The economy keeps plummeting, and prices continue on their upward trajectory, making it more difficult for Americans to feed their families. Home gardens are gaining in popularity; however, The space in most urban backyards is not enough to successfully grow enough food to feed everyone, Local municipal governments in many states are lifting the bans on using front yards to grow fruits and veggies
Caroline Douglas joins us On the Commons today to talk about using one’s private property to grow fruits and vegetables to feed one’s family and perhaps even friends and neighbors who need it. This topic is a slight departure from HOAs, and ironically the laws do not affect them. Tune into what Caroline has to say about this new development.
If you do not pay your HOA dues, your homeowner’s association can and will foreclose on your home and sell your house on the courthouse steps. That is well known. However what is not well known is just how widely this abusive power is being used. Joining us On the Commons today is my good friend Caroline Douglass. Caroline explains how local municipal governments are using this practice to collect delinquent property taxes.
We’ve heard so many horror stories that I believe it must be stopped. Well, now local governments are also foreclosing on homes for non-payment of personal property taxes. Since when was that the norm? HOAs have this phony baloney contract they keep waving under our noses, “Oh, but you agreed! they say. Really? Since when does a contract of adhesion become an agreement?
And how on earth do delinquent property taxes allow the local municipal governments to foreclose on your home? It seems to me that the old adage of “give them an inch, they’ll take a mile applies here. Since property taxes do not pay for the services they were designed to cover, Instead these services like trash and snow removal are being provided by HOAS TAT ARE MANDATED BY THESE LOCAL GOVERNMENTS, YOU KNOW, THE ONES COLLECTING THESE TAXES. perhaps it is time to stop collecting them. Let’s put an end to the abuses! DO tune in to the show, I always enjoy having her on with me, I know you will love listening to her, so tune in and don’t miss this show.
We have discussed so many problems facing American homeowners that it is time to start discussing how to fix them. My guest this week, Bill Davies, and I do focus on some of them. One of the main issues is ensuring that housing cosigners take possession of a structurally safe house. One that won’t fall apart in time should include having the home inspected by independent professional inspectors. The inspector should never work for the builder. Consumers deserve to get a well-built house. Using good quality parts is also a must. A homeowner shouldn’t have to replace the kitchen floor because the sink Leaks on the floor and destroys it. That is a recent story from someone locally.
The house was expensive. Whenever I have mentioned having professional inspectors working for the county, the immediate reaction is, “Oh, we can’t afford that.” BUNK, pure and straightforward BUNK. This year, Fairfax County officials have given themselves some pretty hefty raises. Where did all this money come from? Could it be all the property taxes they collected and NOT providing any services for the money they should have paid for? Even more recently, the county found a pot of gold sitting around doing nothing; that didn’t last long; the workers got something along a 2-cent per hour raise while the officials gave themselves something along the lines of an 87-cent per hour raise.
I suppose that is why they can’t afford to hire professional inspectors; how would they be able to give themselves these hefty raises? It is high time American housing consumers got well-designed, livable, and well-constructed housing. And it is time to STOP using private houses in developments to finance all the amenities like pools, Tennis courts, and other recreational amenities. These things are great but should be voluntary and not forced on everyone. Your houses should not be used as collateral to finance these amenities. And while we are at it, mandatory membership homeowner associations should be BANNED!, People still have no idea what they are getting into when they buy a home, also known as “the American Dream.
This sort of nonsense does not exist everywhere else in the world. Let’s go back to respecting private property. And to get to that point, where Americans enjoy the freedoms the rest of the world has stopped fines, at least two courts in this country have found them to be UNCONSTITUTIONAL! So why are our legislators not blocking them? STOP FORECLOSURES; kicking children, older people, and entire families out at the start because of some purely idiotic issue like being able to see someone’s trashcan is simply stupid and an abuse of power! Can we focus on happy families and neighborhoods instead of nonsense? Please? Happy homes for all; that’s my wish for all of you.
We have been talking about “fixing” the problem with HOAs. I have said you can’t fix HOAs, they are a flawed concept, and I still maintain that. By fixing HOAs, we want to make them more acceptable to the consumer. How do you make taking all the homeowners’ rights away from them acceptable? I still maintain you can’t do that. During this show, we talk about many of the problems homeowners have to deal with and ,in the process, discover more problems that really ought to be fixed. Homeowners should not be saddled with all the wants and wishes of the local governments. That is unfair and unreasonable.
Interestingly enough, we did find a few items that could and should be fixed, and maybe, just maybe, we will come up with some improvements for the homeowners. Not everyone will be happy with our suggestions, but it is about time the homeowners got a break. Please tune in and please let me know what you think about this particular show. Thanks, as always for listening, and we wish you a very Happy Easter from the On the Commons team.
We are still in Florida for this show. For those of you who have n ot had the privilege of meeting Senator Robaina. Years ago I dubbed him the Energizer Bunny, I am happy to say, nthing has changed, he is still the Energizer Bunny and so full energy I had to work hard to keep up with him. We talk about a lot of issues that affect life in HOAs and condos. Julio explains the effect they have on the owners, especially the retirees who are living on a limited income. It seems every time there is a major, headline grabbing problem happens, whether it is an entire highrise sondo that collapses or where millions of dollars are stollen from an association, it is always the homowners who are blamed. Why? Because they are not providing adequate oversight, but ask to inspect the books and records as per your right, and the world collapses around you or the homeowners are selfish and don’t care about what happens so they refuse to fund the reserves and that’s why we have these problems. . Julio explains it and fills in more details. You will not want to miss this show.
Over the years many people have tried to “fix the problems that riddle HOAs with all their inherent problems. One of these people is none other than Jan Bergemann. Jan is the founder and president of the FLorida based Cyber Citizens for Jystice. He is also the go to guy for homeowners with problems in their asociations, be they HOAs or condos. People who are wondering, “what do I do now?”. A good place to start is Cyber Citizens for Justice. and Jann. Jann will steer them in the right direction and demystify the demands that are being made of the owners.
Jan joins us and fills us in on what is going on in Florida. The bad news is that nothing was passed in the legilature this year. Not quite sure what was proposed but maybe there is a silver lining there somewhere. I do know that Floridians have been hard at work trying to come up with laws that will fix all the problems in associations of all sorts. I am , howeve, at the point where I no longer bellieve it is possible to fix HOAs and condos. Jann and I talk about that . Tune is and please let us know whether you agree. If not, do you have the magic cure for HOAs and condos? Again, we would love to hear from you.
The American Dream is often referred to as homeownership. Everyone wants a home of their own where they can be king of their castles, live peacefully, shut the world out, raise their family and be with their friends and loved ones. In the process, they build a haven for their old age. Unfortunately, our legislators have bowed to the special interests, enacted legislation allowing home and condo associations to fine homeowners for alleged infractions of the dumbest of rules and then empowered them to foreclose on their homes to collect those fines. That has to stop! No one should lose their home such idiotic rules as leaving a garage door open too long or having a pet that appears to weigh more than a certain weight for feeding baby ducks as is happening currently in Texas. Can you imagine a grieving mother losing her home because she fed baby ducks without a mother?
Bill Davis, a frequent guest, a Texas attorney who represents homeowners in controlled HOA and condo housing and I talk about this case but also about the need to ban fines in HOAs and Condos as well as banning foreclosing on homes especially evicting the elderly from the homes they have spent their entire lives building. I’d like to think it is UNAMERICAN to toss old people out in the cold. Getting these bans will require a concerted effort from all of us. We also need to enlist the support of organizations that purport to protect the interests of seniors. With the money they have, and the membership they have they need to ensure that their members are protected. I am not a member of any organization that sides with groups that are harmful to seniors and homeowners in controlled housing like condos and HOAs. I also will no longer donate to candidates who will not promise to introduce legislation to ban fines and foreclosures. Join me.
Have you noticed how all sense flies out the window when an involuntary membership homeowners association is involved? All of a sudden we fear anything that is not part of that uniform look and feel of a kontrolled kommunity. A different shade of blah can topple an entire neighborhood, an unapproved garden hose, dusty mailboxes, flags, rose bushes and pudgy pooches are all a threat to property values. An addition that doesn’t quite konform to the existing architectural guidelines will no doubt turn the neighborhood green with envy.
Oh, get real!
Joining us On The Commons this week are Maria and Sam Farran. The Farrans weren’t about to believe all the nonsense they were told. They did their homework, knew the rules and the laws and decided to fight back. After years of court room drama, they won their cases and were awarded attorney fees and court costs. However, there was a snag. You see, in the process, their HOA ran out of money and went bankrupt. But there is a happy ending after all. As Maria says; “We used to be a corporation that ran a neighborhood, we are now a neighborhood that runs a corporation”. I won’t ruin it for you so tune in and find out how they got their money and what happened to the association. You’ll love it.
How did they do it? Well, look for their new and improved governing documents On The Commons and yes, you may use them as a template if you too want to return common sense and a sense of community to your neighborhood.
As I said in my opening statement, Caroline is a lady who I wish lived closer. She has a way of connecting current events with history. Today’s show is no exception. I have been asking myself, whatever happened to Miss Manners? Would life in HOAs be more tolerable if people treated each other with respect? Where and when did we go off the rails? And who is responsible? Are children being taught manners at home by their parents? That’s who taught me how to behave and corrected me every time I strayed from the straight and narrow. I was fortunate; good manners were important to my parents, But what happens when the parents are rude and don’t know how to behave in polite company? I told a story about trying to reach a friend who was staying in a local hotel but was treated rudely by the person who interfaced with the public and potential guests and who hung up on me several times. No, I was NEVER rude to the staff. And Caroline and I also talk about current court decisions. Does everything tie together? How do we return to a kinder, gentler society? Do tune in to today’s show. I would love to hear what you think. Thanks.
Why do some HOA horror stories grab the headlines, go viral, get written up in news outlets around the world, discussed on radio shows and highlighted on local and national TV shows while others, equally horrible, get ignored? We never seem to learn as the stories repeat themselves, over and over and over again. Flag flaps, children play equipment in private backyards that seem to irk some of the less tolerant in the ‘hood, non conforming trashcans, unapproved garden hoses, bird feeders, discrimination, discrimination and more discrimination against anyone who does not conform to some secret acceptable standard. There are hundreds of these stories every single day yet we only ever hear about a tiny handful of them. Why?
Ward Lucas joins us On The Commons this week. Ward is an award winning print, TV and radio journalist who, over his career have covered stories of war while fighting a war to protect his property in a homeowners association. His experience and expertise were put to great use when he wrote Neighbors at War, the Creepy case Against your Homeowners Association. The term ” Neighbors at War” has caught on and is used often in HOA stories. Ward also maintains a blog by the same name. All his posts give an estimated reading time. We’ll find out why. We’ll also ask him how to capture the attention of the mainstream media and what we, as homeowners with all sorts of different backgrounds, can do to become more effective communicators. I always have fun talking to Ward so tune in and join in the fun. Oh, and as an added bonus, we’ll hear all about his latest book, due out soon.
