in time for Halloween comes the sequel in this financial horror story. As this New York Times article points out, the devil is in trying to unwind these bad debts and repossess the underlying properties. No easy feat considering that those stinky sacks of crap passed through a lot of hands, making it very difficult to sort out the individual notes in each bag.

Update 10/29: American Public Media's Marketplace radio program did a segment on today's show on the difficulty matching the notes in these troubled mortgage backed securities to the actual properties securing them, effectively rendering these securities worthless "zombie bonds" and setting the stage for litigation brought by understandably unhappy investors. Check out Marketplace's story here accompanied by lots of Halloween screams and howls.

Psychologist defines the HOA Syndrome caused by oppressive HOAs � HOA Constitutional Government

Psychologist defines the HOA Syndrome caused by oppressive HOAs � HOA Constitutional Government

Sounds like a pandemic. But is it contagious? I also see that some Florida HOA attorney is making fun of this situation. George Staropoli wants to have him keelhauled or at least disbarred for insensitivity, but I think making attempted jokes with no punch line is a worse offense.

The big picture, though, is grim for the condo sector, in Florida and elsewhere. The association lawyer-lobbyist crowd is getting desperate because on one hand they have to fight off state legislators and on the other hand they are watching condo developments melt down all around them. So far most of the demands for state regulation have been based mainly on abuse of power and incompetence by boards and their hired guns. Soon the issue in state legislatures--and maybe even federal agencies--may be what to do about the economic collapse of condo associations and HOAs.

Who knows? Soon some of these attorneys may have to find a specialty where they actually have to go up against other lawyers, instead of beating up on unrepresented homeowners.

NC may examine powers of HOAs next year

Candidates would consider limiting powers of homeowner associations

A local lawmaker and state senate candidate say they want to look at issues involving homeowners associations during the next General Assembly session, which begins Jan. 26.

“I suspect we will be looking into that because we’ve got some homeowners associations that are completely out of control,” said Rep. Danny McComas, R-New Hanover. “I do feel that finding a means to control some of these HOAs is going to be necessary.”
-------------------------------------------------------------------
This is a wasted endeavor at best and a cynical political ploy at worst.

If legislators and candidates truly believe that non condo HOAs have the power of municipalities without checks and balances on their powers, they should deprivatize them and take them out of state nonprofit corporations codes and instead bring them under government codes.

HOA developers cut long term deals with Internet service providers at inmates' expense

Living in Privatopia could mean paying for telecommunications services provided by your HOA, even if you choose another provider as this broadbandreports.com item explains.

The problem is developers sign long term contracts with a single Internet Service Provider instead of putting in open access fiber owned by the HOA. Good for the developer prince but not the HOA serfs. An open access fiber to the premises infrastructure would give residents a true choice of ISPs since any number could choose to offer services to the residents.

HOA takes issue with homeowner's landscaping

HOA takes issue with homeowner's landscaping

FOX 35 asked the HOA president, Bill Herring what was wrong with O'Connor's landscaping. "Look at all the dead stuff, dead vines dead limbs in the trees," said Bill Herring. "We didn't find any of that," said FOX 35 Reporter Holly Bristow. "Well you ain't looking very well," said Herring who then said to contact the HOA attorney. The HOA's attorney has not yet returned our call. According to Mo O'Connor, the HOA attorney wants to go to formal mediation with her. She says she's already done informal mediation with the HOA . Mo O'Connor says since state statute protects her Florida friendly lawn, she's not changing it.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Yet another episode of ambulance chasing, HOA style. Film at 11.

Payments average 18 months past due on Palm Beach County's foreclosed homes

Payments average 18 months past due on Palm Beach County's foreclosed homes

And that county has almost 46, 000 homes in foreclosure. How's that for a recovery? Let's just give these policies some time to work, OK people?

Seriously--the cyclical aspect of this recession ended a year ago according to all the experts. What we have now is something else, and I've shifted over to the camp that says the policies of this administration may be preventing the employment situation from improving and holding the housing market back. At this point there won't be a cyclical recovery at all. Something has to change in Washington. We may have divided government starting in January, and that will produce either compromise (maybe a good thing) or gridlock (probably disastrous). A great deal may depend on personalities. Just getting that gavel out of Nancy Pelosi's hand would make a big difference.

Buyers of foreclosed homes may face big problems

Buyers of foreclosed homes may face big problems:

"“Anyone who’s purchased a foreclosed property in the last three years should really be concerned,” says George Babcock, a Providence lawyer who represents homeowners who have been foreclosed on."

-------------------

This is why banks are freezing the foreclosure process. If the mortgagee uses sketchy practices to to prove they have the right to foreclose, then sells it to a new owner, that new owner may not really have title to the property. Lawyers being the opportunistic types they are, you can then have an interesting situation. What if the former owner (the original mortgagor) shows up and claims the house? Title insurance should protect the new owner, but this is yet another permutation in the unfolding weirdness of the post-crash housing market.

Delusional Thieves Caught Stealing Entire Mansions - The Consumerist

Delusional Thieves Caught Stealing Entire Mansions - The Consumerist: "A ring of confused folk in Georgia are stealing entire million-dollar homes, deeding themselves the property with bogus paperwork and squatting inside."

----------------

I'm not sure "confused" is the right word. Thanks to Mystery Reader for this fascinating story.

As Mountain Of Foreclosure Fraud Evidence Grows, National Media Has Decided It's Really More Of An "Oops!" | Crooks and Liars

As Mountain Of Foreclosure Fraud Evidence Grows, National Media Has Decided It's Really More Of An "Oops!" | Crooks and Liars

This link from Mystery Reader asks why banks can commit what appear to be crimes and nobody goes to jail, and in fact the national media don't seem to see much of a problem.

Banks Hired "Burger King Kids" To Process Mortgages - The Consumerist

Banks Hired "Burger King Kids" To Process Mortgages - The Consumerist

Mystery Reader strikes again. You wonder when the people who did these things will end up behind bars.

Bankers: We Wouldn't Hire Unqualified Robo-Signers If You Just Paid Your Mortgage - The Consumerist

Bankers: We Wouldn't Hire Unqualified Robo-Signers If You Just Paid Your Mortgage - The Consumerist

Thanks to Mystery Reader for this educational link. Why don't we just see the error of our ways and fall prostrate before the financial gods?

20 Unusual Houses That Are Now Tourist Attractions (PHOTOS)

20 Unusual Houses That Are Now Tourist Attractions (PHOTOS)

And no HOAs.

Yet another HOA flag flap -- film at 11

Fan takes flack for flying sports flag

ALBUQUERQUE (KRQE) - A flap over a flag is brewing in an Albuquerque neighborhood after the Ventana Ranch Homeowners' Association ordered a resident to take down his Pittsburgh Steelers flag.

Ronnie Martinez said he couldn’t believe it when he got a violation notice, or “friendly reminder,” in the mail two weeks ago.

“They're saying it’s a friendly reminder but,” Martinez said

That friendly reminder is ordering him to fold up a flag bearing the name of his favorite NFL team, the Pittsburgh Steelers, because signs are forbidden under Ventana Ranch HOA’s covenant.

Philly Suburb Considers Fining Those Who Don't Lock Cars | NBC Philadelphia

Philly Suburb Considers Fining Those Who Don't Lock Cars | NBC Philadelphia

Next: fines for people who don't say "excuse me" after they sneeze.

Homeowners association sues its own members, racks up $80,000 legal bill

Homeowners association sues its own members, racks up $80,000 legal bill

SAN ANTONIO - A fight between a Northeast Side homeowners association and their members has turned into an all-out war. It led to a lawsuit that has already cost more than $80,000 in legal fees. These fees will have to be paid by the HOA.

To some in the neighborhood the president of the Ventura HOA, Lisa Pfeiffer, is a bully. Eight of her neighbors say she is suing them because they tried to kick her out of office. It all started when they called a special meeting to kick out board president Pfeiffer after they became unhappy with how she was running things for the HOA.

“It's a classic example of intimidating -- picking a few people to intimidate the rest of the association, so that no one challenges them any further,” said Brenda Johnson.

--------------------------------------------------------------------

It's been said that in a democratic government, voters and not guns determine who governs. Apparently the latter is called upon to decide in Privatopia -- not weapons but hired guns in the form of attorneys.

Robo-signers: Mortgage experience not necessary

Robo-signers: Mortgage experience not necessary

NEW YORK – In an effort to rush through thousands of home foreclosures since 2007, financial institutions and their mortgage servicing departments hired hair stylists, Walmart floor workers and people who had worked on assembly lines and installed them in "foreclosure expert" jobs with no formal training, a Florida lawyer says.

In depositions released Tuesday, many of those workers testified that they barely knew what a mortgage was. Some couldn't define the word "affidavit." Others didn't know what a complaint was, or even what was meant by personal property. Most troubling, several said they knew they were lying when they signed the foreclosure affidavits and that they agreed with the defense lawyers' accusations about document fraud.

--------------------------------------------------------
The Great Depression began in October 1929 with the collapse of the stock market bubble, inflated by everyone and their cousin buying stock on easy credit with the expectation that the market could go no where but up.

The current economic downturn -- often compared to the 1930s -- will likely be remembered similarly. Mortgage lenders tossed underwriting standards out the window and extended mortgages to anyone who could fog a mirror holding the same "sky's the limit" expectations of residential real estate. The sad story continues to unfold, with mortgage servicers reportedly setting minimal qualifications for those who process foreclosures.

Sleazy Real Estate Developers' Latest Scam Could Skim 5 Percent Off Your Home's Value | | AlterNet

Sleazy Real Estate Developers' Latest Scam Could Skim 5 Percent Off Your Home's Value | | AlterNet

And of course they are talking about private transfer fees, as we have been doing here for some time.

BofA halts foreclosure sales in 50 states

BofA halts foreclosure sales in 50 states

Charlotte, N.C.-based Bank of America Corp., the nation's largest bank, said Friday it would stop sales of foreclosed homes in all 50 states as it reviews documents used to process foreclosures. A week earlier, the company had said it would only stop such sales in the 23 states where foreclosures must be approved by a judge.

"We will stop foreclosure sales until our assessment has been satisfactorily completed," company spokesman Dan Frahm said in a statement. "Our ongoing assessment shows the basis for our past foreclosure decisions is accurate."

-----------------------------------------------------
This appears to be the beginnings of a foreclosure holiday with lenders finally realizing that mass foreclosures aren't benefiting anyone and may well exacerbate and extend weak economic conditions, leading to even more non performing mortgages in a classic unvirtuous cycle. The legal brouhaha over the validity of foreclosure documents provides a convenient and face saving rationale for a hiatus on foreclosures. Lenders may also be realizing that their notes could be more easily recoverable and worth more in the future when the legal and economic climate is less uncertain.

The other foreclosure crisis gets more press

Fox Business: Can my homeowners association really foreclose on my home?

In California, for example, associations may begin the foreclosure process only 75 days after a missed payment was first due, while a tax collector must wait five years before beginning the foreclosure process for a tax lien. Associations are not required to go through a court to foreclose, as a property owner would to evict a tenant. Also, homeowners do not receive the benefit of the homestead exemption when their house is foreclosed upon by an association, as they would in the case of any other money judgment.
---------------------------------------------------
Yes, it can. The mortgage foreclosure crisis has gotten a lot of press. Now so are foreclosures by HOAs, which by comparison to lender foreclosures come far faster and less mercifully -- and well before the tax man comes calling for delinquent property taxes.

Nonprofits Unable To Keep Up With Growing Suburban Poverty, New Reports Say

Nonprofits Unable To Keep Up With Growing Suburban Poverty, New Reports Say: "two analyses released this week by the Brookings Institution show suburban poverty has skyrocketed in recent years and the way in which social services are lagging behind this shift."

-----------------

Nobody likes the suburbs except suburbanites...who are the majority of the US population.

Obama won't sign bill that would affect foreclosure proceedings

Obama won't sign bill that would affect foreclosure proceedings: "At least 10 states - with Iowa and Delaware being the latest - are seeking to expand a voluntary freeze on foreclosures by some of the nation's largest mortgage lenders to include more companies and more regions. And calls have increased for a nationwide moratorium - a move that could deal a blow to the earnings of big banks and grind to a halt the sale of millions of properties in foreclosure."

------------------

I hear from real estate attorneys that banks have been holding off on foreclosing because they have too much REO property already and they can't sell it, so they don't want to acquire more and put it on the market, which would only drive prices down further. But even with that voluntary restraint, the foreclosure process is hopelessly glutted and gridlocked.

Suburbs take hit as US poverty climbs in downturn

Suburbs take hit as US poverty climbs in downturn

More than half, or 57, of the 100 largest U.S. metro areas had substantial increases in poverty. They were most evident in Sun Belt suburban areas including Modesto and Riverside, both in California, as well as Lakeland, Fla.; Orlando; Miami and Tampa, which had seen large population gains during the housing boom.
-----------------------------------------------------------
That's Privatopia and this negative trend may at least partly explain why lots of HOAs are coming up short on assessments.

Madison: Gated City?

Madison: Gated City?

Madison Mayor Mary Hawkins Butler’s recent strategy to keep outsiders from attending a city festival is consistent with the city’s history of enforcing strict neighborhood covenants and zoning regulations that restrict rental properties in the city. Madison has long promoted itself as more of a club than a city, but last week, after Hawkins Butler cited Franklin, Tenn., as a model city for a residents-only festival, Franklin officials said they had never heard of such a practice.

Hawkins Butler told the Madison County Herald Sept. 18 that the city was cancelling this year’s annual family fall festival, FreedomFest, because of unexpected budget expenditures and the high number of non-Madison residents who attended the event in the past.

--------------------------------------------------------
Another example of what the perfessor would say illustrates how municipalities are adopting restrictive, HOA-like behaviors.

Privatization as a plutocratic plot: They Want To Privatize Everything | California Progress Report

They Want To Privatize Everything | California Progress Report

One of the most important trends afoot right now is the move to privatize as many government services as possible. Billionaires like Bill Gates, along with hedge funds, are pushing an agenda of privatizing public schools, and funding a PR push in support of that cause with films like "Waiting for Superman" and the NBC "Education Nation" that included a panel with the title "Does Education Need a Katrina?".

This trend is fueled by the desire of the richest Americans to seek new income streams. Instead of spending their cash hoard on innovating new products or businesses that can create jobs and lasting economic activity, they're engaged in a process of rent seeking, which has no productive value. By taking tax dollars that currently provide public services and channeling them to the private sector, which contracts to provide the service at lower cost - and therefore at lower quality - these wealthy individuals can add new income streams while also blunting any effort to raise their taxes to provide these services.

Police: Conn. man stole flag, put up hippo toy

Police: Conn. man stole flag, put up hippo toy

WATERBURY, Conn. – Call it the case of the flying hippo. Connecticut police said a man stole an American flag from Waterbury's Town Plot Park and hoisted a stuffed hippopotamus toy in its place. Twenty-three-year-old Jeffrey Kovic, of Waterbury, was arrested and was being held in lieu of $100,000 bail on misdemeanor larceny, criminal mischief and conspiracy charges.

--------------------------------------------------
Good thing he didn't fly the hippo from a pole in Privatopia or he would have faced both public and private prosecution.

Ozone layer 'is no longer disappearing and will return to full strength by 2048' | Mail Online

Ozone layer 'is no longer disappearing and will return to full strength by 2048' | Mail Online

"The ozone layer is no longer disappearing and could be back to full strength by the middle of this century, UN scientists have confirmed.

The phasing out of nearly 100 substances once used in products like refrigerators and aerosols has stopped the ozone layer being depleted further, although it is not yet increasing, according to a new United Nations report released last week.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-1313599/Ozone-layer-longer-disappearing-return-strength-2048.html#ixzz108BleiJP

-----------------------

About time we had some good news, isn't it?

Banks win delay in demolition of abandoned Fort Lauderdale condo complex

Debris is strewn across the 58-unit complex along the north fork of the New River. The doors and windows have been stripped away. Vandals have destroyed walls and ripped out copper wiring and plumbing. The city has been paying for metal shutters to keep away squatters.
----------------

Ever wonder what happens when an association goes defunct? It is not pretty.
And what happens to all those property values that were being protected?

When a municipal election resembles Privatopia

Here's a story of a city council election out of Isleton, California, population 820, that might just as easily been about an HOA election. The incumbents are running unchallenged because the few candidates who considered running were apparently not sufficiently motivated to serve to even make sure their candidacy papers were in good order.

Yellow mailboxes latest symbol of anti-HOA protest

Mailbox battle in Chesterfield's Brandermill brings protest

Day by day, more of the yellow boxes are popping up. In fact, one more for our camera early this morning. They are standing out in a community making a big visual statement about a decision that hits their wallet. But it's a decision that the community association board says has been publicized for months, like in the community newspaper.

They are hard to miss -- one yellow box after another. When-Dee Morrison spearheaded this protest. "They definitely stand out. It doesn't go with our park-like setting," Morrison said. This, just days after the Brandermill Community Association decided each home in this community must get this new mailbox. Those boxes would cost $155.
________________________________
As political scientists are wont to do, Evan McKenzie, the owner of this plot of cyberspace real estate, has labeled the yet unorganized political movement that rejects the authority of private HOA governance (but oddly doesn't lobby states to repeal HOA enabling statutes) as the Pink Flamingos.

That token of expressing discontent and defiance arose out of HOAs going after inmates who dared to plant the tacky pink plastic avian decorations on their front lawns, potentially driving down property values faster than a trailer park full of deteriorating double wide FEMA trailers.

Now another symbol of protest against dictatorial, unresponsive Privatopian government has emerged: the yellow mailbox. Perhaps not coincidentally the same color of the Gadsen "Don't Tread on Me" flag that has become the symbol of a somewhat more organized political movement called the Tea Party.

Rule breakers, beware: New law gives homeowners' associations more muscle - Home & Garden - MiamiHerald.com

Rule breakers, beware: New law gives homeowners' associations more muscle - Home & Garden - MiamiHerald.com

Fred Pilot sent this link-seems that Florida is giving HOAs fining and even foreclosure power for rule violations.

Homeowner's Association Uses Chopper To Find Violations - Local 2 Investigates News Story - KPRC Houston

Homeowner's Association Uses Chopper To Find Violations - Local 2 Investigates News Story - KPRC Houston

I'm posting this because an anonymous poster copied and pasted a huge part of the story into a comment. I'm deleting the comment and posting the link to the story.

Folks, we need to be a lot more careful about using big blocks of text from copyrighted on line news stories. There is a "fair use" doctrine that allows posting a little bit of these stories and then commenting, but just putting in all or most of a news story is copyright infringement. There are lawsuits going on against bloggers right now, for doing exactly that--even if the source was cited.

So please avoid this, OK? Keep the story snippets short and always include the source and hyperlink.

Big Brother is searching you - Computerworld

Big Brother is searching you - Computerworld

"The town of Riverhead on Long Island usedGoogle Earth to search all back yards in the town for illegal swimming pools.

They found about 250 pools built without permits and collected about $75,000 in fines."

--------------------

This came from Mystery Reader. I remember prosecuting drug cases where the search warrant was based on aerial surveillance, and the Supreme Court ruled on issues such as how high the plane had to be, etc. But now government can use Google Earth and zoom right in.

FT.com / US / Economy & Fed - US state steps in to meet city’s debt cost

FT.com / US / Economy & Fed - US state steps in to meet city’s debt cost

The state of Pennsylvania has stepped in to help its capital city Harrisburg avoid a default by advancing next year’s state aid so that the money can be used to make a $3.3m bond interest payment due this week.

----------------------

It seems to me that the policy makers of this country and the educated population ought to be figuring out how to restructure the financing of state and local governments, before we have a housing-industry-style, sector-wide, meltdown. Doesn't seem to be a major concern, though.

SIDE STREETS: HOA acting squirrelly at Lexington Park and everyone appears to be nuts

SIDE STREETS: HOA acting squirrelly at Lexington Park and everyone appears to be nuts

It sounded too wild to be true: A woman claimed her efforts to rescue a squirrel had incited the wrath of her homeowners association board and led to harassment, hundreds of dollars in fines, and even allegations of felony theft lodged against her with police.

So I contacted the president of the Lexington Park Townhomes HOA figuring I’d clear it up and move on.

But Chad Farris, the HOA president, declined to talk to me. Ordered me not to use his name. Wanted me to meet him “in a public place with my attorney present.”

Hmm. Maybe the squirrel lady isn’t nuts, after all.

---------------------------------------------------------
Indeed. And kudos to the writer of the headline for this tale of HOA insanity.

FOXNews.com - Cities Increasingly Turn to 'Trash Police' to Enforce Recycling Laws

FOXNews.com - Cities Increasingly Turn to 'Trash Police' to Enforce Recycling Laws

In a growing number of cities across the U.S., local governments are placing computer chips in recycling bins to collect data on refuse disposal, and then fining residents who don't participate in recycling efforts and forcing others into educational programs meant to instill respect for the environment.

From Charlotte, N.C., to Cleveland, Ohio, from Boise, Idaho, to Flint, Mich., the green police are spreading out. And that alarms some privacy advocates who are asking: Should local governments have the right to monitor how you divide your paper cups from your plastic forks? Is that really the role of government?

-------------------------------

I'd say, "no."

http://www2.tbo.com/content/2010/sep/08/pa-homeowners-stand-may-be-shortsighted/

Cars on blocks. Knee-deep grass. Going to seed. Around a neglected above-ground pool. In the front yard. Chartreuse-and-fuchsia repainting jobs. Beds of silk plants. Bordered by pinwheels acquired at a dollar store end-of-the-season closeout sale.

The horror. The horror.

Apocalyptic prospects

The remote chance that one or some combination of these apocalyptic prospects could come to pass on your block is why deed restrictions and their enforcement arm - the homeowners association - evolved. It turns out, apparently, after Woodstock and Vietnam, we no longer trust one another to tend to our corner of the American dream as fastidiously and tastefully as June and Ward Cleaver (the 1980s Clair and Cliff Huxtable notwithstanding).

___________________________________

To that, the HOA abolitionists cry "HOA apocalypse now!"

HOA residents told garbage pick up their problem

Subdivision residents appeal for service they didn't get

Meredith Baker was happy and excited on the day in June when she and her family moved into their new house in the Country Meadows subdivision in the Village of Hamburg — until she found that there was no one to pick up the garbage.

“I called the village the next day and said, ‘What day is our garbage pickup?’ ” she said. “They said, ‘What are you talking about? We don’t pick up your garbage.’ ”

Then she called Ryan Homes, the builder of her house, and asked whether the homeowners association picked up the garbage, and she was told she would have to buy the service herself.

Financial crisis hits condo associations Amy Hoak's Home Economics - MarketWatch

Financial crisis hits condo associations Amy Hoak's Home Economics - MarketWatch: "The current problems only exacerbate what's been an issue for years, some say. Many condo associations aren't prepared for major maintenance jobs due to ill-funded reserves and insufficient planning, said Evan McKenzie, a political science professor at the University of Illinois at Chicago, who has written about homeowner associations."

CONSUMER FINANCE: Condo Owners Trade Lawn Mowers For Spread Sheets - WSJ.com

CONSUMER FINANCE: Condo Owners Trade Lawn Mowers For Spread Sheets - WSJ.com

This McKenzie guy is spouting off again.

Paying the tax man when Privatopia craters

Paying the tax man when Privatopia craters

The crippled Las Vegas housing market has triggered a legal battle pitting investors buying foreclosed homes against homeowners associations, with millions of dollars at stake.

The key issue — and what will probably be dragged out all the way to the state Supreme Court — is collection companies tacking on their fees to the delinquent HOA dues they have been trying to collect, in many cases for longer than a year. If associations lose and can’t get past-due fees, assessments on paying homeowners will probably increase.

That additional charge for collections has run several thousand dollars in some cases and exceeded what the investors sometimes had to pay in delinquent HOA dues. With collection costs averaging about $2,000 per foreclosed home, investors said the amount owed could easily surpass $50 million.
____________________________________

When local government privatizes, so does the task of collecting property assessments. Private local government collection costs are just too doggone high, claim investors who are being hit up for past due HOA assessments on thousands of Las Vegas REO properties. The community association collection industry counters with dark warnings that HOAs will go into receivership and assessments will increase if the assessment collectors don't get their due.

This is one of the drawbacks of privatizing local government. The tax collectors aren't paid by the taxpayers but rather via private contracts to act as the HOA's proxy. As this Las Vegas Sun story illustrates, that can lead to some nasty litigation.

Questions raised about tombstone removal from small historic cemetery in Holmdel | APP.com | Asbury Park Press

Questions raised about tombstone removal from small historic cemetery in Holmdel | APP.com | Asbury Park Press: "'The tombstones of children who passed away in the 1800s and those of their family members were unceremoniously destroyed. This was essentially sanctioned vandalism at the behest of a board.'

But Beau Ridge Association president Edward Esler said everything was done by the letter of the association's laws.

'There's no story here,' Esler said. 'By the bylaws of our organization, we are required to maintain that area, which was done when the place was built 25 years ago and is being done now. Everything we've done has been done to the letter of the law.'"

------------------------------

The HOA charm campaign contines.

FloriDUH: HOA charging $600 for a mailbox

FloriDUH: HOA charging $600 for a mailbox

Now the association is trying to turn the neglected neighborhood around by charging fees to new buyers lured by low home prices. They think homeowners who didn't pay mortgages or dues for years should not be allowed to just walk away and leave behind an eyesore, reports TBO.com.

The community started charging buyers a $400 transfer fee, then a $225 fee to release liens against the property. There is also a $250 charge to prepare a letter detailing the fees owed. If buyers or sellers opt to do the work themselves, there is a $75 fee for the association to review the work, reports TBO.com.

And $600 for a mailbox.

Do homeowner regulations go too far? | StarNewsOnline.com

Do homeowner regulations go too far? | StarNewsOnline.com: "New Hanover County Fire Marshal Matt Davis said investigators don't know whether Darius intended to die in the fire or just wanted to blow up the house because of the ongoing problems with his homeowners association."

--------------

That's quite a sentence, isn't it?

Bladder Lane, Bent Street and Butt Hole Road – the street names that reached the end of the road - Telegraph

Bladder Lane, Bent Street and Butt Hole Road – the street names that reached the end of the road - Telegraph: "Dozens of councils across Britain have reported cases of residents changing the names of their street because they dislike the one on the map.
In some cases, the name change has followed years of ridicule.
The inhabitants of Butt Hole Road even had to put up with coach loads of US tourists visiting to have their pictures taken near the road sign, after the street appeared in an American book and on the internet."
------------------
This is the opposite of what developers do, where they name streets in a desert something like "Ocean Wave Lane."

Housing Choice - Help Today’s Owners or Future Buyers - NYTimes.com

Housing Choice - Help Today’s Owners or Future Buyers - NYTimes.com: "As the economy again sputters and potential buyers flee — July housing sales sank 26 percent from July 2009 — there is a growing sense of exhaustion with government intervention. Some economists and analysts are now urging a dose of shock therapy that would greatly shift the benefits to future homeowners: Let the housing market crash."
----------------
Home values have already dropped 30%. What does "crash" look like, please?

Walter Russell Mead's Blog - The American Interest

Walter Russell Mead's Blog - The American Interest: "Automation, outsourcing and unremitting pressures to control costs are going to squeeze upper middle class incomes.� What blue collar workers faced in the last thirty years is coming to the white collar workforce now.

Yet as their financial prospects darken, students’ educational costs are exploding.� Like the health care system, the educational system is being overwhelmed by rising costs and rising demand.� And as misguided government policies contributed to the real estate bubble by artificially inflating demand, government programs are burdening students with unpayable loans and contributing to relentless and unsustainable inflation in school costs."
---------------
Mead is a famous political science professor at Yale and Bard College.

When the HOA forecloses: This isn't like a tax assessor's sale

When paying the mortgage is not enough

When Becky and Chris Hobbs' home was foreclosed on and the family evicted from it this spring, the couple had not missed a house payment. They had, however, not paid their homeowners association dues. "I had no idea that anyone other than your mortgage company can evict you from your house," Becky Lew-Hobbs said. "It's absurd to me that one late payment can evict you."

Skipping out on homeowners association dues can have extreme, and often unexpected, consequences. Increasing numbers of the neighborhood-based groups are turning to foreclosure proceedings to collect on overdue fees, which the associations use to maintain community clubhouses, pools and the like.
---------------------------------------------------
People who have suffered a big loss of income in the economic contraction may figure that as with delinquent property taxes, they can settle up with the assessor's office when their financial situation improves. Wrong. HOAs come knocking years before the tax man for significantly much smaller sums. Since HOA assessments are considered private and not public obligations, private attorneys play the role of tax collectors. And they charge big fees for doing so, often multiples of the underlying amount owed. Good work if you can find it or an appalling scam -- depending upon your perspective.

U.S. housing value down at least $4 trillion | Philadelphia Inquirer | 09/05/2010

U.S. housing value down at least $4 trillion | Philadelphia Inquirer | 09/05/2010: "Since the real estate boom ground to a painful close about 31/2 years ago, the nation's housing stock has shed from about $4 trillion to $7.1 trillion in value."
-------------
Ouch. How about this quote from a developer: "The perception of homeownership as a wealth builder has suffered a deep setback." No. Really?

In struggling housing market, buyers and sellers are out of sync

In struggling housing market, buyers and sellers are out of sync: "Across the Washington region and around the country, the expectations of buyers and sellers are out of whack, thwarting deals that could potentially lift the U.S. housing sector from its long funk. The nascent rebirth of the market earlier this year proved to be a mirage."
------------
Sellers think their homes are worth about twice what anybody is willing to pay. An acquaintance of mine just bought a home in foreclosure. It was sold new in 2006 for $370,000. The absentee owner, who bought it as a (really bad) investment, has been trying to unload it and eventually he couldn't even find a tenant for it. The house sat vacant for a while and finally the owner just let the bank take it in foreclosure. At the foreclosure sale the bank wanted about $154,000. Only my acquaintance even bid on it--for one dollar above that figure. He got it.

There are three houses for sale on my street. One has been on the market for almost two years, the others over a year. No action. I'm sure they could be sold, but the prices would have to come down so low the owners either couldn't pay off the mortgage or would consider their lives ruined.

And every TV talking head keeps talking about "the recovery." Yeah, sure.

The Ogallala Aquifer and Its Role as a Threatened American Resource - APEC HRDWG Wiki

The Ogallala Aquifer and Its Role as a Threatened American Resource - APEC HRDWG Wiki
Here's some info on what I refer to below...

The Ogallala aquifer is being used today to supply residential and agricultural communities across eight Midwestern states. For nearly 80 years the nation’s breadbasket has been irrigated from Ogallala groundwater—a practice so unsustainable it severely threatens an aquifer that had flourished for over a million years. Farmlands are already shrinking on some portions of the Ogallala that have been mined of water. As the water table continues to plummet the High Plains will have to take drastic measures, whether communities import costly water or abandon the most profitable farming in the nation. Either way the decision has to be made soon because the aquifer that once held enough water to cover the entire United States under 1.5 feet of water is rapidly running out.

Aral Sea Almost DRIED UP: UN Chief Calls It 'Shocking Disaster'

Aral Sea Almost DRIED UP: UN Chief Calls It 'Shocking Disaster': "NUKUS, Uzbekistan -- The drying up of the Aral Sea is one of the planet's most shocking disasters, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said Sunday, as he urged Central Asian leaders to step up efforts to solve the problem.

Once the world's fourth-largest lake, the sea has shrunk by 90 percent since the rivers that feed it were largely diverted in a Soviet project to boost cotton production in the arid region."
----------------
The Aral Sea is one especially horrible example of what is happening to the world's lakes and rivers. Damming rivers for crackpot schemes to irrigate deserts and build cities where only reptiles would be comfortable; industrial pollution; overpumping of ground water that won't recharge for a thousand years; using millions of gallons of water to extract oil from tar sands, and on and on. We are about 10 to 20 years from a global water crisis, and in fact it has already started in some places.

Now, let's bring this down to the US and the housing industry. The western US is sucking rivers dry and draining the aquifers so deep that the ground is subsiding. The Rio Grande is running dry. Some years it doesn't even reach the Gulf of Mexico. The Colorado River is in danger of basically drying up by 2050 or so, by some estimates. The level of the Ogallala aquifer that underlies the midwestern US and supports 1/5 of our agriculture is being overdrawn so badly that is dropping by 1.75 feet per year. It took 6000 years to fill, and the most dire estimates say it will run dry in 25 years. I could go on, but if you take a look at this book or any number of others with a similar message, you will see that the evidence for an impending world water crisis, including parts of the US, is overwhelming.

Now--with that as the background, what are the implications for the American real estate development industry? For example:

1. Should developers be permitted to build new subdivisions in deserts and other places that don't have sufficient water (such as Atlanta, GA)? Is it wise to keep building vast quantities of housing in and around Las Vegas, Phoenix, Tucson, Atlanta, Riverside and San Bernardino, etc., when they are pumping in or otherwise stealing millions of gallons of water already?
2. Should golf courses be permitted at all in such locations? Or is it time to shut them down in order to avoid wasting water?
3. Should local communities be allowed to adopt building moratoriums and keep developers out entirely, on the sole grounds that there isn't enough water?
4. Should HOAs be forced by state law to permit low-water yards, regardless of what the governing documents say?
5. Should state laws impose water conservation measures on cities and HOAs?

What do you think?

Jane White: Work Until You're Dead? That May Be the Only Option for Many Americans

Jane White: Work Until You're Dead? That May Be the Only Option for Many Americans: "Many Americans are likely to have to work until they are dead, not as a result of Social Security shortfalls but because of their inadequate 401(k) savings or the fact that they have no retirement plan at all. This disaster has not dawned on the mutual fund companies that manage retirement assets, much less debated on Capitol Hill. Given that the first wave of Boomers is scheduled to turn 65 in 2011, Attention Must be Paid."
------------
Sounds about right. As Mr. T would say, I pity the fools that want our jobs after we retire.

Florida’s High-Speed Answer to a Foreclosure Mess - NYTimes.com

Florida’s High-Speed Answer to a Foreclosure Mess - NYTimes.com: "No one disputes that foreclosures dominate Florida’s dockets and that something needs to be done to streamline a complex and emotionally wrenching process. But lawyers representing troubled borrowers contend that many of the retired judges called in from the sidelines to oversee these matters are so focused on cutting the caseload that they are unfairly favoring financial institutions at the expense of homeowners."
--------------
Judges these days are focused on processing cases in the name of efficiency, and committed to the notion of enforcing the terms of contracts. Those aren't bad things, but it can lead to some very harsh consequences.

White House to Deploy Broader Mortgage Aid - WSJ.com

White House to Deploy Broader Mortgage Aid - WSJ.com: "Officials say between 500,000 and 1.5 million so-called underwater loans could be modified through the program, the first initiative to target homeowners who are current on their mortgage payments but are at risk of default because they have no equity in their homes. Some experts are warning, however, that the same knots that tied up prior initiatives could do so again.

Under the new 'short refinance' program, banks and other creditors that write down mortgages to less than the value of the property can essentially hand off the reduced loan to the government. The process involves refinancing borrowers into loans backed by the Federal Housing Administration."
--------------
I mentioned weeks ago that this was coming. When an underwater borrower hands off a chunk of their debt to "the government," that means "the taxpayers," so I'm pretty sure that means that people like me are paying somebody else's mortgage. I don't know about you, but I'm getting sick of this kind of "aid." Who, precisely, is going to pay a share of my mortgage?

Newspaper chastises Arizona HOA for calling for removal of flag as "debris"

HOA, don't tread on a classic piece of Americana

The state Legislature has intervened before on behalf of flag-flying residents against their HOAs. The Avalon Village folks know full well that lawmakers will do it again if they press this matter. The group needs to quit its line-parsing interpretation of the rules and let the flag fly.

Don't tread on Andy McDonel. Or his flag. The fact is, McDonel's HOA lost this argument when it called a classic piece of Americana "debris."

God Bless America: HOA reaches accord with resident over patriotic garage door sign

Compromise reached on 'God Bless America' sign

The assistant Delray Beach police chief had used magnetic letters to spell out the words on his garage door, and his actions incurred the wrath of the Springs Hamlet homeowners association. They told him the sign violated a blanket ban, no matter how patriotic the sentiment.

He refused to take it down, saying his rights as an American were being hindered. His stance brought calls from newspapers across the country, and an appearance on Fox News.
-----------------------------------------------------------
I bet all that publicity gave Mr. Milenkovic a good deal of leverage with the HOA, making it more inclined to compromise rather than risking fines and litigation which would have only brought more bad press.

Life imitating art? Sacramento officials investigate real estate company official

Remember that creepy HOA cult classic video titled The Colony that featured an uber regimented HOA controlled by an iron fisted developer who silenced a barking dog by cutting out its vocal cords? And who also indulged his voyeuristic inclinations by installing cameras in the bedrooms and other private places of the homes of his inmates?

The Sacramento Bee reports Michael Lyon faces a local criminal investigation amid allegations he secretly recorded people in his private homes and has temporarily stepped down as CEO of Lyon Real Estate. The newspaper reports "allegations of cameras concealed in bedrooms and bathrooms in Lyon's homes have jolted many who work at Lyon Real Estate, where top officials have retained an outside public relations consultant to manage the escalating crisis."

The Sacramento County sheriff's and district attorney's offices told The Bee they are launching their own investigation to determine if Lyon broke any state laws after the U.S. attorney's office closed a 16-month FBI probe of Lyon for lack of evidence.

"After being cleared of any wrongdoing by the U.S. attorney and the FBI, Mike will spend time clearing his good name and dealing with current baseless allegations being investigated by the district attorney," according to a statement by the company published in the newspaper.

Will the Pink Flamingoes join with the Tea Party?

I posed this question to the good perfessor who owns this blog over the weekend. He thinks not and I tend to agree.

But the political climate is such that private HOA government is finding itself under fire just as are all levels of public government. So now when HOAs so much as appear to be trampling on someone's rights of expression and redress of grievances, they too get their turn in the media spotlight.

The stories get additional legs in the blogosphere such as this post at a Yahoo News blog by Liz Goodwin. Goodwin reports the American Civil Liberties Union is defending an Arizona man ordered by his HOA to furl his "Don't Tread On Me" Gadsen flag.

Welcome To Kiryas Joel: Please Dress Accordingly � CBS New York- News, Sports, Weather, Traffic and the Best of NY

Welcome To Kiryas Joel: Please Dress Accordingly � CBS New York- News, Sports, Weather, Traffic and the Best of NY: "The tradition in the village of Satmar Hasidic Jews is modesty. Even on the hottest of days, most residents cover up from head to toe. But visitors don’t necessarily follow that tradition, and now the main synagogue is asking them to comply.
Congregation Yetev Lev posted signs at the village’s entrance – in both English and Spanish – asking outsiders to cover their legs and arms, use appropriate language and maintain gender separation in public."
-------------
And this isn't even a private community.

Mortgage lenders hold loan work out jamboree in Florida

US Homeowners Flock to Florida Event in Desperate Bid to Save Properties

Welcome to America's biggest jamboree of delinquent borrowers. For five days, the Neighbourhood Assistance Corporation of America (Naca), a not-for-profit organisation, is working round the clock to help homeowners hang on to their houses. More than 12,000 people have signed up in advance and more than 20,000 are expected to turn up, travelling from as far afield as California, Georgia and Maryland.

FoxNews.com Atlanta: Judge sides with homeowner, rules federal flag law trumps HOA rules

FoxNews.com Atlanta: Judge sides with homeowner, rules federal flag law trumps HOA rules

The homeowners association, which claimed the flagpole was an "obstruction," reportedly sued Tripodo for $25 each day the flag flew in his front yard -- a charge that totaled $32,000. A Cherokee County judge, however, dismissed the lawsuit this week, freeing Tripodo from having to pay any fines.

"I wish I didn't have to go through all this aggravation, but I was going to defend this flag all the way," Tripodo said. Tripodo said he believed the 2006 Freedom to Display the American Flag Act superseded any subdivision rules that prohibited the flagpole.

Americans spend a bit more as economy limps along

Americans spend a bit more as economy limps along

Paul Dales at Capital Economics said the economy is likely to remain in a slow-growth rut for several years. He said economic growth is likely to average around 2 percent for the rest of this year and through all of 2011 and 2012 as well. That's far below the rates needed to drive the 9.5 percent unemployment rate lower.
---------------------------------------------
If this forecast is borne out, it means a slow motion train wreck for Privatopia and the economy in general. In recent decades, the U.S. economy has come through relatively brief periods of high unemployment. But if it remains high over a prolonged period such as this, it begins to do structural damage. Many Americans will find they cannot afford to pay for both public and private local government.

Hardball HOA assessment collection tactics questioned

Hardball HOA assessment collection tactics questioned

Arizona homeowners associations are not accepting a resident's foreclosure as an excuse when it comes to collecting unpaid dues, assessments and fines.

Already forced to raise member dues and cut services to cope with unprecedented delinquency rates, HOAs also are turning to skip traces, collection agencies, process servers and out-of-state attorneys to collect what is owed.

---------------------------
George Staropoli is quoted, taking issue with selective collection methods and excessive collection costs.

California students get tracking devices - San Jose Mercury News

California students get tracking devices - San Jose Mercury News
Preschoolers. Federal grant. Now the school staff will know where the child is, and...whether the child has eaten or not.

Your tax dollars at work. $50,000 of them, to be exact.

Daily Herald | Cook Co. red-light camera ultimatum seems to lack legal weight

Daily Herald | Cook Co. red-light camera ultimatum seems to lack legal weight
Cook County Commissioner Timothy Schneider believes he has seized the initiative to turn back a red-light-camera program with the legal finding that the county can't arbitrarily impose it on municipalities.
--------------
But other people disagree...

Top 7 insane homeowners association rules - The Week

Top 7 insane homeowners association rules - The Week
This article is from December 2009 but I don't remember seeing it at the time. The lead talks about "the astonishingly restrictive ways of homeowner associations."

University professors among latest sued over R-J copyrights - Friday, Aug. 27, 2010 | 2:05 a.m. - Las Vegas Sun

University professors among latest sued over R-J copyrights - Friday, Aug. 27, 2010 | 2:05 a.m. - Las Vegas Sun
The Las Vegas Review-Journal is suing many bloggers who posted even one article from their online edition without a citation--but some of the people being sued seem to claim that they did put in the citation. I would like everybody who posts here not to quote or link to anything from that newspaper's web site. They don't want their material used, so I will respect their wishes.