“If it hurts, it must be good for you” or so the saying went for years.  Fortunately that myth was debunked when cooler heads prevailed and proved that pain was not a good thing. Along the same thinking, and with no conclusive evidence to support their claims of protecting property values, we watched as more and more restrictions, rules and covenants were added to the already long list of what homeowners could not do in their own homes.  This canard was repeated often enough so many people started to accept it as gospel. Well, it appears the pendulum may be swinging back the other way.  New legislation is prohibiting HOAs from banning such things as clotheslines, solar panels and flags.  These were the iconic red flags that were said to lead to “ghetto living”.

Vicki MacHale joins us On The Commons this week.  Vicki has 22 years experience in property management in California.  She recently wrote an article about the laws stripping HOAs of some of the powers they had.  She very accurately titled her article 

 “The Sky is Falling”.   She writes about the reactions from fellow colleagues and board members to the new laws as they are enacted and assures them that the sky really is not falling. Over the years, she has watched as choice in housing has been eliminated.  No longer do housing consumers get to decide how to live.  Vicki calls this the beige-ing of America. We’ll talk to Vicki and understand  what she means by the beige-ing of America and we’ll learn about some of the laws enacted in California removing powers from HOAs.   We’ll find out if the world really will come to an end or will this trend will lead to building real communities instead of war zones.