Home Owners Associations

[Carol H]

Moderators' note: This topic was split out of a discussion on trailer hitches. Enjoy

Originally Posted by melissab

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Hopefully by 1pm today I will be all set which is good b/c my HOA contacted me today saying they're recieving complaints about the trailer in the driveway and it needs to be moved.

We are not allowed to leave a trailer or boat in a front driveway either in the winter months - not a HOA rule but a local government rule that applies to the whole municapality. Our rules are that trailers, boats etc can be in the driveway from April to October 1st providing they are not parked for X so many days without being moved. Most people use them enough that they only need to find storage for them during the winter months. You may want to check to see what the actual HOA wording is in regards to the trailer.

[cpaharley2008]

Also contact Good Sam, they have a wealth of information in re: local restrictions on rv and parking issues. They have gone to court in the past and had some success.

[honda03842]

I have only one suggestion for rules 'states'. Move to NH, recently rated the freest state in the USA. Interestingly the freer states also have the lowest unemployment rates and the lowest taxes.

I hope this is not political but informational.

Norm

[melissab]

My HOA quoted me the paragraph right down to the line number where it specifically says no RV, Boat, trailer etc may be parked in the driveway at ANY time. Kindof stupid for FL really. I responed that most other HOA's allow at least 24 hrs for prep but even 12 hrs is more reasonable then Zero Tolerance. Our previous neighborhood had a policy where they allowed 3 days so I guess that is where I got confused in thinking I had some time. We've been wanting to move but cant due to the housing market now but this makes me all the more determined to do so just as soon as the market recovers so that we can sell.

[Alf S.]

Originally Posted by melissab

My HOA quoted me the paragraph right down to the line number where it specifically says no RV, Boat, trailer etc may be parked in the driveway at ANY time. Kindof stupid for FL really. I responed that most other HOA's allow at least 24 hrs for prep but even 12 hrs is more reasonable then Zero Tolerance. Our previous neighborhood had a policy where they allowed 3 days so I guess that is where I got confused in thinking I had some time. We've been wanting to move but cant due to the housing market now but this makes me all the more determined to do so just as soon as the market recovers so that we can sell.

Hi: melissab... This sorta puts a hitch into plans to "Driveway Camp" don't it??? We have rules about picking up after your dog...but I still have to patrol the road allowance's with a shovel before cutting the lawn!!!
Alf S. North shore of Lake Erie

[cpaharley2008]

Originally Posted by melissab

My HOA quoted me the paragraph right down to the line number where it specifically says no RV, Boat, trailer etc may be parked in the driveway at ANY time. Kindof stupid for FL really. I responed that most other HOA's allow at least 24 hrs for prep but even 12 hrs is more reasonable then Zero Tolerance. Our previous neighborhood had a policy where they allowed 3 days so I guess that is where I got confused in thinking I had some time. We've been wanting to move but cant due to the housing market now but this makes me all the more determined to do so just as soon as the market recovers so that we can sell.

Yet there is no problem with someone coming home with their work truck with ladders in plain view or lawn cutting service with their equipment in the back? No sense means nonsense.

[Donna D.]

I love my HOA!!! After owning a home across from a rental and dealing with blue tarped motorhomes and boats and a yard that got mowed twice a year, I'll handle the rules. When I went to the title company to sign the papers for purchase, I had to read and sign the HOA rules and regs. I knew precisely what I could and could not do. The document was four pages long and I read every single word. What I have problems with are people who are given the opportunity to read, and don't, then sign and complain at a later date.

[Carol H]

Originally Posted by melissab

My HOA quoted me the paragraph right down to the line number where it specifically says no RV, Boat, trailer etc may be parked in the driveway at ANY time. Kindof stupid for FL really. I responed that most other HOA's allow at least 24 hrs for prep but even 12 hrs is more reasonable then Zero Tolerance. Our previous neighborhood had a policy where they allowed 3 days so I guess that is where I got confused in thinking I had some time. We've been wanting to move but cant due to the housing market now but this makes me all the more determined to do so just as soon as the market recovers so that we can sell.

Many HOA especially ones that have only been in place for only a few years have rules that have no actual relationship to what the majority of the homeowners want. Often HOA's start out with rules obtained from another HOA. As a result it is very common for HOA rules to change over time. If the rule is something that you know a number of homeowners are not happy with its often pretty easy to have it changed. Start by talking with other owners who you know to have RV's or boats and see what their feeling on the rule are - you may find there a enough owners unhappy with the rule to out vote the ones who are. The hardest part may just be getting your neighbours out to the HOA meeting to actually vote on the change. Might be easier than moving though.

[Carol H]

Agree Donna it is why easier & faster to deal with a neighour who for what ever reason decides that keeping the yard or home tidy is not on their things to do list, through an HOA than it is through a local government law.

[cpaharley2008]

Sometimes it will take HOA years to get any action taken because they eventually have to go to court under due process to enforce any action. Local government, on the other hand can take action immediately if any situation/condition violates a local ordinance.

[Carol H]

Thats often the case but here the local government will often drag thier feet when it comes to seriously addressing concerns about the state of someones yard even though it clearly does not meet the local bylaws. Yup they will leave a note or something but it often takes a lot more than that for people to respond. Funny enough people around here seem to react faster to a direct requests by their neighbours than they do from local government. Go figure.

[cpaharley2008]

Here in Pa. the local municipality will come out and cut your grass and then place a tax lien against the property if you do not pay the bill which is probably 2-3 times the normal amount. Seems to work as a deterrent.

[Robin G]

I am with Donna! Completely.........



Loved my HOA...........

[jen b]

I've never lived in an HOA situation but did have a neighbor who went a little wacko about my horse van, accusing me of trying to somehow kill her baby by parking it (legally) on the street. I think the whole block was pretty happy when they moved out to the burbs, hopefully to a rules-friendly community. There's only so much uplift anybody wants neighbors trying to inflict on them.

[history nerd] Apart from chafing at not being able to store my toys on my own property, I am a little too creeped out by the history of HOAs to ever feel comfortable living in a subdivision that has one. [/history nerd]

Not a current problem for me, since I have no off street parking whatsoever and keep my Burro in a pay storage facility to make sure it goes unmolested when not in use.

[Frederick L. Simson]

Originally Posted by Donna D.

I had to read and sign the HOA rules and regs. I knew precisely what I could and could not do. The document was four pages long and I read every single word.

You pays yer money and you takes yer choice.

I'm not in a HOA community. My neighbors can do anything they wish.
Nobody around here PAYS for storage.

[cpaharley2008]

Fred,
What happens if one of those parked campers block your access? Do you know the owners? Also looks like a hard place to stop 2-4 lanes of traffic to get in or out? Is it heavily traveled?

[Frederick L. Simson]

Originally Posted by cpaharley2008

Fred,
1.What happens if one of those parked campers block your access?
2.Do you know the owners?
Also looks like a hard place to stop 2-4 lanes of traffic to get in or out?
3.Is it heavily traveled?

1. This is an older "Inner City" neighborhood. The streets were laid out in a grid in 1907 and my house was built in 1918. Note that there is no curb cut in front of my gate; it's not an official driveway. Between the Permit Taxes/Fees and the Construction Costs, it would cost me $10,000 to cut the curb and create an official driveway. Right now I have a 10' x 2' (200 pound) piece of Diamond-plate Steel that I haul out to bridge the 9" high curb & gutter.

If ANY vehicle blocks my access, I'm totally out of luck. The city sweeps that street every Thursday. No parking is allowed from 8:00 to 11:00AM. At 10:55 all of the neighbors who are home in the middle of the day swoop in to park there.

2. Yes, I do. I made a special effort to meet them. The young man who owns the front Motorhome lives at the other end of my block, is Deaf and only speaks only Spanish, but can read English. The young man who owns the back motorhome lives in the next block, speaks Spanish as a 1st language but speaks broken English somewhat. I try to be on friendly terms.

3. Yes, it is. It is parallel to the main thoroughfare which is one block north and very congested. I generally stop traffic to get in and out of my yard. Some people waiting for me are more patient than others.

That's life in the big city. I suspect it's one reason why people live in HOA communities.

[cpaharley2008]

Bummer,
Maybe a "Do not Block" sign posted on your fence may make anyone parking there aware that you may need to leave and that you need access. I too have access issues, more of a neighbor letting me pull into their yard so as I can easily back into mine. If that neighbor sells or decided to fence, I'd have a tougher time. Life goes on in the big city!