S/O HOA Communities

[MamaBelle4]

Would you or wouldn't you ideally choose to live in one of these communities? If so, why and if not, why?

Me, no, definitely not. I'm a relatively private person in general so we like having a bit of space. Ideally we would like more land than we have but our neighbors are a tolerable distance from us. I don't think there's an HOA that would fit our lifestyle to be honest. We compost for our garden and I know some HOAs have issues with kids having their own playground equipment, which we have. I also enjoy hanging my laundry in the summertime and DH enjoys welding and often has a project in the garage or outside of it (depending on size). So while we don't want an HOA, I think with absolute certainty they also would not want us!

What about everyone else?

 

[DLgal]

I absolutely would not live in a neighborhood without an HOA. I like amenities like pools and parks near my home. I like cleanliness and order. I like rules and regulations. I feel like neighborhoods without them always look so run down and you always get those people who just let their house and yard go and look terrible.

We have never owned a home, and maybe never will, but always rent in places with lots of amenities and HOAs. Best of both worlds really. We get the things we want out of it without having to actually BE the homeowner.

We have been in our current rental home for 5 years now and love the neighborhood. The HOA does its job well here. Our pools are always clean, parks are clean, people are respectful in general.

 

[firefly_ris]

No. Seems like many HOAs are located in more populated/suburban areas and we like land, space, nature, woods, 4 wheelers, and the option to have small farm animals if we want them. Community amenities are not something I care about -- we have a large town park, open swim at the high school indoor pool if needed, kiddie/splash pool at the town park, skate park, basketball courts, etc. all paid for by my taxes. Town ordinances take care of many of the general complaints. I figure if I'm paying insane NYS taxes I'm going to use those amenities and not pay to live somewhere on top of the property taxes. If we one day move south then I'm still not sure about an HOA since again we like to have acreage and space, and provide our own amenities.

Different strokes for different folks.

 

[Moliphino]

I would avoid living somewhere with an HOA if possible. They aren't really common around where I live, unless you're in a condo community. I like my privacy and being able to do what I want with my house/yard.

 

[FlightlessDuck]

Would you or wouldn't you ideally choose to live in one of these communities? If so, why and if not, why?

No, I don't want other people telling me what to do with my property. If I want gardens beds, I'm putting in gardens bed. If I want my door painted red, I will paint it red. I understand wanting to keep your neighborhood looking nice, but some of the rules they have are ridiculous. I will let my township tell me when I should mow, not Brad 5 houses down.

 

[FlightlessDuck]

I absolutely would not live in a neighborhood without an HOA. I like amenities like pools and parks near my home.

Isn't this the responsibility of your local government, though? My township has a park and recs department. We have nature preserves, parks, pools, etc. All controlled and funding by my local township. Is this something that other states don't do? No public pools? No public parks? I mean, you do pay to get into the municipal pools, but it's only a couple bucks (or get a yearly pass)

 

[DLgal]

Isn't this the responsibility of your local government, though? My township has a park and recs department. We have nature preserves, parks, pools, etc. All controlled and funding by my local township. Is this something that other states don't do? No public pools? No public parks? I mean, you do pay to get into the municipal pools, but it's only a couple bucks (or get a yearly pass)

Nope, not here. We don't have many municipal pools in my city. Just one (it's actually a world class training facility and we hold olympic trials there). The city runs its aquatics classes there and has open swim at designated times. We have hundreds of beautiful parks (the most parks of any city in America, actually) and many are maintained by the city. However, some smaller parks and playgrounds within villages (what they call neighborhoods here) are the responsibility of the HOA. For example, our village has 2 city maintained large community parks that include playgrounds, ball fields, tennis courts, a community center, bathrooms, etc. We also have 3 smaller satellite playgrounds/tot lots adjacent to the pools. Those are serviced by the HOA and that is where we hold community parties and seasonal events. We have 3 junior olympic saltwater pools and one smaller pool, all for private residence use only, maintained by the HOA. They are gated and require key fob access.

Our city was one of the first master planned communities. Each "village" has schools, parks, pools, and shopping centers with medical offices, stores, restaurants, etc. The idea is that you can have everything you need within a short walk. For the most part, that is true here, although some of the newer construction has moved away from the village model and doesn't have quick access to all those things like the older villages do.

Here, every neighborhood (village) has an HOA. Some are better than others in terms of amenities.

 

[NYCgrrl]

I've lived more of my adult life in HOA/condo like apartments (cooperatives) than single occupancy dwellings.
I've enjoyed both types but prefer a shared responsibility abode at this stage of my life. Don't want the responsibility of roofs or any of the mechanical systems and that trumps any freedoms I might give up. Seen too many full responsibility residences belonging to overwhelmed (financially and/or physically) seniors to go that route now.

 

[FlightlessDuck]

However, some smaller parks and playgrounds within villages (what they call neighborhoods here) are the responsibility of the HOA.

Our development was made in the 70's. There's a tennis court next to one of the houses. I've wondered whether originally this development had an HOA and the tennis court was shared property. I honestly have no idea.

 

[MillauFr]

HOA are not very popular in the Pacific Northwest. People here are generally libertarian and don't react well to some busybodies telling them what to do.

 

[DLgal]

I've lived more of my adult life in HOA/condo like apartments (cooperatives) than single occupancy dwellings.
I've enjoyed both types but prefer a shared responsibility abode at this stage of my life. Don't want the responsibility of roofs or any of the mechanical systems and that trumps any freedoms I might give up. Seen too many full responsibility residences belonging to overwhelmed (financially and/or physically) seniors to go that route now.

I agree with this mentality as well. Our home is technically a condo, although it is freestanding and surrounded by a concrete wall on 3 sides. It is one of 6 homes in a shared motor court (i.e. long driveway). It's great that all the nice landscaping out front isn't our responsibility, nor are any of the outdoor lights, driveway, sidewalks, etc. I absolutely HATE doing yardwork of any kind and having it magically taken care of once a month is great.

 

[DLgal]

Our development was made in the 70's. There's a tennis court next to one of the houses. I've wondered whether originally this development had an HOA and the tennis court was shared property. I honestly have no idea.

Maybe. Our city was founded in the 70s, so the first "village" has the smallest and fewest pools and parks. Over time, the villages got more and more elaborate. The one we live in was established in 2014, so everything is shiny and new. I love it. It's like living in a resort.

This is one of the larger pools (with cabanas and everything):


This is the smaller pool a 3 minute walk from my house:



Note how empty the pools are. These were taken midafternoon on a summer day. That is why I love having private pools.

 

[wgeo]

It depends - if possible I would avoid them, simply because I don't like paying extra fees. However buying a house is always a bit of a compromise and to get into the location/school district that we wanted we had to get a house with an HOA currently. It's ok - not horrible, not perfect - ours doesn't do much so after a few letters when we first moved in until we could learn the rules it hasn't been too bad. Except I really want a shed and we can't have them.

So I'd prefer not to, but if everything else was just what I wanted I wouldn't turn down a house only because of an HOA.

 

[Moliphino]

I've lived more of my adult life in HOA/condo like apartments (cooperatives) than single occupancy dwellings.
I've enjoyed both types but prefer a shared responsibility abode at this stage of my life. Don't want the responsibility of roofs or any of the mechanical systems and that trumps any freedoms I might give up. Seen too many full responsibility residences belonging to overwhelmed (financially and/or physically) seniors to go that route now.

I think it wouldn't be a bad idea for my parents (70 and 68) to live somewhere that took care of snow removal, yard maintenance, etc. My dad just had a heart attack and we can already tell it's going to be a struggle trying to keep him from shoveling/raking/etc., but he really shouldn't be doing it anymore. My sister and I have been volunteering to pay for a lawn service for years, but he always refused and insists he likes doing the work.

 

[LadyntheTramp]

I few years ago I would have said no about living with an HOA. However, with the cost of living where I am it was cheaper and easier to build a house than buy an "used" house, so we ended up getting an HOA. Ours is a little different because the city maintains our front lawn and our HOA fees are included with our taxes. We also specifically picked someplace with reasonable rules, and have not run into any issues. There have been a few violations that I know of from neighbors but I don't think they had any trouble and no fines were given. The management company does seems to change fairly often so who knows what will happen in the future. I will say it is nice to not have to shovel snow in the winter and have the ability to do whatever I want inside and in the backyard. (Right now I feel like we have the best of both worlds.)

 

[FlightlessDuck]

Ours is a little different because the city maintains our front lawn

City workers mow your front lawn? You learn something new every day.

 

[luvsJack]

No I would not. But then I can’t even see my next door neighbors house from mine. I can do whatever I please on my land and have what I want/need and, as long as it’s legal, no one can say otherwise.


Dd and sil will close on their new home Friday. While it’s not an HOA, it is in a town that was designed as a retirement area with a big golfing community. It has changed into more of a family area. And some of the benefits are wonderful for families. A pool, a great sports complex, community/town wide events that are limited to families in the town. They even have their own very family friendly Mardi Gras parade which I was surprised that is a really big deal.

BUT, they also have rules. Yard has to be kept mowed and landscaped. No working on the car in the driveway. Strict noise laws. Fence has to be kept in good repair and painted if wood. Dogs have to be leashed and/or inside fence. And I am sure there are others, these were ones she mentioned.

They are moving from a nearby town and while they lived in the city limits, the house was situated so that there was no close neighbor, off the main road so they were sort of off to themselves. I mean they have a wrestling ring set up in their yard right now.

It’s going to be a change for sure. If they had kids, I think the pluses would far outweigh the negatives of the regulations Buy as a young couple with no kids who enjoy having their friends over for all kinds of gatherings which can get noisy, I am interested in how they will adjust. But hopefully it will all be good.

 

[LadyntheTramp]

City workers mow your front lawn? You learn something new every day.

Yeah, I know. They also shovel the sidewalks and driveways in winter and maintain the flowers and trees out front in spring and summer...lol. We were also surprised by that when we bought the house.

 

[Klayfish]

Oh. Heck. No.

Why? Because HOAs are pointless and overbearing. And yet, here I am living in one of these stupid things...the things we do for our kids., LOL.

 

[Disneypro1]

We love ours. It keeps the neighbourhood as we like it. The rules are non issue as for simple things. You can fight those. But the HOA is great for keeping house looking nice and no crap cars. Etc. We would fight a rule if it said no flag flying or Xmas decorations. Those are silly. But over all. It just keeps the neighbourhood nice and free from issues.