Monica Sadler has passed away

http://www.qconline.com/obituaries/monica-sadler/article_aa78d5a3-18c8-526e-91f4-8fa77efda92f.html

My dear friend Monica Sadler died last week.  She was one of the most tenacious fighters for the rights of HOA and condo owners who has ever set foot in a courtroom. We fought a number of legal battles together and she didn't know the meaning of "quit."  She was also a true friend and one of the most considerate and giving people I have ever known.  I will miss her, and so will Shu Bartholomew and many other people who knew her.

Here is the obituary, and following that you will find a piece I wrote for the Cyber Citizens for Justice website about the case we took to the United States Supreme Court. If you want to read the petition for writ of certiorari, it is linked from the CCFJ page:

Monica J. Sadler, 58, of Moline, passed away Friday, Feb. 20, 2015, at her home.

Funeral services will be held at 10 a.m. Friday, Feb. 27, at Rafferty Funeral Home, 2111 1st St. A, Moline. Visitation will be 4 to 7 p.m. Thursday at the funeral home. Entombment will be at St. Mary's Cemetery, East Moline. Memorials can be made to the Rock Island County Humane Society.

Monica was born Oct. 22, 1956, in Dayton, Ohio, the daughter of James and Betty Anderson. She married Jim Sadler on Feb. 15, 1986 in Tulsa, Okla.

Monica attended Calvary Church of the Quad Cities, Moline. She had a passion for gardening and fishing and loved her dogs, Tinker Bell, Tillie and Buddy. Monica had a heart of gold and never thought twice about helping a stranger. She loved being outdoors and was surrounded by wonderful friends and a loving family.

Survivors include her husband, Jim; son, Andrew (Amy) Sadler, Moline; mother, Betty Anderson, Sunrise Beach, Mo.; and sister, Donna Braddom, Dayton.

Condolences may be left at RaffertyFunerals.com.

http://www.ccfj.net/USSupremeCourtMJSadler.html

On Petition for Writ of Certiorari to the Illinois Appellate Court, Second District

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PETITION FOR WRIT OF CERTIORARI

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The Story Behind Monica J. Sadler v. Illinois Commerce Commission

By Evan McKenzie

Published September 17, 2007

How would you feel if you had to pay a water bill every month, but your property was not even connected to the water system, and your CC&Rs said you didn’t have to pay for water until that connection was made?

This is the situation that faced Monica Sadler and thousands of other owners at the Oak Run development in eastern Illinois .  It had been going on in Oak Run for over 25 years when, in 2005, Aqua Illinois filed a request with the Illinois Commerce Commission to raise the water rates in Oak Run, including the charge for “availability” of water to thousands of lots that weren’t even connected to Aqua’s water system.

You may be asking yourself, “Didn’t the HOA object to this rate increase?”  The Oak Run Property Owners’ Association challenged various aspects of the proposed increases.  But they didn’t raise the basic unfairness of forcing people to pay charges that appeared to be prohibited by the terms of the covenants—especially when they weren’t even receiving any water.  The board of directors of ORPOA was controlled by people who had homes in Oak Run with water meters, not “availability” customers who owned undeveloped lots.

As soon as she understood the situation and realized that the ORPOA wasn’t going to protect the interests of availability customers, Monica took it upon herself to go to Springfield and point out to the ICC that there were contractual provisions in the CC&Rs prohibiting the availability charges. An ICC employee suggested that she raise this issue by intervening in the ongoing rate proceeding. 

All by herself, Monica began to review the 6000 page electronic record of the rate proceeding and research the rules for intervening in an administrative action.  Soon she had a Petition to Intervene on file in the rate increase proceeding before the ICC.  In the petition, she made it clear that her reason for intervening was to introduce in evidence the CC&Rs and ask the ICC to rule that the availability charges were a violation of the terms of these contracts.

The Administrative Law Judge eventually granted her Petition to Intervene.  But in the same order, he marked the record of the proceeding “heard and taken” two days before the date of her intervention. That meant that, while Monica was now a party to the proceeding, she could not present any evidence.  The contracts would not be allowed into the record.

Of course, this frustrated the entire purpose of her intervention. She was in the action, but she couldn’t prove the claims that were her reason for intervening.  She filed motions to challenge this ruling. She cited sections of Illinois law that required the utility to introduce all relevant contracts, that allowed the Administrative Law Judge to request that such evidence be produced, and that required all rate setting proceedings to be fair to consumers.  She also argued that these proposed rate increases violated the constitutional rights of availability customers.  The U.S. Constitution prohibits states from impairing the terms of private contracts, and from depriving people of life, liberty, or property without due process of law.  She raised “contract clause” and due process claims before the ICC. 

Every claim that she raised was denied.  The Administrative Law Judge ruled that she had intervened too late in the proceeding, and that hearing evidence and argument from both sides on the contract claims would take too much time.   Acting on his rulings, the Illinois Commerce Commission raised water rates in Oak Run, including the availability charges.

Monica then retained my services, and we appealed from this ruling to the Illinois Court of Appeals for the Second Appellate District.   We raised a variety of issues of Illinois administrative law and also, of course, the constitutional claims of impairment of contract and due process of law that had never been considered by the ICC because Monica was not allowed to place the contracts in evidence.

The appellate court ruled against us, and accepted the argument that the ALJ had discretion to rule that it was too late to hear more evidence.  But, amazingly, the court also held that Monica had not even raised the constitutional claims before the ICC.  In a petition for rehearing, we pointed out with infinite specificity the exact locations in the record where she raised these claims. She had even gone so far as to quote the entire text of the contract clause, word for word, in motions before the Administrative Law Judge, and all this was in the record of the administrative proceeding.

The petition for rehearing was denied.  We then petitioned the Illinois Supreme Court for leave to appeal. That, too, was denied.  The Illinois Supreme Court has the power to decide which cases it is going to hear, and it declined to hear this one without ruling on the merits one way or the other.

The only avenue left was the United States Supreme Court. 

Consider the position Monica found herself in.  She had by this time asked the Administrative Law Judge, the Illinois Commerce Commission, the appellate court, and now the Illinois Supreme Court just to read and consider the contracts that appeared to prohibit the availability charges that people had been paying for decades. She had tried to get these agencies of state government to at least consider that these charges violated the contracts and constitutional rights of thousands of Oak Run residents.  But every arm of state government had refused even to hear that claim.  The rate proceeding was like a railroad train speeding down the tracks, and it seemed that a statutory and constitutional claim brought by a single property owner was not going to be allowed to stand in its path. 

Monica decided that she wanted to petition the Supreme Court for a Writ of Certiorari, and we have done so.  We argue in the petition that the ICC and the Illinois courts have violated Monica’s rights under the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the US Constitution.  We contend that the state has misinterpreted its own administrative law rules in order to avoid having to consider an important federal constitutional claim. 

We know that the Supreme Court receives almost 10,000 petitions every year and ends up granting full review with briefing and oral argument to fewer than 80 of them. Another 100 or so will be summarily decided without oral argument. The rest will just be denied review, without explanation.  Petitioning the Supreme Court is always a long shot, no matter who you are.  The Supreme Court has enormous discretion to hear whatever cases it chooses.  The Court does this by having law clerks read the petitions and make recommendations to the justices, and then the justices take a vote. It takes four votes out of nine for the Court to review a case.  The decision to review a case is not based on whether an error appears to have been committed, because the Supreme Court is not in the business of correcting errors by lower courts. The Supreme Court is a policy making court.  The decision to take up a case is based on the importance of the issue to four members of the Court.   We have tried to convince the Court that this case matters, because the Court should protect the rights of individuals who dare to stand up to a powerful utility company, a powerful state agency, and a powerful state court.

We know that the odds are long. But Monica is one of those rare people who are guided by a strong sense of right and wrong.  She refuses to accept injustice if there is any way to fight it.  Most of all, she stands up for other people who are victims of injustice and for whatever reason are not able to stand up for themselves.  And her view of this situation is that thousands of Oak Run owners, without their knowledge or understanding, have been gouged for decades by a regulated utility company, in violation of their contracts and their constitutional rights. 

Their homeowner association is not going to represent their interests or defend their rights. Neither are the state regulators or the Illinois courts.  So, Monica has petitioned the highest court in the nation to correct what she sees as a massive injustice. 

Reform the condominium

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/17/opinion/reform-the-condominium.html?_r=1

This op-ed by urban planning professor Matthew Lasner follows on the hells of a series the New York times published on a bizarre trend in the condo market:  very rich people, some with shady backgrounds, buying condos in NYC behind shell companies so nobody knows who they are.  Even the condo association doesn't know who the owners are. And the city has been subsidizing this trend because they want more rich people having their pied a terre in New York City. There's a lot more wrong with the condo model than this op-ed describes, but for a short piece it is excellent.
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"FROM New York to Miami, from South Padre Island, Tex., to Park City, Utah, the American condominium has become the hot new investment for global capital. In Manhattan, the trend is so pronounced that a whole new category of real estate has emerged around the southern edges of Central Park: supertall, ultraluxury buildings, with more than half of the homes being sold to anonymous buyers (some perhaps looking to stash ill-gotten gains) who rarely, if ever, occupy them. The city, meanwhile, struggles to produce sufficient housing for those who do live here."

State of Florida subsidizes golf course conversion

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/business/os-golf-course-brownfield-incentives-20150125-story.html

This raises some interesting benefits to being a real estate developer in these supposedly "free market" states.  Everybody is supposed to pull him/her self up by bootstraps we don't have except developers, bank, insurance companies, auto manufacturers, and on and on.  It would be one thing if these boondoggles worked, but often it turns out that projects like these are risky and would never be built if the developer couldn't offload a huge tax burden on the rest of us.  For example, as the article points out, the market for golf course developments is old people.  Then there is the environmental risk of such developments, which many buyers are reluctant to bear.  Thanks to Deborah for this link.

"The rolling fairways at DeLand Country Club are about to become shops and houses with the help of state incentives to clean up polluted areas known as brownfields. Developers say Florida's tax credits were essential in transforming the weedy course into Country Club Corners shopping center, anchored by a Publix. It's one of a handful of Florida golf courses that have been redeveloped with financial assistance from the state, and it could signal redevelopment opportunities for owners of struggling and closed courses....State-designated brownfields are a "redevelopment tool" aimed at sparking construction, jobs and green space, according to the Department of Environmental Protection. In exchange for cleaning up a site, developers get corporate-income-tax credits, which they can sell. Developers' incentives increase if they build affordable housing and health-care facilities on brownfield sites. In addition, the state allows $2,500 for every job created on the property and breaks on sales taxes for construction materials."

HOA spat gets nasty as meeting door slammed on owner | TBO.com and The Tampa Tribune

HOA spat gets nasty as meeting door slammed on owner | TBO.com and The Tampa Tribune: Walz said she was standing in the doorway of the meeting room, lodging her protest, as the board members told her to leave.

“I was at the threshold and I said, ‘If he’s allowed to stay here, then I should be allowed to stay,’” Walz said, referring to Calcagni. “Mr. Calcagni must have gotten upset about it.”

Walz said Calcagni rose from his chair and shoved the door closed. She said she shoved back, but the property manager prevailed, and the door shut on her foot. Mitchell said he witnessed the incident.

“He takes his body and pushes his full body weight against her foot,” Mitchell said.

According to the sheriff’s report, Walz told a dispatcher the door shut on her foot but she declined an offer to call emergency medical services.
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HOA managers sometimes act as bailiff in executive sessions. Extra omnes!

Association rules force veteran to remove flag pole

Association rules force veteran to remove flag pole: Foster says she reviewed the View Harbour Neighborhood Association's rules and did not see any restrictions on flags or flag poles.

"When you look through the covenants, the words "flag pole" and "flag" are not here," she said.

So she installed the flag pole in her front yard.

Board members then told her she is allowed to hang flags outsider her home--just not with a pole. They asked her to remove it and to then ask the board for written permission.
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Sometimes a flagpole is just a pole...except in Privatopia.

York County woman fed up with homeowners association - WBTV 3 News, Weather, Sports, and Traffic for Charlotte, NC

York County woman fed up with homeowners association - WBTV 3 News, Weather, Sports, and Traffic for Charlotte, NC: INDIAN LAND, SC (WBTV) -

Taking on a persistent homeowners association is a battle many have faced before, but one York County mother says she's had enough.

24-year old Betty Lapore and her family bought a house in the Windsor Trace development last year. Since then, she says the homeowners association hasn't left her family alone.

"We moved here from a really bad area in Fort Bragg so our kids could have a good life. And I'm not trying to cause problems, i'm just trying to hangout with my kids all day," Lapore said.

Lapore tells WBTV it all started when she decided to paint her front door red, which instantly caught the attention of the HOA.

"They fined us 350 dollars. They threatened to put a lien on our house for that much," Lapore said.
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Yet another HOA channeling Mick Jagger: Sees a red door, wants it painted black. No unapproved colors any more; we want it painted black.

Five major forces driving down mortgage interest rates

http://blog.metrotrends.org/2015/02/major-forces-driving-mortgage-interest-rates/
And they are:
Slow growth and turmoil abroad
Upheaval in the oil market
The US economy is steadily improving
Low Treasury rates, low mortgage rates
Reduced demand for mortgages

Another Florida crumbling condo

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2945412/Squalid-crumbling-Tymber-Skan-condo-community-renters-turn-trapped-slum-lord-owners

Another example of how fragile condominium housing really is. It's not just the ticky tacky construction. It's the over reliance on the owners resources. Many associations were obviously unsustainable from the start but they were profit centers for the real estate and financial sector so they were built and sold anyway. Now the remaining owners and renters are stuck in awful circumstances, others lost their shirts. 

Florida county wants to privatize practically everything

http://highlandstoday.com/hi/local-news/commissioners-following-privatization-goals-20150207/

Highlands County, Florida goes full-on privatization. 

Woman jailed for having messy yard

http://atlanta.cbslocal.com/2014/10/16/woman-sent-to-jail-for-overgrown-yard/#.VEK9ehB65yg.email

Thanks to Mystery Reader for this link.  You think your HOA is bad? Try Lenoir City, TN.

Lenoir City, Tenn. (CBS ATLANTA) – An East Tennessee woman who fell behind in her yard work was sent to jail for not complying with city regulations regarding the maintenance of her overgrown lawn.

Condo owners forced to sell for peanuts

Republicans and libertarians delight in complaining about eminent domain.  They think it some sort of tyranny when local governments force people to sell their property at current market value so the land can be cleared for some public use.  But the same people just love HOAs and condo associations, which they think are bastions of freedom because people supposedly consented to the loss of their liberties. I've never found that argument convincing, but how about this, libertarians and Republicans?  Here's the private equivalent of eminent domain, without the due process clause. This sort of thing has been happening all over the country, as failing condo associations get taken over by investors who buy up enough units (usually at foreclosure sales) to control the association, force the remaining owners to sell for a fraction of what they paid for the units (see below--one woman paid $217,500 for her unit and is being forced to sell for $46,500) and terminate the condominium entirely, turning it into an apartment building.  We call that "de-conversion" because its the opposite of converting apartment buildings into condominium projects.  Florida changed the law in 2007 to make it easier for investors to do this--they no longer need 100% consent to terminate the condominium, whiich was the standard rule for decades in most states. It's all perfectly legal.
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"ORLANDO – When Amanda Gonzalez bought her two-bedroom condominium near Orlando in 2006, she thought she was getting a foothold on the America dream. Gonzalez never missed a payment for her mortgage, condo fees or taxes, even after the real estate crash in 2008 and 2009. When she was laid up after an accident, and money was tight, she still kept her books in order. So it came as a shock when the company that sold her the unit told her the complex was being converted into rental apartments ("terminated"), and that she had to accept what the company offered – far less than what she had paid.  Under a Florida law, companies that own more than 80 percent of condo units in one building can terminate a condo complex under certain conditions and turn it into apartments for rent. The companies have to pay the owners they're evicting the "current market value" for their units, which may not even cover their mortgage."

http://america.aljazeera.com/watch/shows/america-tonight/articles/2015/2/6/florida-condo-law.html?utm_content=main&utm_campaign=ajam&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=SocialFlow

Guilty plea in $1.5 million Henderson, NV, real estate fraud

Another condo-related real estate fraud in Nevada.

http://www.reviewjournal.com/news/las-vegas/former-henderson-woman-pleads-guilty-real-estate-fraud

HOA sue orthodox Jewish congregation for home synagogue

http://dfw.cbslocal.com/2015/02/03/hoa-sues-orthodox-jewish-congregation-for-operating-synagogue-in-home/

Texas neighborhood with race restrictive covenants shuts down black man's business

"The Northwood Park Civic Association — which governs a neighborhood near Houston — has never got around to removing outdated deed restrictions which limit home ownership to the “Caucasian race.” And now, the Texas Workforce Commission is accusing the neighborhood group of racial discrimination for the way it shut down a black resident’s home business because they said his signs broke deed rules."

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2015/02/texas-neighborhood-with-caucasian-race-rule-shuts-down-black-mans-home-business-over-signage/

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The forgotten history of HOAs includes their essential role in enforcing racial segregation.  Race restrictive covenants have been unenforceable since 1948 (Shelly v. Kraemer) but many HOAs and subdivisions still have them on the books. Perhaps they are hoping the Supreme Court will reverse itself and let them indulge their taste for racial discrimination.  This place didn't go that far. They tried to shut down this man's home business.  He says they let at least three white residents operate their businesses.

where's CNN?

CNN went nuts over 8" of snow in NYC.  We just got 19", it was 6 degrees overnight, and  I didn't see any CNN talking heads freaking out over us. And we have another 7" coming over the next two days. 

St. Petersburg man builds gun range in front yard.

"The Lakewood Estates neighborhood is filled with families and children. On any given day, you'll see kids climbing trees and playing on swing sets.

That's why news of a residential gun range did not sit well with neighbors.

“I don't know if this idiot is going to start popping off rounds,” said Patrick Leary. “I'm furious.” Moms and dads are extremely upset after their 21-year-old neighbor, Joseph Carannate, told them he built a homemade gun range.

http://www.wfla.com/story/27997914/st-pete-man-builds-gun-range-in-yard-neighbors-outraged

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One more bit of evidence proving that this country is going completely nuts.

Super rich buying boltholes to hide from chaos caused by their policies

"Ultra-wealthy financiers are buying land, homes and airstrips in countries such as New Zealand to escape to in case the poor rise up against wealth inequality. Fears of political unrest across the United States as in the Ferguson riots and Occupy protests have caused the billionaires to plan their escape to secret hideaways.Robert Johnson, president of the Institute of New Economic Thinking, told people at the World Economic Forum in Davos that many hedge fund managers were already planning their escapes."

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This is  not some lefty radical. This is a highly regarded analyst speaking to the World Economic Forum. 

http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/super-rich-hedge-fund-managers-buying-boltholes-private-airstrips-case-revolution-1485263

Public space? I got your public space right here.

http://boingboing.net/2015/01/25/san-francisco-ponders-letting.html

"Like many cities, SF asks fancy property developers to create "public spaces" in their buildings to make up for parks and other public sites they displace, and these are usually a joke, hidden away far in the buildings' depths and deliberately hidden from the public. Now, a proposed amendment to the municipal code will allow those developers to do away with the pretense of public access altogether, by paying a nominal fee in lieu of creating these absurd "parks" within or atop their buildings."

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Well, after all, why shouldn't our overlords be able to buy their way out of any and all legal obligations?  Thanks to Mystery Reader for this link.

HOA says Ford F-150 is a commercial vehicle--can't park in driveway

http://www.inquisitr.com/1771027/homeowners-association-sues-pickup-truck-owners-and-you-wont-believe-why/

David And Arna Orlando Sued By Kimry Moor Homeowners' Association For Parking Personal Pickup Truck In Their Driveway

David And Arna Orlando Sued By Kimry Moor Homeowners' Association For Parking Personal Pickup Truck In Their Driveway: David and Arna Orlando are being sued by their homeowners association for parking their pickup truck in their own driveway.

The Kimry Moor Homeowners Association filed the lawsuit in August of 2013, claiming that the truck was not a personal vehicle. The Manlius, New York, development consists of 84 houses.

Kimry Moor’s regulations state that cars parked in driveways must be “private, passenger-type, pleasure automobiles.” Court documents show that Kimry Moor owns the common areas of the development, which include the driveways of all houses. Technically, the Orlandos can park their truck in the garage.
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Jeff Foxworthy sez: "If yew park yore truck in yore driveway, ya might be a redneck to your HOA."

America's Class War Explained in 1 Chart | Alternet

America's Class War Explained in 1 Chart | Alternet

As the author says, we've been in a class war since the 1970s, but only one side is fighting: the rich. And they are winning big.

Student renters lead to HOA dispute

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/opinion/os-ucf-renters-beth-kassab-20150116-column.html

So finally we have an HOA dispute over an association that won't enforce the rules.

Parents investigated by CPS for letting their kids walk home alone

http://blog.sfgate.com/sfmoms/2015/01/15/parents-investigated-by-cps-for-letting-their-kids-walk-home-alone/

This isn't from The Onion.  "Maryland parents are under investigation by Children’s Protective Services (CPS) for allowing their 10-year-old daughter and 6-year-old son to walk from a local park to their home through a suburban community. Danielle and Alexander Meitiv told the Washington Post that they gave Rafi and Dorva permission to make the one-mile trek from Woodside Park in Silver Spring, Md., on a Saturday afternoon (Dec. 20). The kids made it halfway home when police picked them up, based on a phone call from a concerned neighbor. Ravi explained to the authorities that his mother allows him and his sister to walk around the neighborhood unaccompanied by an adult, but police insisted on driving the children home."

Judges show homeowners association a sign: Back off

http://poststar.com/news/local/judges-show-homeowners-association-a-sign-back-off/article_9d9bc4ba-9d05-11e4-8573-63b818ba78f1.html

"QUEENSBURY -- A local couple has been successful a second time in court, as a mid-level appeals court ruled last week that Hudson Pointe Homeowners Association has no authority to restrict posting of political signs in front of the couple’s property.The decision comes after an August 2013 ruling in favor of Peter and Peg Jasinski for issues with the signs that started in 2008. The homeowners association appealed that decision."

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So now the association will be "drafting a response to the ruling" after a closed meeting.  How about just obeying  the law?  How would that be for a response?

Myrtle Beach-area representatives file HOA bill to address issues and concerns Read more here: http://www.myrtlebeachonline.com/2015/01/15/4729228/myrtle-beach-area-representatives.html#storylink=cpy

http://www.myrtlebeachonline.com/2015/01/15/4729228/myrtle-beach-area-representatives.html
"State reps. Nelson Hardwick, Mike Ryhal and others have filed a wide-ranging HOA bill that would address many of the concerns residents have about homeowners associations. The bill would — among other things — limit the time developers could keep absolute control over subdivisions they build; set magistrates court as the venue where homeowner/association disputes can be addressed; require that association and board member names and contact information be registered with the S.C. Real Estate Commission; and provide for open meetings and records."
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There are other bill as well, including proposals for mandatory training of HOA board members, regulation of imposing fines on owners, and making HOAs subject to sunshine laws that apply to local governments.  State-level process regulations like these are the typical response of state legislatures to all the complaints they get  from owners.  But, as I've been pointing out for almost ten years, there is no willingness to  get into the structural  issues, such as the municipal mandates requiring developers to create CIDs.

Read more here: http://www.myrtlebeachonline.com/2015/01/15/4729228/myrtle-beach-area-representatives.html#storylink=cpy

'Bitcoin Jesus' Renounced His American Citizenship — So Now The US Isn't Letting Him In

This individual is a gazillionaire Libertarian social parasite who fled the nation he was born in, the good old USA, so he wouldn't have to pay taxes. Now the US won't let him back in.  Predictably, he is screaming tyranny and tweeting pictures of  Darth Vader. Where's my tiny violin?

http://www.businessinsider.com/bitcoin-jesus-visa-application-denied-2015-1

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.

Whitefish Subdivision Seeks Intervention in Lawsuit Over Gated Communities - Flathead Beacon

Whitefish Subdivision Seeks Intervention in Lawsuit Over Gated Communities - Flathead Beacon: “Notably, gates have been generally disfavored and disallowed by the City Council in a number of other neighborhoods as antithetical to the type of community in which the majority of Whitefish residents would like to live,” according to the lawsuit. “To that end, on Oct. 6, the City passed Resolution 14-48 which prohibits any subdivision or residential neighborhood from gating its streets so as to prohibit public access.”

Grouse Mountain Homeowners Inc. wishes to intervene in the lawsuit to “oppose Grouse Mountain Estates proposed installation of gates, enforce and defend its contractual rights, and to otherwise protect its residents’ rights to unimpeded and unobstructed use of Mountainside Drive.”

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More pushback against Fortress Privatopia.

West Sacramento council OKs development – without gated entry | The Sacramento Bee

West Sacramento council OKs development – without gated entry | The Sacramento Bee: Council members told the developer that a gated community would defy their long-held notion of what West Sacramento stands for and what it wants to be.

“This is not a city that gates its neighborhoods off. That’s not who we are as a town,” West Sacramento Mayor Christopher Cabaldon said at the Dec. 17 City Council meeting. “It’s a pretty open-and-shut issue as far as what our values are.”

Gated neighborhoods are not prohibited in West Sacramento, and the city already has three of them. But the idea has been widely unpopular for years in this town with working-class roots. A gated single-family development has not been built in the city in 20 years, Cabaldon said at the meeting.

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West Sacramento declines to join Fortress Privatopia.

Zombie Christmas display owner defies order to remove

"CINCINNATI (AP) — A "Zombie Nativity" scene in a southwest Ohio suburb remained undead Tuesday, days past the deadline to remove it.

Sycamore Township officials said last week they had received complaints about debris at the home and concluded that the display violates rules on size and placement of yard structures. They sent resident Jasen Dixon two zoning violation notices and gave him until the day after Christmas to take it down."

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Apparently there is some esoteric freedom of expression idea at the root of this, but I confess that it eludes me. In general I'd agree that people should be able to have whatever holiday display they want, but I don't understand the  motivation behind being intentionally and purposefully offensive. 

Illinois General Assembly - Bill Status for HB4204

Illinois General Assembly - Bill Status for HB4204



Governor Quinn just signed this into law, creating the office of Condominium Ombudsperson for the state of Illinois.  I helped State Rep. Elaine Nekritz with this bill over the last year.  The Ombudsperson's functions are mainly ADR and education.  In addition, condo associations will be required to have an ADR policy and they will have to register with the state.

You can get the full pdf version of the bill at my mckenzie-law wiki page here:

The Federal Housing Finance Agency is "concerned" about state legislatures....

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Statement of the Federal Housing Finance Agency on Certain Super Priority Liens

Today, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) is alerting homeowners, financial institutions, and state authorities of the agency’s concerns with state-level actions that threaten the first-lien status of single-family loans owned or guaranteed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.  In particular, FHFA is concerned about state actions to create super-priority liens in two instances: 1) through certain energy retrofit financing programs structured as tax assessments and 2) through granting priority rights in foreclosure proceedings for homeowner associations.  In issuing this statement, FHFA is acting in furtherance of its statutory obligations as regulator and conservator of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. 

The existence of these super-priority liens increases the risk of losses to taxpayers.  Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, while operating in conservatorship, currently support the housing finance market by purchasing, guaranteeing, and securitizing single-family mortgages.  One of the bedrock principles in this process is that the mortgages supported by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac must remain in first-lien position, meaning that they have first priority in receiving the proceeds from selling a house in foreclosure.  As a result, any lien from a loan added after origination should not be able to jump in line ahead of a Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac mortgage to collect the proceeds of the sale of a foreclosed property.  However, as is detailed below, FHFA is concerned by some liens being advanced to “super-priority” status over Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac first-lien mortgages...FHFA is aware that, in certain jurisdictions, liens for unpaid homeowner association ("HOA") dues may be deemed to be senior to preexisting mortgage liens on a homeowner's property.  As a result, on December 5, 2014, FHFA and Fannie Mae filed an action in federal court in Nevada, seeking a determination that a HOA's foreclosure sale is invalid and contrary to federal law to the extent that it purports to extinguish Fannie Mae's property rights.  Federal National Mortgage Association v. SFR Investments Pool 1, LLC, No. 2:14-cv-02046 (D. Nev. December 5, 2014).  FHFA has also intervened in Saticoy Bay, LLC Series 1702 Empire Mine v. Federal National Mortgage Assoc., No. 2:14-cv-01975 (D. Nev.), seeking a declaration that a prior HOA foreclosure sale is invalid to the extent that it purports to extinguish Fannie Mae's property interests.   

​​These FHFA actions are based on federal law which precludes involuntary extinguishment of liens held by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac while they are operating in conservatorships and bars holders of other liens, including HOAs, from taking any action that would extinguish a Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac lien, security interest or other property interest. Specifically, Title 12 USC Section 4617(j)(3) states that "[no] property of the Agency shall be subject to levy, attachment, garnishment, foreclosure, or sale without the consent of the Agency, nor shall any involuntary lien attach to the property of the Agency."  FHFA is authorized, as conservator, to bring this suit because Enterprise lien interests in collateral constitute property protected by this provision.   FHFA has an obligation to protect Fannie Mae's and Freddie Mac's rights, and will aggressively do so by bringing actions to void foreclosures that purport to extinguish Enterprise property interests in a manner that contravenes federal law.

http://www.fhfa.gov/mobile/Pages/public-affairs-detail.aspx?PageName=Statement-of-the-Federal-Housing-Finance-Agency-on-Certain-Super-Priority-Liens.aspx
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Needless to say, the Community Associations Institute is vehemently opposed to this FHFA position. CAI is the major proponent of "superlien" laws that give associations priority over first mortgages to some extent.  Here's what CAI has to say about this:

 CAI: FHFA Move Threatens Associations & Owners 

12/23/2014  - Falls Church , VA

Dec. 23, 2014—The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) released a statement yesterday expressing concern about state statutes that allow community associations to obtain lien priority over first mortgages for unpaid association assessments. By asking a federal court to intervene, FHFA is trying to bail out mortgage servicers that have failed to fulfill basic contractual obligations to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

"Make no mistake, FHFA is bailing out mortgage servicers that lacked the competency to meet basic contractual requirements and follow established rules of civil procedure," said Thomas M. Skiba, CAE, chief executive officer of Community Associations Institute (CAI). "By suing community associations, FHFA is trying to protect Fannie and Freddie at the expense of association homeowners. That's unfair, unconscionable and unacceptable."

For years, CAI has joined with federal regulators (as well as Fannie Mae) to call on mortgage servicers to secure and maintain vacant and abandoned properties and meet their financial obligations to community associations and their homeowners. These calls and regulatory directives have been largely ignored with impunity by mortgage servicers. 

"In one case, Fannie Mae’s servicers failed to respond to legal service of process and, despite mandatory notification pursuant to Nevada law, failed to appear at a foreclosure auction to protect Fannie Mae's financial interests," Skiba continued. "It says a lot about FHFA priorities that the agency now is suing to recoup Fannie Mae's losses from the pockets of community association homeowners, rather than suing servicers for breach of contract. Someone must stand up for homeowners and that’s what CAI will continue to do."

FHFA is nothing if not strategic, electing to release its statement on the heels of a lawsuit filed by the agency in federal court in Nevada. FHFA is seeking a determination that an HOA's foreclosure sale is invalid and contrary to federal law because it would extinguish Fannie Mae's property rights. However, the right of foreclosure FHFA is seeking to invalidate nationwide is permitted by law in Nevada, 21 other states and the District of Columbia.

FHFA asserts that it is compelled by law to file suit to protect Fannie Mae's and Freddie Mac's rights and to prevent taxpayers from incurring losses. Skiba said the FHFA statement "blatantly ignores" Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac rights under the respective seller/servicing guides that allow these mammoth enterprises to recover losses resulting from the mismanagement of mortgage servicers. Despite a range of available remedies, FHFA has opted to sue to invalidate state priority lien statutes rather than enforcing its rights under contract.

"It's incredulous that a Federal agency would sacrifice the interests of 65 million taxpayers who live in community associations to protect the very banks all American taxpayers spent billions of dollars to bail out during the economy-shattering housing crisis," Skiba said. "And it’s shocking for FHFA to attack state laws that have been in place for more than 100 years of precedent and practice. Fact is, by paying their association assessments and protecting property values, these homeowners protect the value of lenders' assets in associations. Yet, FHFA is enabling the bad behavior of mortgage servicers who don't spend a dime to maintain and protect their own property investments."

CAI will continue to monitor FHFA's hostile actions against the right of community associations to secure priority liens on properties within their boundaries.”

Get more information on the priority lien issue, including a detailed CAI statementand a map of states with priority lien statutes. See the Nevada Supreme Court decision.

With more than 33,000 members dedicated to building better communities, CAI works in partnership with 60 chapters to provide information, education and resources to community associations and the professionals who support them. CAI’s mission is to inspire professionalism, effective leadership and responsible citizenship—ideals reflected in communities that are preferred places to call home. Visit www.caionline.org or call (888) 224-4321. 

http://www.caionline.org/about/press/Pages/FHFAMoveThreatensHomeownersandtheirCommunities.aspx

Las Vegas HOA fraud trial will stay in Las Vegas

Why? Because it happened in Vegas.  The judge on this massive fraud trial ruled that the trial will stay right where it is, denying a change of venue motion based on the level of publicity.  The defense is particularly upset at the Las Vegas Review-Journal's Jeff German for obtaining documents concerning  Leon Belzer's plea bargaining talks with the US Attorney's office. Those talks didn't result in a deal, so off  to trial they go.  The funny part: the only reason German was able to get the documents is that one of the defendants put them in the court record and they were available to the public for two days. So the most damaging publicity is their own fault.




http://www.reviewjournal.com/news/las-vegas/las-vegas-hoa-corruption-trial-stays-las-vegas

Pasco county HOA calls homes unsafe

In the sense that they might fall down in a high wind.

http://www.wtsp.com/story/news/local/2014/12/22/pasco-county-hoa-call-homes-unsafe/20693037/

Malfunctioning elevators and association inaction equal financial disaster

A condo association has had malfunctioning elevators for six years and hasn't fixed them properly because they say they can't afford it. Now they are facing $5 million in fines. I wonder if they can afford that.

http://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/community/miami-dade/north-miami/article4925946.html

Orange County Threatens Big Fines For Excessive Christmas Decorations

Looks like the grinch came early to Ladera Ranch this year:

"LADERA RANCH (CBSLA.com) — Orange County is threatening substantial fines to one neighborhood over their extreme Christmas decorations. Twenty-one residents in Baudin Circle in Ladera Ranch say they received letters from the Orange County Public Works department, stating that their lights are safety hazards.  Some homeowners at Baudin circle have taken pride in putting together an impressive Christmas lights show for ten years....“This was, I think, our second notice today, and basically it says we have twenty-four hours to take (the lights) down, before we get fined five-hundred dollarsa day,” resident Cynthia Mellow said."

The bad kind of unionism?

Police unions have come to stand above all for the principles that (1) individual cops should be above the law,  and (2) police forces should operate independently of political control. Now that this situation has generated protest and media coverage, with institutional racism being exposed for teh whole world to see, police union bosses are dropping the mask of civility and going straight to authoritarian rage.  Very instructive for those who are paying attention.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/12/23/police-unions_n_6373380.html

"They’ve bitterly opposed civilian review boards (and, if established, have sought to undermine them). They’ve fought the placement of names and badge numbers on officer uniforms. They’ve resisted rooting out police misconduct. “The modern police union movement,” criminologist Samuel Walker argues, “originated largely in reaction to the civil rights movement and its criticisms of police conduct during the 1960s…. Any local unions originated or at least became more militant in response to specific police-community relations initiatives in the 1960s.”

Ohio town threatens legal action against zombie baby Jesus

I can never understand why people do things that are intended to annoy their neighbors, but here's the latest  outrage.
http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2014/12/ohio-town-threatens-legal-action-against-zombie-baby-jesus-nativity-scene-on-mans-lawn/

Why the controversy over police shootings is so ugly.

Joseph Wambaugh, a best-selling novelist and former LAPD officer, said that policing isn't a physically dangerous job if you look at the statistics. Being a cab driver, a construction worker, a farm laborer, and many other occupations have higher fatality rates.  But being a police officer is one of the most psychologically dangerous occupations by far.  More police officers die by their own hand than die in the line of duty.  Most of them start out as idealistic people who want to help others and the job is fun.  But they spend 8 hours per day seeing people at their worst and this gradually makes them cynical and pessimistic.  The cop subculture is their resource for dealing with these feelings because they all feel this way.  As time goes by cops develop an us versus them mentality. They get absorbed into the cop subculture where they come to believe that they are the thin blue line between naive sheep who don't understand how bad things are, and vicious predators. There is a lot of alcohol abuse and relationship problems are the norm. Over the years they come to surround themselves entirely with other cops.  They literally don't associate with anybody who isn't a police officer.  This leads to a profound sense of isolation from society, but they reinforce each other in these distorted perceptions.   Eventually they don't trust anybody who isn't a cop.  They become quick to get paranoid and angry and confrontational--and violent.  And they know that prosecutors and judges are terrified of their unions.  

This is why they cover for each other, even in the most inexcusable situations. It is why police unions relentlessly defend cops who killed unarmed civilians in situations that would lead to murder convictions for anybody else.

And if you look at the other side of the controversy, you see millions of people who are horrified at the thought that anybody with a badge and a gun can beat them senseless or shoot them full  of holes on the slightest pretext and face no legal consequences at all.  In African-American and Latino neighborhoods the rage, the sense that the time has come to say no more of this, is intense.  They have had over twenty years of "broken window" policing in their neighborhoods, where they get rousted for the most trivial reasons on the theory that this is how to haul in the people with warrants and weapons.  But think of all the bogus stops, the harrassment, the reality-based sense of being persecuted, that has built up in low income neighborhoods. It is intense. Read Matt Taibbi's take on that.  He says law enforcement is becoming illegitimate, because the poor are ground to hamburger by the law, but the rich can steal millions and face no consequences at all. It's like something out of Dickens.

And this is why the current controversy over police shootings and beatings has the potential to be so profoundly ugly. It will be hard to  find any middle ground, because maybe there isn't any.  

Most hostile "holiday" display ever

"Ansell, an electrician, has a display on his yard that features a beheaded choir, a hanging Mickey Mouse and even a urinating Santa Claus that lights up at night".

And that's not all. It's enough to make you wish you had an HOA.

http://abcnews.go.com/US/man-terrorizing-neighbors-hostile-holiday-decoration-display/story?id=27671282

Prosecute John Yoo, says Erwin Chemerinsky

http://m.thenation.com/blog/192809-prosecute-john-yoo-says-law-school-dean-erwin-chemerinsky

I've never heard of a law school dean calling for the prosecution of a law professor, but in this case, why not? He provided legal cover for the Bush/Cheney administration's torture program. Torture is a   crime under US law, as is conspiracy to torture.

Homeowners angry with HOA over rumble strips

http://www.fox5vegas.com/story/27636264/homeowners-hoa-to-rumble-over-street-strips

The strips are noisy, say residents.   As with many such disputes the association says it was settled by a vote but residents say they didn't know anything about it.  Internal communication in HOAs is often bad, with BODs saying the residents aren't paying attention and residents  claiming the BOD operates in secret. The other typical feature is putting social control over other priorities.  People have been asking for 30 years why so many HOA and condo boards obsess about controlling people.
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"We could have slides, nice playground equipment. We could have barbecues fixed – some are toppled over. We could have landscaping. We could have community events, but we have rumble strips," Karen Frantel said.
The Frantels said they were told the HOA board and residents voted on the strips, but they weren't aware of a vote.


Read more: http://www.fox5vegas.com/story/27636264/homeowners-hoa-to-rumble-over-street-strips#ixzz3M46CMQz1

City says 'forged or altered' document let to $2 million tax break for condos

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/baltimore-city/bs-md-ci-tax-credits-20141212-story.html#page=1


"Baltimore's planning department was tricked into awarding $2.1 million in historic tax credits to a Little Italy condominium project based on a "forged or altered" document, a city review panel says in a new report."
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And that means 25 condo owners will see their property tax bills go up by $10,000 per year.

How Las Vegas gambled on the housing boom--and lost

http://m.thenation.com/article/191777-how-las-vegas-gambled-housing-boom-and-lost

The Las Vegas area has no water and a mono-economy that depends entirely on gambling.  Here's a great idea:  let's start a huge housing boom and grow like crazy.  What could possibly go wrong?

Homeowner association boots residents' cars on city streets!

http://krqe.com/2014/12/10/homeowners-association-boots-residents-on-city-streets/

And the city sent them a cease and desist letter that could lead to criminal prosecution if the HOA continues to defy the law.

A handful of lawyers have the Supreme Court's ear

Does this sound familiar? A small group of attorneys specializes in appearing before the USSC. But they are very reluctant to represent ordinary people because that would interfere with the flow of money from their elite corporate clients. It isn't that lawyers are bad people, as many people seem to think. It is that the economic incentives are structured so that representing human being doesn't pay off.

http://m.truthdig.com/eartotheground/item/a_handful_of_corporate_lawyers_have_the_supreme_courts_ear_20141212

Bill would force HOAs to allow fake grass | UTSanDiego.com

Bill would force HOAs to allow fake grass | UTSanDiego.com: SACRAMENTO — California homeowner associations would be required to allow artificial turf in front yards under a bill recently proposed by the San Diego County Water Authority.

The bill, or a version of it, is likely to be championed by Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez, D-San Diego.

Only a fraction of the state’s 47,000 HOAs permit synthetic grass on front lawns, with many saying its out-of-place look is a threat to property values.

Luxury building fences off rent stabilized tenants' terraces

http://nypost.com/2014/12/07/luxury-bulding-fences-off-rent-stabilized-tenants-terraces/

"First there was the Poor Door. Now there’s the Poor Porch. A Queens luxury tower that was bailed out by the city is blocking the large terraces of a few affordable units so tenants above with tiny balconies don’t get jealous, one resident claims."

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Ever since the Reaganization of both parties, the rich have been hoovering up virtually all the increase in national wealth while the rest of us stagnate or lose ground. In the process, the rich have become so irresponsible and arrogant that they don't even want to pretend we are all part of the same society. And here's the best part. The project was bailed out at public expense.

"Once a stalled condo project, the 17-story building was revived by the city Department of Housing Preservation and Development’s Housing Asset Renewal Program. The city doled out $7.6 million in subsidies and, with Bank of America, provided $28 million in low-interest construction loans to Queensboro."

(PS:  http://crooksandliars.com/2014/12/rj-eskow-jeffrey-sachs-pathological
The pathological culture of the rich.)

Another HOA embezzlement case

http://www.summitdaily.com/news/14114410-113/polich-association-money-affidavit

"Robert Dwight Polich, 62, the longtime financial administrator for a Keystone homeowners association, was arrested on Dec. 2 and charged with embezzling about $160,000 from the HOA."
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Here we go again.

Can condo bylaws bans on "noxious or offensive activities" be used to stifle free speech?

http://www.chicagotribune.com/classified/realestate/ct-mre-1207-condo-living-20141201-column.html

Yes, according to attorney Howard Dakoff.  So how do you like that?

"A bylaws provision that prohibits noxious or offensive activities that are an annoyance or nuisance to other unit owners or occupants is a common provision. Such provisions are routinely board-enforced and upheld by courts. Unit owners have the right to free speech, but boards have the right to fine unit owners for exercising such speech if it harasses or becomes a nuisance to other owners."

Golden's trash program decreases waste, upsets homeowners associations

http://www.denverpost.com/golden/ci_27052742/goldens-trash-program-decreases-waste-upsets-homeowners-associations

"Golden's expansion of its pay-as-you-throw trash collection has left some homeowners associations and apartment managers unsure how they will work it into their current contracts.Pay-as-you-throw offers trash customers volume-based pricing so that they can choose to pay less for a small trash can or more for a larger one. A recycling bin is included, so the idea is that customers will recycle in order to avoid going over their chosen volume.That incentive, however, is not the same at apartment complexes where everyone puts their trash in the same container and it is hard to track who throws away more. "Our problem is that it really becomes the landlord educating the tenant," on why they should recycle, said Nancy Burke, vice president of government affairs for the Apartment Association of Metro Denver. A representative of the association spoke against the program expansion at a Nov. 13 public hearing. Residents of homeowners associations are often on the same contract, so splitting them up means added administrative work. Jim Cringler, who manages the Village at Mountain Ridge homeowners association in Golden, said that will lead to an increase in cost."

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Interesting problem for HOAs.  Do they to "educate" their unit owners about the need to reduce common expenses by changing their habits and recycling more, and expect voluntary compliance? Or  will property managers and boards use the usual command-and-control model to do this, and just order people to do it, or pay a fine?

Clueless Las Vegas HOA defense attorney can't figure out how public records became public

http://www.reviewjournal.com/news/las-vegas/hoa-defense-lawyer-probing-how-review-journal-got-now-secret-documents

Ace reporter Jeff German made it clear how he got the not-so-secret-anymore documents in the Las Vegas HOA takeover fraud case.  But now a defense attorney is making noises about getting to the bottom of this non-mystery.

Illinois: What to expect for condo owners in 2015

http://www.chicagotribune.com/classified/realestate/ct-mre-1207-condo-forecast-2015-20141201-story.html#page=1

Pamela McKuen expains changes in law and policy for the state of Illinois.

Israeli high court upholds residential screening that would enable Jewish villages to keep Arabs out

http://www.haaretz.com/news/national/.premium-1.616391

"The law, which was passed in March 2011, allows small communities to set up admissions committees to screen potential new members based on criteria laid down in the community’s bylaws. Such committees have been standard practice in small communities for decades, but until this law was passed, they had no legal basis. Several human rights organizations, including Adalah and the Association for Civil Rights in Israel, argued that the law would allow these communities to reject homosexuals, people with disabilities, Arabs or anyone else who differed from the community’s social norm. ..Though the law explicitly prohibits discrimination against members of other social groups, it permits the admissions committees to reject candidates on such vague grounds as “unsuitability to the community’s social life” or its “social-cultural fabric” or to “unique characteristics of the community as defined in its bylaws.” 

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So now they can say, we aren't discriminating against Arabs. We are just rejecting people who are "unsuitable to the community's social life or socio-cultural fabric, or the the unique characteristics of the community as defined in its bylaws."  

In the US HOAs enforced race restrictive covenants for decades. Then when civil rights statutes made that illegal, more sophisticated ways of creating one-race, one-class communities were devised.  These days, the increasing inequality of wealth and income does most of the work.

There's more on this policy here. 

Residents ask court to remove 3 HOA board members

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/local/broward/fl-lawsuit-tamarac-hoa-20141117-story.html
"Residents of a 55-plus neighborhood are so fed up with four members of their homeowners association board that they are asking a judge to help remove them. Nearly 75 residents of the Mainlands 3are asking a Broward circuit court judge to forbid the four from writing checks and to hold a special meeting within 48 hours to allow a removal vote."
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This is an election dispute. Judges tend to be reluctant to reverse HOA elections because they think if they start doing it soon they will be doing little else.

The Unfinished Suburbs of America - The Atlantic

The Unfinished Suburbs of America - The Atlantic: There are hundreds of zombie subdivisions like this one scattered across the country. They're one of the most visible reminders of the housing boom and bust, planned and paved in the heady days where it seemed that everybody wanted a home in the suburbs, and could afford it, too. But when the economy tanked, many of the developers behind these subdivisions went belly-up, and construction stopped. In some cases, a few people have moved into homes in these half-built subdivisions, requiring services to be delivered there. In others, the land is empty, except for roads, sidewalks, and the few street signs that haven't been stolen yet. In some counties in the West, anywhere from 15 to 33 percent of all subdivision lots are vacant, according to the Sonoran Institute.
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It's going to take a long time for these unfinished Privatopias to recover from the crash of the burbs in the latter half of the previous decade.

Local lawmakers work towards HOA legislation - WMBFNews.com, Myrtle Beach/Florence SC, Weather

Local lawmakers work towards HOA legislation - WMBFNews.com, Myrtle Beach/Florence SC, Weather



Good luck, folks. It's the standard line about disclosure--that's all the help you will get from "law makers," and it isn't worth much. What good is disclosure when (a) nearly all new housing is in HOA or other CIDs so you have no choice, and (b) every single word of "what they are signing up for" is incomprehensible, non-negotiable, boilerplate?  

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"HORRY COUNTY, SC (WMBF) - Local law makers are working on a draft bill for HOA legislation. The bill will focus on three trending issues they feel would hold the most significance on the floor while helping the most people.  A top concern for some law makers is to make sure people know what they are signing up for when it comes to their HOAs."

Does HUD's privatization scheme mean the end of public housing?

http://america.aljazeera.com/opinions/2014/11/public-housing-renovationrentalassistancedemonstration.html

"Launched in 2013, the RAD (Rental Assistance Demonstration) will hand over 60,000 units of public housing to private management by 2015. While that’s only a fraction of the nearly 1.2 million public housing units nationwide, RAD’s reach could soon expand: HUD Secretary Julián Castro and participating developers are lobbying Congress to lift the cap set during the program’s initial phase and allow more conversions to private ownership, and HUD is requesting $10 million toward the expansion of the RAD."
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The ideology of privatization is so entrenched in the neoliberal wing of the Democratic Party that they won't defend anything public anymore. It turns out in practice that these programs end up being disasters in many cases, but  by then the profit-takers are in the Bahamas and the rest of us are left to clean up the mess. We'll see how this RAD program works in practice.

Cigarette rage shuts down public meeting over tobacco ban

http://www.boston.com/news/2014/11/12/unruly-crowd-shuts-down-westminster-tobacco-ban-meeting/SpTOwv1ttrcNmcrB7C5RZK/story.html

So this is what freedom is all about for some people: cigarettes.  The tiny little town of Westminster, Massachusetts, is considering a ban on the sale of tobacco products. That brought out a host of flag-draped, nicotine-addicted oldsters who were so angry and out of control that the  meeting had to be shut down. They were screaming about freedom. Nonsense. It's about public safety.  The city is trying to prevent the tobacco industry from hooking yet another generation of  their children on the addictive drug that they are peddling inside their cancerous little death-tubes. Smoking kills 480,000 Americans every year.  The cost to all of us is enormous. According to the CDC, the cost is:

• More than $289 billion a year, including at least $133 billion in direct medical care for adults and more than $156 billion in lost productivity
• $5.6 billion a year (2006 data) in lost productivity from exposure to secondhand smoke

http://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/data_statistics/fact_sheets/fast_facts/

While I'm on the topic, I've often wondered why smokers think it is perfectly acceptable to fling cigarette butts all over creation.  Why do they think this is anything but littering?

Domino’s founder turning FL town into unconstitutional contraception-free ‘Catholic enclave’

Domino’s founder turning FL town into unconstitutional contraception-free ‘Catholic enclave’

I've posted about Ave Maria before. Let's see how this shapes up--do we have another Marsh v. Alabama on our hands?

Ten buildings in San Francisco where the HOA fees are higher than the rent

http://sf.curbed.com/archives/2014/11/11/mapping_10_buildings_with_hoa_fees_higher_than_your_rent.php


"The highest HOA fees at 1001 surpass the $5,000 mark—which is high above the recent citywide median rent of $3,488. The 10th-place HOA fee on our map is $2,838, which is still more than the median rent for a one-bedroom in Bernal."
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After which the article goes on to rationalize and justify the high fees as "boring homeownery stuff" and "high-dollar extras" like doormen, without mentioning management company charges, senseless litigation, and other costs that  are more controversial than paying for utilities. It is getting harder to tell the difference between real estate reporters and PR flacks for the housing  industry.

Park Ridge residents sued for objecting to condo development

http://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/park-ridge-niles/ct-park-ridge-lawsuit-met-20141111-story.html

This is a SLAAP suit (Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation) against some neighbors who objected to construction of a condo project.  City officials and twenty citizens who attended two public meetings are named as defendants.  Got your local democracy right here.

Six month sentence for public sex in retirement "community"

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2828952/Couple-sentenced-six-months-jail-having-sex-outdoors-Florida-retirement-community-go.html

Six months in jail for having public sex in a retirement "community"? And it's the second time a sentence like this has been imposed for public sex in this place. Are you kidding me?  They should get a medal. This place is called "The Villages,"  but perhaps "Cotton Mather Acres" would be a better name.

Selling fast: public goods, profits, and state legitimacy

http://bostonreview.net/books-ideas/mike-konczal-profits-state-legitimacy-parrillo-goldstein-balko#.VGDbvdxAADs.twitter

Mike Konczal reviews three books dealing with the failures of privatization and in the process writes a brilliant  essay. A taste:

"Through the first half of our country’s history, public officials were paid according to the profit motive, and it was only through the failures of that system that a fragile accountability was put into place during the Progressive Era. One of the key sources of this accountability was the establishment of salaries for public officials who previously had been paid on commission. As this professionalized system is dismantled, once-antique notions are becoming relevant again. Consider merit pay schemes whereby teachers are now meant to compete with each other for bonuses. This mirrors the 1770 Maryland assembly’s argument that public officials “would not perform their duties with as much diligence when paid a fixed salary as when paid for each particular service.” And note that the criminal justice system now profits from forfeiture of property and court fees levied on offenders, recalling Thomas Brackett Reed, the House Republican leader who, in 1887, argued, “In order to bring your criminals against the United States laws to detection” you “need to have the officials stimulated by a similar self-interest to that which excites and supports and sustains the criminal.”