I told you they were evil

[wiegie]

For those that don't have an HOA, do you not have any community common areas such as parks, green areas, etc? If you do, who pays for their upkeep?

the town I live in pays for that stuff (via my property taxes)

[SeductiveNun]

What wiegie said.

 

Plus we are near quite a few county/state parks as well.

[Ursa Majoris]

the town I live in pays for that stuff (via my property taxes)

+1. City, county and state run ours, all paid for through property taxes / state taxes. Plenty of them and damn good they are too.

[Perchoutofwater]

the town I live in pays for that stuff (via my property taxes)

 

 

+1. City, county and state run ours, all paid for through property taxes / state taxes. Plenty of them and damn good they are too.

 

Same here, though the private neighborhood parks paid for by the HOA's are typically much better maintained than the city parks, and typically have better equipment/facilities. Still give me 40 acres, and put my dues towards a country club membership instead of a HOA.

[Scooby's Hubby]

There's a lot missing from the story...

 

A more detailed article

 

The Heritage Lakes Homeowners Association was initially owed $977.55 and sent multiple notices by certified mail demanding payment. All went unanswered, said David Margulies, spokesman for the association and its management company, Select Management.

 

The problem, according to a lawyer for the Clauers, was that Michael Clauer – U.S. Army National Guard Capt. Michael Clauer – was deployed to Iraq.

 

His wife, suffering from depression over her husband's absence, had let mail pile up and didn't open any of the certified letters. May Clauer and her parents owned the house mortgage-free.

...

Margulies said his clients are aware of the law and routinely check for military connections before foreclosure. In this case, he said, a letter from the military incorrectly stated Clauer was not in the service.

 

"This was the perfect storm," said Margulies, noting his clients took all the required precautions. "Nobody's ever seen this situation."

...

"The HOA would love to see him get his house back," Margulies said of Michael Clauer, who commanded a company responsible for convoy security. But Margulies said it's out of their hands because they don't have the home.

 

It was purchased at auction for $3,201 by Mark DiSanti of Dallas and Steeplechase Productions. Neither DiSanti nor his attorney could be reached for comment.

 

The house was sold in May 2009 for $135,000 to Jad Aboul-Jibin of Plano.

 

His attorney, Roland Love, said, "Mr. Aboul-Jibin supports our country and soldiers and has no objection to Ms. Clauer getting the home back."

 

"My client is an innocent purchaser in this and simply needs to be reimbursed, which no one has offered to do."

...

The Clauers have been allowed to continue living in the house under a judge's order. And this week, a federal district judge ordered all the parties involved to get together to try to reach a settlement on the question of ownership.

 

 

 

this has a more unbiased ring to it ... I think that the husband being away in a war for such a lengthy period of time while she is holding down the house and kids is BEYOND too stressfull. I can sympathise with her and hope they get the HOA shootin' straight with them. And Cap'NGrudge I do not buy surface real estate ... this ain't my bag baby ... LoLuck

[wiegie]

The house was sold in May 2009 for $135,000 to Jad Aboul-Jibin of Plano.

 

His attorney, Roland Love, said, "Mr. Aboul-Jibin supports our country and soldiers and has no objection to Ms. Clauer getting the home back."

 

"My client is an innocent purchaser in this and simply needs to be reimbursed, which no one has offered to do."

at least Mr. Aboul-Jibin has his head on straight

[Ursa Majoris]

There's a lot missing from the story...

 

The Heritage Lakes Homeowners Association was initially owed $977.55 and sent multiple notices by certified mail demanding payment. All went unanswered, said David Margulies, spokesman for the association and its management company, Select Management.

 

The problem, according to a lawyer for the Clauers, was that Michael Clauer – U.S. Army National Guard Capt. Michael Clauer – was deployed to Iraq.

 

His wife, suffering from depression over her husband's absence, had let mail pile up and didn't open any of the certified letters. May Clauer and her parents owned the house mortgage-free.

...

Margulies said his clients are aware of the law and routinely check for military connections before foreclosure. In this case, he said, a letter from the military incorrectly stated Clauer was not in the service.

 

 

I wonder if it ever crossed anyone's mind to walk up to her door and knock. Maybe to check if she was OK, you know, stuff like that. None of the above excuses anything these slimy cowardly $hits did.

[keggerz]

at least Mr. Aboul-Jibin has his head on straight

as long as he gets his money back

[montster]

I wonder if it ever crossed anyone's mind to walk up to her door and knock. Maybe to check if she was OK, you know, stuff like that. None of the above excuses anything these slimy cowardly $hits did.

 

this was my thought as well. i realize the HOA did what it had to to try to get paid. but then i see this crap from the story:

 

"Associations are a collection of neighbors," says Republican state Sen. John Carona, who represents Dallas. "The goal has to be to work well together — have a harmonious community — and to create a lifestyle that people enjoy and want to be a part of."

 

and i wonder just how "neighborly" certified mail, collection agencies and requests for military documents are.

[SEC=UGA]

Here is the order in which I see culpability:

1 - The wife, open the f'ing certified letters... People don't generally send credit card offers, store coupons or other unimportant things via certified mail.

2 - The military for sending the HOA a letter stating that the home owner was not currently an active duty member of the armed forces

3 - The HOA for not at least trying to make physical contact with the homeowner prior to foreclosing on the home

4 - The wife's parents for not instilling enough common sense in this woman (maybe this should be #1)

[TimC]

There should be a law that you can't sell a $300,000 home for $3k this easily if your name isn't on anything. No way should it be this easy. You need to at least drag the person on the mortgage into court and explain to them what is going to happen so they understand. I'll bet you it's alot of fun being on that HOA in that neighborhood now that the news has broke.

[Ursa Majoris]

Here is the order in which I see culpability:

1 - The wife, open the f'ing certified letters... People don't generally send credit card offers, store coupons or other unimportant things via certified mail.

2 - The military for sending the HOA a letter stating that the home owner was not currently an active duty member of the armed forces

3 - The HOA for not at least trying to make physical contact with the homeowner prior to foreclosing on the home

4 - The wife's parents for not instilling enough common sense in this woman (maybe this should be #1)

My take on just the things you mention:

 

3.

[Scooby's Hubby]

There should be a law that you can't sell a $300,000 home for $3k this easily if your name isn't on anything. No way should it be this easy. You need to at least drag the person on the mortgage into court and explain to them what is going to happen so they understand. I'll bet you it's alot of fun being on that HOA in that neighborhood now that the news has broke.

yeah, they are inviting vandals from out of town ...they will coming out of the woodwork

[cdrudge]

For those that don't have an HOA, do you not have any community common areas such as parks, green areas, etc? If you do, who pays for their upkeep?

Both my current neighborhood as well as my parents when I was growing up had HOA. In neither case were they anal retentive pricks though. Both places annual dues were $50-75 and that paid primarily for maintaining green space that the city didn't take care of and snow removal (which the city eventually might get to after a snowfall but never in a timely manner). Liens would be eventually filed if people didn't pay their dues, but they were never foreclosed.

[Perchoutofwater]

as long as he gets his money back

 

Do you think the guy should take a hundred thousand dollar loss because someone else didn't do what they were supposed to do? I think it is very good of him to offer the house back at what he paid for it, as it appears to be worth much more.

[i_am_the_swammi]

Do you think the guy should take a hundred thousand dollar loss because someone else didn't do what they were supposed to do? I think it is very good of him to offer the house back at what he paid for it, as it appears to be worth much more.

 

+1

 

The guy could easily flip it for a discount-to-market-price of, say, $250K, and make $115K profit. Instead, he is just asking for his money back.

 

Hard to fault the buyer here

[keggerz]

Do you think the guy should take a hundred thousand dollar loss because someone else didn't do what they were supposed to do? I think it is very good of him to offer the house back at what he paid for it, as it appears to be worth much more.

Of course he should get his money back....doesn't mean I can't post a smart ass remark on a message board :oldrazz: oh and

[Chief Dick]

I've bought in neighborhoods that did and did not have HOA's.

 

In every instance where I bought into an HOA, I read the bylaws before making an offer on the house.

[Ursa Majoris]

I've bought in neighborhoods that did and did not have HOA's.

 

In every instance where I bought into an HOA, I read the bylaws before making an offer on the house.

What about future by-laws? What about allowing your home and home life to be dictated to some degree by what some future tinpot dictator says?

Edited July 15, 2010 by Ursa Majoris

[Chief Dick]

What about future by-laws? What about allowing your home and home life to be dictated to some degree by what some future tinpot dictator says?

 

There are trade-off's. For me, I would rather have an HOA that has some standards to keep the neighborhood and property values high. And the area I bought is an older established neighborhood.

 

As for the future, who knows? I can vote on by-law changes, and if I don't like the direction the neighborhood is going I can move.

[Ursa Majoris]

There are trade-off's. For me, I would rather have an HOA that has some standards to keep the neighborhood and property values high. And the area I bought is an older established neighborhood.

 

As for the future, who knows? I can vote on by-law changes, and if I don't like the direction the neighborhood is going I can move.

Fair enough. I prefer to live without any of that overhead.

 

Our city is diligent in making sure property is up to snuff since our housing stock is 1945 and later (mine is 1962). Before you can sell, you have to have the city inspect and then do whatever needs to be done. This helps maintain standards.

 

They also will enforce rules about out-of-control lawns, etc but they aren't oppressive like so many HOAs are. They simply expect homeowners to show a decent level of respect for their neighbors without constantly coming round to see if there's a chip on your paintwork or your garage door is open or dictating what color you can paint your house.

[SEC=UGA]

When Helen Burgess fell behind on her bills after being diagnosed with cancer, she was able to work out payment plans on her mortgage, car note, credit card and tax obligations to the Internal Revenue Service.

 

Her neighbors weren’t so accommodating.

 

Because Burgess was late on her condo fees, the Magnolia Lane Condominium Association cut off her water soon after she returned home from surgery. That was June 27, 2009.

 

Since then, Burgess has been hauling water from her niece’s house 10 miles away. The condo group also tried in vain to garnishee the Marietta woman’s pay to collect the dues it’s owed, which, including attorneys’ fees, now totals more than $5,000. Most recently, it banned Burgess or her guests from using the clubhouse and other facilities in the 76-unit Marietta community.

 

“This is the craziest mess I’ve ever had to deal with. It’s been an ordeal,” said Burgess, 59, who has been unable to reach a financial agreement with the association. She even asked her pastor to intervene. It didn’t help.

 

The condo association and its attorney declined to discuss Burgess’ situation, other than to say they are “trying to work with her.”

 

While Burgess’ treatment may seem harsh, she’s more fortunate than some homeowners in similar situations. Some who have fallen behind on homeowners association fees — despite being current on their mortgages — have been sent into foreclosure by associations determined to collect.

 

Georgia is one of about 30 states where HOAs are empowered to take such drastic action. Though solid data on the trend is not available, by all accounts, such foreclosures — and other get-tough tactics — have occurred more often during this recession than in previous downturns.

 

HOA representatives say such actions are not taken lightly, and that they often have no other means to recoup fees that can quickly add up to thousands of dollars. In HOAs where not enough members are making payments, an association can quickly find itself verging on failure.

 

But for individual homeowners like Burgess, who says she has repeatedly tried to work out a repayment plan, such actions are disheartening.

 

“Going through this is more frightening than when I went through breast cancer,” she said.

 

Usually a last resort

 

The issue of HOA-initiated foreclosures garnered national attention recently when Army Capt. Michael Clauer returned to Texas from a tour of duty in Iraq to find that the $300,000 four-bedroom he owned free and clear had been sold on the courthouse steps after his wife missed two HOA payments.

 

The house was sold for $3,500, just enough to pay the delinquent dues and legal fees, then resold by the new owner for $135,000. A Las Vegas couple temporarily lost their home over an $81 association fee debt.

 

In Georgia, homeowner and condo associations can foreclose on members’ homes if they are more than $2,000 behind on their dues.

 

Bank-initiated foreclosures in Georgia can mean a home is sold at auction within 37 days. Associations, however, must file a lawsuit to start proceedings, which can take anywhere from four months to over a year.

 

For HOAs, foreclosures are a last resort, said Doug Goldin of Marietta, attorney for Magnolia Lane. “Most don’t want to go down that road because of the cost and what you’re doing to families,” he said.

 

Associations that do pursue foreclosure can wind up collecting a fraction of what is owed. So why do it?

 

“You can rack up $15,000 to $20,000” in overdue association fees, Goldin said. “Generally, the best route is to do the foreclosure. So you can get a new homeowner in and they may pay better than the last.”

 

In many states, including Georgia, HOAs have a wide range of alternatives to draw on. With a court’s permission, they can attach liens or garnishee wages and bank accounts. They can also, as in Burgess’ case, shut off a homeowner’s water and block use of association amenities.

 

But even associations willing to work with a struggling homeowner can find themselves losing out if a bank steps in to foreclose on a homeowner first. So, many circumvent such problems by going to court. In Cobb County Superior Court alone, there are dozens of cases of associations that have attached liens against or are suing residents.

 

http://www.ajc.com/business/some-hoas-sue-or-568408.html

[Scooby's Hubby]

I didn't think landlords could shut off water on their tenants ...

[dmarc117]

the town I live in pays for that stuff (via my property taxes)

 

 

+1. City, county and state run ours, all paid for through property taxes / state taxes. Plenty of them and damn good they are too.

 

 

so in the near future, there will be no one caring for them.

[CaP'N GRuNGe]

Both my current neighborhood as well as my parents when I was growing up had HOA. In neither case were they anal retentive pricks though. Both places annual dues were $50-75 and that paid primarily for maintaining green space that the city didn't take care of and snow removal (which the city eventually might get to after a snowfall but never in a timely manner). Liens would be eventually filed if people didn't pay their dues, but they were never foreclosed.

 

That's ANNUALY? Wow, that's cheap. I'll be paying $600 a year soon. And we don't really have alot of fancy things in our neighborhood. Just a couple of big green areas and a tiny playground. There's about 700 houses in the neighborhood so they are bringing in over $400K a year. I briefly looked at their financials and they claim to be spending most of it every year leaving a small contingency to carry forward. Property taxes last year were about $2,200.