Hosted and produced by Shu Bartholomew, On The Commons is a weekly radio show dedicated to discussing the many issues surrounding mandatory homeowner associations, the fastest growing form of residential housing in the nation.
Almost four decades ago residential America began to change. No longer were Americans living in their own castles but instead, at the end of the day, found themselves going home to neighborhoods where the neighbors made all the decisions. This brave new blueprint for our communities was to deliver lifestyles beyond the reaches and wildest dreams of most Americans. Homeowners in these newfangled developments would have access to sparkling pools, tennis courts, hiking trails, golf courses, bridle paths, ponds, lakes and yes, even gazebos. The cost? A few dollars a month. But wait, there is more. In addition, these new experimental developments promised to not only protect property values but enhance them as well. And the cost? A few dollars a month ……. and complete control of that property.
Has this new experiment delivered everything it promised? Are American homeowners happier and better off today than they were before HOAs became the norm rather than the exception??
On The Commons this week we welcome back Professor Evan McKenzie. Evan is the author of the best selling book Privatopia: Homeowner Associations and the Rise of Residential Private Government. He teaches Political Science at the University of Illinois at Chicago and Common Interest Community Law at the John Marshall School of Law. Evan is also a practicing attorney and maintains an active blog at http://privatopia.blogspot.com/ . Please join us On The Commons. We’ll skip all the usual pudgy pooch, dusty mailbox horror stories that seem to grab the headlines and go right to the heart of what is happening in today’s climate of economic uncertainty. Are condo and homeowner associations surviving and just how secure are America’s 60 million HOA owners? As a keen observer of associations, politics and current events, Evan puts HOAs right in the middle of the big picture. You won’t want to miss this one.
