Yup. And the couple that was affected by this rule can work within the HOA to have it overruled, too. Although it sounds like they're causing a legitimate problem, so I doubt they have many people sympathizing with them. I guess opening their windows and using some ventilation to show a little respect for their neighbors is too much to ask, huh?

This country is on its head.

I think "Homeowners Associations" have way too much power. I'm glad I live in a neighbourhood where no such animal exists.

I owned a townhouse and my nextdoor neighbor smoked a lot. The smell, which I hate, did seep into my unit on occasion. But you know what, I didn't like people telling ME what to do, so I didn't tell HIM what to do. That's what close-living is about. You want absolute privacy with no sounds, sights, and even smells from the neighbors? Buy a house.

dj4aces: I think "Homeowners Associations" have way too much power. I'm glad I live in a neighbourhood where no such animal exists.

I completely agree. That's why after my first home, a townhouse with an HOA, my wife and I vowed never again to subject ourselves to one.

Well, that is going to be interesting. I hope we hear how it all turns out.

HOA are great, the attract all the pricks to them, fight them over there so we don’t have to fight them over here and all that...

I will NEVER live where there is a HOA. Seems like a few too many hens with too much time on their hands.

It's freedom of private contract. If you don't like the rules, don't buy a f*cking house there.

As I said the other day...

Heil Health!

It's right out of the playbook...

I found out about my HOA at my f*cking closing. I wouldn't have bought this house if I'd have known.

They sent me a letter because I pulled a hedge that had died telling me that they were going to file a lien. I'd already replaced it before the letter arrived (this was over the span of about 3 days), so I took a picture of the front of my house (with new bush) and stuck it on the door of the HOA president with a note "No matter what, my house will always be newer, better, and worth more than yours you jealous hippy".

I've not heard from them in three years.

I hate that crap.

A friend of mine is trapped in a development with a HOA -- lives in a single home, not a townhouse.
While he's still allowed to smoke a cigar on the porch (his much more powerful association with his wife precludes lighting a stink-bomb up in the house) some of the rules he's told me about include:

No flags of any type, including American flags
No non-white Christmas lights
The only Christmas decoration permitted is a wreath on the door -- as long as said wreath is a certain size and green wtih a red bow
No overnight parking on the street. All vehicles must be in driveways.

Mr. Coffee Nerves: No overnight parking on the street. All vehicles must be in driveways.


Mine has that one too. Along with no RV's, no trailers, no boats...Nothing except vehicles in good repair with current registration in the driveway.

From TFA: "Oeffler stated "smoke and/or smoke smell" is not contained to one area and that smoke smell "constitutes a nuisance." She noted that under condo declarations, nuisances are not allowed."

Does this mean someone could use this to stop their neighbor from barbecuing? From cooking? Can neighbors in this HOA file a complaint to get their neighbor to cease cooking that special dish of whatever cuisine because the smell lingers? Am thinking that a militant vegan (and you know who you are) could cause no end of trouble if they wanted to.

Glad to hear it.

The more bad press these HOAs get the sooner we'll be rid of them entirely.

Nothing but a bunch of assholes anyway...

kronicfeld: It's freedom of private contract. If you don't like the rules, don't buy a f*cking house there.

While I generally agree, which is why I would never again live under an HOA, in this case, the rules changed after the people moved there. They have a right to biatch.

kronicfeld: It's freedom of private contract. If you don't like the rules, don't buy a f*cking house there.

They change the rules, they make asshole decisions, and they generally do NOT improve the neighborhood - which was their original intent.

They need to DIAF and stop making particular streets suck-ass places to live.

BTW: Try, just TRY, to find a decent house in Tucson that doesn't have a HOA. Add to that the fact that most are identical and several are all run by the same company...

HOA = Band of weak minded little culdesac tyrants

buy a house. hell, even living in a mobile home is better than a townhouse with rules like that.

why isn't the constitutionality... constitutionalism...

that's farked up

and stuck it on the door of the HOA president with a note "No matter what, my house will always be newer, better, and worth more than yours you jealous hippy".

I've not heard from them in three years.

I hate that crap.


That's awesome, well done.


The biggest problem with HOAs is their sense of freakin' almighty self-righteousness.

Fark'em. They can be nice, or they can go to Hell.

nukeim [TotalFark]

Mine has that one too. Along with no RV's, no trailers, no boats...Nothing except vehicles in good repair with current registration in the driveway.

Is it a bad thing that Jethro can't put his car on cinderblocks in his front yard?

Xerxes99

HOA = Band of weak minded little culdesac tyrants

road states?

lilplatinum: Is it a bad thing that Jethro can't put his car on cinderblocks in his front yard?

Depends. Does he own the property? Then yes. Right of enjoyment is something you purchase with real estate.

This HOA = Total asshats...

If that was me, I'd start seeding the HOA's homes with termites and cockroaches, as well as keying their cars...

well said kronicfeld - no one says you have to live in a place with a HOA. Let the little communes live in their padded little world - everyone else who could care less about how other people live their lives can continue to do whatever they want outside of their cast iron gates.

There's supposed to be a "He does?" in there somewhere.

If there is one thing that's worse that Conservatives telling me what I can't do in my own home, it's Liberals telling me what I can't do in my own home.

Scatmandingo [TotalFark]

lilplatinum: Is it a bad thing that Jethro can't put his car on cinderblocks in his front yard?

Depends. Does he own the property? Then yes. Right of enjoyment is something you purchase with real estate.

Not if upon purchasing the real estate you agree to waive certain 'rights of enjoyment' in contractual writing.

"I think it's ridiculous. If there's another blizzard, I'm going to be having to stand out on the street, smoking a cigarette," said Colleen Suave.

Solution: QUIT!

lilplatinum is it bad that jethro can't put his car on cinderblocks in his front yard?

On his own land? Hell yes.
I thought the US was all about freedom to do what you want despite social/religious/societal pressure?

I know, I know, it's a private contract, people need to pay attention when buying a place if they don't like it etc etc.
Just seems a little weird to me.

Asshats...

I think there already WAS a case where someone sued because they didnt like that one tenant would cook "Indian" cuisine and the smell of curry (or whatever) was making them sick.

Its all going to end up in some tangled mess of rules and regulations that will eventually require federal laws to sort out - its really only a question of when.

FTA: The Heritage Hills #1 Condominium Owners Association was responding to complaints from the Sauves' neighbors who said cigarette smoke was seeping into their units, representing a nuisance to others in the building.

UuuuHhhh - Am I the only one who has a problem with this? Why is smoke "... seeping into [neighbors] units ... " to begin with? Strikes me that this may be a serious design and/or construction flaw. For example: What if a fire were to break out in one of the units? Seems to me that smoke would "seep" into neighbors apartments, doing at least smoke damage and even perhaps ...

Solving it by promulgation - is not a solution to the original problem!

pwhp_67: They change the rules, they make asshole decisions, and they generally do NOT improve the neighborhood - which was their original intent.

They have nothing to do with improving the neighborhood, and everything to do with inflating property values.

Houses in areas with similar houses that all look nice and clean, and represent the Ideal American Dream(TM) will drive the property value up.

Whether or not it is enjoyable to live there doesn't enter the equation. I will never buy a house in an area with a HOA. My condo association is bad enough, but at least I can put up my choice of decorations, and I actually get something out of my condo fees, like landscaping and exterior building maintenance, plowing, water...

I used to live in an apartment and the lease stated that we could not cook with curry. At first, I thought it was a little odd. As it turned out, my neighbors, who were Indian, cooked with curry constantly. The odor regularly seeped into my kitchen. I didn't complain, though, because I thought the rule was absurd.

/my two scents

Or you can simply ignore the HOA because what are they going to do, fine you? force you to sell?

They have lots of authority over these matters, however they simply have no power to enforce them.

"Im gonna ask you to stop doing that, or i will be forced to ask you again to stop doing that"

Any fines or anything these idiots do, simply ignore it, the people on these associations are on power trips wanting to enforce rules for the sake of having rules.

FTA: "I think it's ridiculous. If there's another blizzard, I'm going to be having to stand out on the street, smoking a cigarette," said Colleen Suave.

Um, biatch, QUIT SMOKING if it's such an inconvenience.

i don't smoke in my house but if someone told me i couldn't i'd start

Also, how is this enforced?

I don't mean the HOA stuff itself, but, say that I want to buy a house and I know it's currently under an HOA, what's forcing me to sign the HOA contract? Why would I do it?

If the seller can't sell without HOA permission (ie finding a buyer who agrees to the terms) then do they really own the house?

HOA's have alot of rules, rules you agree to when you sign the contract. Don't like the rules? Then buy a home elsewhere.

This is why I live in the country, folks! If I smoke buck nekkid, standing on my head in my backyard, who's gonna complain? The cows? I don't think so!
/I've never tried that, by the way
//No, really!

i want to vent and rage. but i think we all know this country has turned into a bunch of petty pussies. thats my only point.

Suave. RRRRRRico Suave.

kronicfeld: It's freedom of private contract. If you don't like the rules, don't buy a f*cking house there.

100% Correct.

You AGREE to follow the rules when you sign.

Do your homework before you buy! An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of biatching afterwards.

One of the local radio shows was talking about this last night. It is apparently a block of 4 condos. The 3 other owners got a bug up their ass to make the one owner's life miserable.

Anti-smoking Nazis love having power over others and HOAs, being pure tyranical evil on a subdivision scale, are a prefect place for them to roost. I exect there will be more of this sort of thing now that somebody put the idea in their tiny little heads. At some point they will start to devour each outher hopefully.

My advice to the victim in this case: get a load of codfish, leave them around the condo, lock up and go on an extended vacation far away.

What smell?

I will not buy a house if HOA is involved.

My HOA is pretty laid back. We've got the standard "don't tacky your yard up" rules, and the only one that flaunts it is the HOA president. Yard full of tacky, tacky shiat.

But the rest of us know him, and know it's his 70 year old mom doing it, (failing health) and it makes her happy, so it's cool.

Now, I had an apartment years ago where I had a guy who would chain smoke in his bedroom and due to some incredibly bad duct work, a lot of it just poured right into mine. I went and talked to him about it and was all like "Dude!" and he was like "Dude?" and I was like "Dude." and he was like "K." and I had no more problem.

Talk to your neighbors. This makes you a good neighbor.
Don't file leins. This makes you an ass clown.

True, HOAs can be a drag (I live in a subdivision that has one) but the pros still outweigh the cons. I don't have to worry about people not mowing their lawn, having POS cars in the driveway, wrenching on some dirt track car in the driveway, etc. Sure we have rules about on-street parking, no boats, RVs, restrictions on fence heights and a few others. We only have 27 homes, so we sort of police ourselves. For the most part, there are no gestapo-like tactics.

I do in fact have a truck up n blocks in my front yard. It's been there for over a year, since I wrecked it. I'll get around to taking it apart one of these days.....

/screw HOAs