Homeowner fined $40,000 for a few inches of fence
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 27 มิ.ย. 2022
- Disputes between homeowners and their condo or homeowners association (HOA) aren’t uncommon, but a Maryland woman said her Board took it too far.
The disagreement involved a fence and its boundaries. And while the fence cost around $8,000 to construct, the litigation that followed amounted to nearly $40,000.
“This dispute started in like 2017,” said Betty Hooker, who lives in the Autumn Hills community in Waldorf, Md.
www.wmar2news.com/matterforma...
I’m glad this homeowner fought back. This case was outrageous.
HOA's are outrageous in themselves!
Karens like you are the worst. Stealing land is cringe
Shame on that HOA. Bad bad neighbors
They shouldn't have had to hope they get added charges to pay for the attempted AR and they used the Police too
This isn’t about the fence. It’s about getting her out of the neighborhood.
I scrolled until I saw someone thinking what I was thinking…it’s freaking WALDORF!!!!
Moral of this tale? Never buy a home controlled by a HOA.
You are 100000% correct and if they buy into an hoa community, you brought whatever happens on yourself
Maybe measure your fence and property line before stealing land Karen
Agreed
Why do people buy houses with HOA
because the only other option is renting an apartment where you don't even get a second floor or a basement
The fine that judge gave was over kill. Poor lady imagine the stress she was under. When some people are drunk on a little power, money hungry 🤮
Poor lady stealing land gets called out for it
@@lopoa126 What about her neighbors on either side?! All the fencing lines up--is that whole row of house also being fined $40,000?!
Jesus glad I don't live in the states, all over a few inches, that's ridiculous
don't represent yourself in court if you don't know what are you doing. that's why the fine is that much.
HOA's are run by greedy over zealous nerdy hall monitors and are notorious for being difficult and charging high fees for documentation or forms filled out that they could perform quickly or easily as a accommodation since they are collecting a monthly fee already. Difficult extortionists 🧐
Couldn't agree more.
Exactly. Who volunteers for the unpaid, thankless task of being on a HOA Board of Directors?
Busybody control freaks with too much time on their hands.
Bingo
99% of HOAs, you will never hear one word about because they never do anything questionable. Most of them just quietly benefit the homeowners by taking care of common areas shared by all of them and nothing else. Most HOAs don't come around trying to tell people what they can and cannot do with their own homes. They only govern the shared areas, like playgrounds, fitness centers, and dog parks. Most HOAs have no control over your home or yard and don't WANT to have any. But there definitely need to be more limits to protect property owners from that other 1%.
@@ajm5007 you must run an HOA..
Another reason why I will NEVER EVER own a home in an HOA control dictatorship area. HOA's are the worse!
Freakin one inch, how petty can you get, the HOA should have been fined 1M.
A million dollars?!?!?
Soooo….you can be petty, but they can’t?
@@sendthis9480 Off course, they are there to serve the community, I'm not. And it will be a good lesson not to try and rip people off over one inch.
Less than one inch, so no complaint, in essence.
And then there’s NOTHING behind her.
@@CodyCole80 Exactly
Something that eventually amounted to a 1” encroachment violates the basic principles of an HOA, which is to work to the benefit of the community. That small an encroachment in no way diminishes the common space. This type of case highlights why I would NEVER buy a property in an HOA … buying in an HOA is an invitation to be bullied by petty dictators.
Karens like you ruin society
"That small an encroachment in no way diminishes the common space"
- clearly nonsense; encroachment obviously diminishes volume
@@michaelanderson7715 you're nonsense. You must be one of those nazi type enforcers. People like you need to be stopped by citizens and held accountable for the stress and harm you cause most innocent citizens.
@@michaelanderson7715
So stupid
@Long Live NRA Right! What sort of obsessive-compulsive loon does that?
Her fence is "encroaching" on that weed filled common area that it looks like the HOA is not maintaining. I would have sued them to maintain the communal property better. Nobody was using that area to have any legal "loss of use" those few inches may have caused. This is obviously personal and anyone that files a frivolous lawsuit like this should be fined and removed from their position in the HOA because they cost the other owners thousands of dollars in legal fees over nothing.
Ironically, if the HOA increases its fees to cover its losses, the victims will also have to pay those fee increases. Hopefully regardless, they will vote out persons responsible for this abuse of power.
This HOA is ridiculous! The 8 inch of “encroachment” is definitely not creating any loss for the community, her fence aligns exactly with her neighbors. It would have actually looked quite ODD for her yard fence to not align with neighbors fence. Is this a case of racism? HOA seems to be going to extremes. Almost like they were waiting for her to put up the fence on the most OBVIOUS spot that aligns with her neighbors fences, only to fine her. It doesn’t look odd or ugly so how and why did they take notice of 8 inches? I would think it would be the other way around, had she not aligned with her neighbors, then they should notice the ugly non alignment.
Oh, shut up with your "racism" bullshit. It's people like YOU that keep it alive. Prat.
Stop with the race card, stop being a racist. It would only have taken a surveyor one hour to locate the boundary's. In my state, the party making the complaint has to pay for the survey.
@@jimclark6256 ONE INCH is the final "encroachment" on one corner of the fence. My God. Anyone who'd support putting this woman through so much stress for FOUR YEARS is CRAZY and DEMON SPIRITED. Thank goodness she finally received justice.
@@jimclark6256 but sometimes it is a race thing. We can't know for sure with this, but it's kind of crazy they allowed the fence to be okay until it reached 40k... Why didn't they give her notice immediately?
@@jimclark6256 Cali Dreams makes some good points.
This why you NEVER buy a home in an HOA!! When are people going to learn!?!
The neighborhood behind us was built first. Our neighborhood has a private HOA that is trying to sue them in to being a part of the HOA
@@MelaninMagdalene Let me get this straight. A HOA is trying to force someone who is not in an HOA to join?
Don't join. Ever! 😮
Never ever live anywhere with an HOA,,CRIMINALS AND THIEVES. I'm so sorry that she has to go thru this..how shameful 😔 😞
Why can’t she stay in her own land? So entitled
@@lopoa126 wtf u talking about
I once got a violation thanks to a sign the roofing company left in my front yard saying who did the roof.
Put the house for sale the same week and never looked back.
Yet another reason to never buy a house in an HOA community.
We got rid of HOA in my neighborhood 2 years ago, Best decision ever!
That's quite an achievement. I was told it was almost impossible to dissolve an hoa. How did you do it?
@@Cameroonian In general it is very difficult to dissolve an HOA, but not impossible; one may find that the majority of homeowners in a given HOA have no desire to dissolve it, and that pretty much ends the discussion.
@@Cameroonian we had a vote . More then 50% wanted out of the HOA.
Bravo!
Bro the fence is totally in alignment with the other fences too. Did her neighbors get the same treatment?
That's the BIG question. If the neighbors were ALL getting fined to the tune of $40,000, they were sure quiet about it. Something fishy going on here...
No they was white. Guarantee you that it's because she's black
NEVER NEVER NEVER buy a home that has an HOA!!! You WILL be sorry!
You are SO right. I'm stuck in one and it's a nightmare.
I agree with you,I provide a lot of different exterior home services in NC,the first thing I ask costumers when I go for an estimate,Is the HOA going to allow you to do what you want to do?,Most of the time they have not idea if they are allow.
Plus a lot HOA ask a lot information about your business before their approval.
Why anyone would live in an HOA neighborhood is beyond me.
...because they can afford it!!
@@jeremyward81 afford to be harassed? Honey HOA neighborhoods are everywhere.
@wayne Adams LMFAO, afford to be harassed....you're clueless bub, way to take one internet story and make it your opinion for every HOA in existence, ...classic loser mentality
We lived in one once because the neighborhood was outside the city limits and as thus did not get repairs to street lights nor did we get snow removal. We also had a huge common well. The HOA fee was $25/mo and it covered maintenance on the well, street lights, and snow removal. Not bad! However, it did come at the cost of all the usual prohibitions. Never again!
Because most don't do their homework. Most buy the marketing propaganda that HOAs are for the homeowners benefit. Most don't read the CCRs and realize that they are signing away almost all their rights.
How can the first judge who ruled on favor of HOA not get reviewed at the very minimum??
What makes you think they haven't been?
@@ajm5007 Look at what is happening with the current admin in D.C. This might answer your question.
@@paulk9985 Okay, you're just a deluded Trumptard who thinks everything is Biden's fault for some insane reason. I get it.
Judges are lawyers, and it is a rather well-known fact that lawyers have contempt for those who choose to represent themselves, given that the choice can be construed as an affront against their livelihood
@@GonzoT38 I'm a lawyer and neither I nor the hundreds of other lawyers I know have any contempt for pro se litigants. It's not an affront to us or our profession at all. That said, it's a HUGE battle to represent yourself in any but the simplest case, so while we greatly respect pro se litigants, we don't recommend being one if you can help it.
As for you, you're just a liar saying something is a "rather well-known fact" when really it's just a myth spread by people who watch too much TV or went through a bad divorce. Lawyers don't have contempt for pro se litigants AT ALL.
One way to end this kind of feud before it escalates is to not buy a house where you’re required to join an HOA.
It's hard to find a home in a non-HOA location.
@@Mike-di3mo - I know but they are out there. I have heard so many horror stories that I will not buy such a home. The dues on some of them are 4-5 hundred per month and for others, it’s fifty bucks a year. For me, it’s not the amount of the dues, it’s that I don’t want my neighbors telling me what I can and cannot do with my own property.
This association was formed mainly as another way to legally extract money out of people's pocket unnecessary . They are known to have fines piled up to a degree where homeowners would be forced to sell their homes to comply.
@@fuvjvjchxhc7063 - And all for basically nothing. That's why I want no part of it.
@@Mike-di3mo Why would anyone want to buy where your neighbors are so close. You can buy a house on a couple acres, and no HOA and the "Cheese eaters" that goes with the package. Too bad they didn't fine the HOA enough to put them out of business. Looks like they were trying to force this Lady out.
The astonishing amount of greed knows no bounds
HOAs don't benefit homeowners. They are cash cows for property management firms and HOA attorneys.
The top 1% own more wealth, then the bottom 92% COMBINED.
@@andydahl181 We're living in an oligarchy.
Why is it only her home. The other two houses on each side a-line exactly to her back fence. I’m confused on why she was targeted. The other two neighbors have the same fence line
Because she’s black
Cause she's black...
Underlying racial issues within the HOA.
I doubt it was a racial thing, remember this happened around 2018. And she did move it, but then they came back and said now it’s 1” violation, It probably wasn’t settled until this year.
@@dwash5673 both of her neighbors fence are Aligned with hers but the neighbors wasn’t fined and threatened to be put out of there home she was targeted
Who gave HOA all this power. This needs to be changed!! Laws needs to be put in place. They are going to far
Who? Lawmakers bribed by the CAI, the front organization for HOA property management firms and attorneys. (Community Associations Institute)
As a person who watches America from the outside, it still surprises me that the land of the free is so unfree in the most basic respects. Why do you put up with this HOA rip-off nonsense?
People choose to buy into it. I would never. It's not it's forced on people.
US is not the land of the free since the FED and income/property taxes were installed so almost 100 years now...... You never truly own land and if you fail to pay taxes they will steal it from you. HOAs are Mini communist countries that some people like because they suck at life and want to live in a controlled zone..... I pray people wake up and we can End all the bullshit.....
Because in the US profits are prioritized over people. And HOAs are cash cows for property management firms and attorneys. They also serve to cut costs and maximize profits for developers who can squeeze more homes onto less land; and the standardization of elevations, floor plans, etc., saves them tons of money.
@@kentstallard6512 you really have no idea, do you? You literally just regurgitated complete and utter nonsense.
It's a choice people make getting into hoas
How was her fence the only one encroaching when it was in line with the fences on both sides?
That question did not exactly gt answered; but there is a partial answer in that the HOA's position was that the fence (apparently the entire length) protruded 8" into the common area; and the resolution appears to indicate that one corner may have protruded an inch or less. With no disrespect to the homeowner, she should have sought legal counsel well before it got to court; many if not most homeowners are simply not aware of how far these disputes can go. As it clearly appeared to align with the other back fences, that should have been a point made by counsel to the board.
The fence was actually moved once before the images in this video were taken.
Exactly., Mr. MOOSE
Maybe a racial thing!
Her property, with the "required" jog, would look dumb since her property line is in line with neighbors fencing!
@@railroad9000 Maybe your retarded like the HOA
Fence looks like it was in line with others. Pretty nice one as well!
Hey glbernin0@ thats exactly what I was thinking, all the fences were aligned the same...🤔
My HOA hates me, so does the property manager. My home is up to par so there’s nothing they can do to me. Now I complain to the tune of calling them incompetents, useless, and money disappearing clowns. I love making their lives miserable. Emails, phone calls, and when we have the meetings I can see all of them turn sour. I love it.
I applaud your level of petty
Mine hated me too but I worked too much to fight back. My place was immaculate outside but the one board member had it out for me and would look for tiny things to complain about. So I sold the house and a deputy bought it. He let weeds grow up every where and they are too scared of him to complain.
@@floridaviolets9601 I am really sorry this happen to you. We downsized and bought in our first HOA. Big mistake. Their friends get away with lots of things. My wife wants out so we might go, but as a retired military of 16 years plus Federal employee, I refuse to let these people push me around. However there is very little to be done about their recklessly expending. Glad you got out.
If you sit on an HOA board, you don’t have a life
Exactly. Who would volunteer for an unpaid and thankless role like that?
Busybody control freaks with too much time on their hands.
They never did. 😮
Why would anyone live in the HOA community. you spend $500000 on a house to call your own, only to have to ask permission to do something with it.
wow HOA oppression
Simple solution...Stay away from HOA housing communities!
No way in Heck, I would live in a HOA community.
Wise. I regret having naively bought a home in a HOA.
@@kentstallard6512 I live on ten acres out in the country. Peace and quiet,😊😊😊
@@timcoker1428 Imagine having to get permission from a group of volunteer, unpaid busybody control freaks just to make a minor change to your home?
Yeah, it sucks. Enjoy your privacy and autonomy.
Who would live in an HOA community? Why would you pay fees to someone that tells you what you can and cannot do with your hone or property. It's just plain stupid.
its funny that bthe city does that everyday but you dont think its stupid. that is also just plain and stupid that the city can tell you to cut your grass or you will be fined everyday until its cut or you cant plant a tree or cut one down. the hoa is the same but with community engagement. hoa can not exist without the home owners agreeing to it
Before anyone buys a home in an HOA, the founding documents - which were created by the developer, not the HOA board, which did not exist at the time - are given to the prospect buyer. It is truly amazing how many buyers never bother to read the documents. The documents tell what the buyer can or cannot do, and tell the buyer if they want to do certain things, they need to address those matters with the HOA before doing so. So. for example, an HOA may have a rule that no boats or travel trailers may be parked in a driveway on in front of a home except for temporary loading and unloading in relation to use out of the HOA area; this prevents your neighbor from moving in their brother, sister-in-law and 4 kids for two weeks camped out in front of their home - or for that same neighbor to park one for months on end while it is clearly deteriorating. And often an HOA is responsible for maintaining front yards - and at times, back yards, which prevents a neighbor from letting the bushes die, planting a huge tree where it does not belong, or letting the entire yard go to weeds.
D Wash
0 seconds ago
If you live in a rural area then no you probably won’t have an HOA, but here in Maryland and most large populated cities and towns it’s common.
Older communities that were established before the early 90s may not have HOAs.
99% of HOAs, you will never hear one word about because they never do anything questionable. Most of them just quietly benefit the homeowners by taking care of common areas shared by all of them and nothing else. Most HOAs don't come around trying to tell people what they can and cannot do with their own homes. They only govern the shared areas, like playgrounds, fitness centers, and dog parks. Most HOAs have no control over your home or yard and don't WANT to have any. But there definitely need to be more limits to protect property owners from that other 1%.
Florida
I just don’t understand what these HOA is for? How can this be legal? This is absolutely disgusting .
You sign a contract when you buy your house they make rules for the neighborhood
Well I paid $100.00 for the lake fee every body who live in that area they told me to sign paper I have to pay h o a before I move I just pay some people don’t want to follow the rule I am suprised she don’t play the race card as a black women my self I don’t mind paying $100.00
See my post above. HOAs are a scam. A cash cow for property management firms and HOA attorneys.
When will people learn to not move into an HOA.
I would never live under the dictatorship of a HOA
This is why I don’t have a HOA. My house, my rules.
Soooo glad wife n I bought land,built a home. Never would have done this in a HOA district.
Betty's attorney is the HERO of the day. Well done. It must be satisfying to help people like that.
The board wasted ALL THAT TIME & MONEY only to end up losing because they didn't follow their own rules! How insane!
Sad thing is, because they lost and had to pay up, they will find a way to increase their HOA fees to cover it.
This folks is why you should never buy a house in the HOA community
"By his measurement"...........that would have been my first challenge to the whole fiasco.
I've never heard of a successful mediation with a HOA. The method of measurement should have been paramount. How did they get 8"? A professional surveyor should have been consulted. As many will comment never buy any property that comes with a HOA.
The homeowner almost never wins. Once you've signed the CCRs you've ceded your rights.
This was won on a technicality, only because the BOD didn't follow their own rules. Not because the rules were ridiculous.
Do you research HOA court cases…or just wait until they pop up on TH-cam?
Of course you’re not going to have heard of all the boring and uneventful successful mediation cases! Just because YOU haven’t seen them within your limited scope of viewable cases…doesn’t mean they don’t exist.
I mean….duhhhh.
They found the 8” by doing their due diligence. I mean…a new fence was put up adjacent their property. Of course they checked it.
If this was city work…they would have been required an inspection on the stakes. Not even a footing would be poured without a survey and inspection of property lines.
This isn’t city.
This is private.
IF the HOA has required inspections along the way, like the city does, that fence would have cost double or more….then everyone would be crying about “unfair requirements”.
I’ve seen it…multiple times.
HOA’s are not for everyone…that’s for sure.
But that whole “never buy in an HOA”…..wellllll that’s your opinion.
They are the perfect fit for many people and their financial situation.
I mean…there are cities where every single house is associated.
They DO work…to some degree.
Learn to read a room.
And, if you think you’ll ever wanna put your car up on blocks, or paint your house some abstract color….it’s likely not for you.
Regardless of what your parents told you….you CANT just do whatever you want, wherever you want.
We live in this thing called a SOCIETY!
If you want to reap the benefits of society (like you most certainly do) then you’re going to have to play the game a little.
If you don’t want as much society…..move.
Easy as that.
Crying and regurgitating cliche rhetoric really does no good except perpetuate an asinine mentality that is extremely subjective.
Being subjective is SOOOOOOOO last decade.
🤦🏼♂️
Find me a home/community without an HOA in the state of Maryland and I’m there, but they are saturated here. Mostly the older communities don’t have them but the newer communities will have some form of HOA.
@@dwash5673 They have proliferated because they are cash cows for various entities: developers, property management firms and attorneys who specialize in HOAs.
@@kentstallard6512 They have proliferated because state governments have approved of them; and because most homeowners in most HOAs are happy with the consistency they provide, and the fact that they help to maintain home value. Buy a home in an unregulated neighborhood and find out what happens to your property value when the home across the street is sold, and the new owners move in not only their family of 4, but their unmarried sister, and another brother and sister-in-law with 5 kids who are allowed to run the street until after dark (all in a 4 bedroom home as the garage has been converted into the 4th bedroom); they have two old cars partially torn apart, and the weeds in the front yard are approaching state fair height and quality.
HOA's, aka glorified extortion specialists. Always a hand or two to fleece the flock. Partnerships are always far easier to get into, then out of. Best to AVOID HOA's.
AMEN
This is why you don’t live in a HOA Community Lol
There is nothing to LOL about at all some of us live in an HOA for good reasons and would never expect something like this to happen to us so don’t laugh at peoples misfortune I’m sure you wouldn’t want someone to laugh at yours have a nice day
@@lululestat pretty much All good housing areas have hoa
@@Charmander009 ...so not true
Exactly. They are scams. Not created for the benefit of homeowners but serve as a cash cow to property management firms and HOA attorneys.
They reason they've proliferated is because of greed, not because they are necessary or that they improve communities.
My home sits in the middle of 10 acres of land, my nearest neighbor is about a half mile away. Peace and quiet, and no one telling me what I can and cannot do with my property.
Another case of an HOA acting unreasonsbly hostile over a triffle.
Any time HOA gets a lawyer or goes to court is when the lawyer is related to someone on the HOA committee and it’s a money grab. What about the land survey? Her fence was in line with the neighbors
"The HOA in good faith attempted to fulfill their duty to oust a black person from the neighborhood and seize their home for profit".
probably 100% true...
And there it is the first victim comment of the day good job
What's your explanation for the literally 100 videos on TH-cam that you're more than welcome to watch of white people getting the same or Worse treatment by HOA?
@@triggeringliberals405 - So you think this was really "in good faith"? You are delusional.
@@triggeringliberals405 - How about we look more closely at this specific HOA and see how they treat white people vs this lady.
You loose all your rights once you buy into an HOA
Absolutely true.
The hoa was disappointed that they were not successful in taking her home, that was so evil .
Why is the first judge who sided wit the hoa not fired , he/she shouldn’t be allowed to judge a baking contest . He/she completely ignored All thr due process laws of hoa , probably racist
I agree, but the homeowner did not have an attorney, and that is the most likely reason she lost the first attempt. Sadly, she thought that empathy and compassion would be her winning ticket. The triviality of the "violation" didn't seem to move this judge at all. And what about the installation contractors? I seriously doubt the homeowner walked out to the fence line and insisted they place it 8 inches into common property. Seems to me the installation contractor would be at least partially liable for not measuring properly. Glad she got it reversed!
Why do people still want to live in an hoa after hearing so many horror stories.
So good to see this W! They approved plans and everything before installed can't show up later with btw, it's wrong
I would absolutely under no circumstance join an HOA
HOAs need to be taken to court and made illegal or tie their Hands as to their power .this homeowner is one of millions that go through this every year .HOAs need to go away .
Aerial view shows the fence lined up with the other fences. What's up with that? was it less than an inch or 8 inches "by his measurements". How about finding the real line with a survey.
That HOA should resign, shame on him. Intentionally targeting this poor woman.
Maybe Karen shouldn’t steal land and thee throw a fit when called out
Lo Poa she got it approved first, which means those who approved it should pay to move it back 2 inches….
Speaking of a Karen……
Bless the people who assisted that woman. There are too many alleged managers out here who like to "pick and choose". They really tried to bully her. Just sick.
European blood does these type of things, it's in that DNA to always think about fighting and money.
@@petera5560 I believe you are speaking of human DNA; it's part of our survival instincts, but is out of place most of the time because we have created a more civilized world than the primitive cave man world.
@Dan Miller Triggered
Please read my comments above. You are completely wrong, as was this woman and any homeowner that tries to encroach even a few inches onto property that is not rightfully theirs. Inches become square feet when you’re talking about a fence or wall and homeowners do this all the time. It’s theft.
@@MaureenKo1 Obviously the court does not agree with you. This lady demonstrated with a professional survey that the HOA was wrong claiming 8" over the line. According to you the HOA was attempting theft from this lady, right?
You bought land where you have no property rights - That would be your first mistake. Forced HOA should be banned period.
Yep...once you sign the CCRs you are screwed as you've ceded your rights. This was a rare victory on a technicality because the BOD didn't follow their own rules.
HOAs are a scam, a cash cow for property management firms and HOA attorneys.
No one is forced to buy property in an HOA. I hate them as much as everyone else, which is why I chose a non-HOA home.
@@dchawk81 True, you're not exactly forced. But in many suburbs it's difficult to find homes NOT in a HOA.
Also....HOAs are misrepresented in the sales process. Yes, you can hire an attorney to parse the CCRs, but how many can afford to do that or even realize it might be necessary?
HOAs are a legal scam.
HOAs have way to much power. They should never be able to fine someone so much money or take their home away. The evilness in that man’s voice when he argued with the Judge over 1 inch of encroachment is disgusting.
Her fence was in line with her neighbor’s fences on both sides. Does that mean that the neighbor’s fences are also encroaching? If so, why only pick on the Hookers? And by “his” measurements - how did he know? Did he get a survey, or did he just eyeball it?
That’s what I was thinking too
This is so unfair to this lady 😾😾
This is so criminal. The architectural committee obviously approved the repairs. This is just an attempt to get their hands on her property. I’m glad she won against those cronies
I already told my real state agent.....NO HOA HOME AREAS. I never heard a good situation with them...it's always negative. There are so many TH-cam Stories that support this. The HOA will contact you even if you do something on your own property. My aunt placed hanging flower pots in front of her home. She received a letter from the HOA to have it removed. My co-worker noticed that she couldn't park her car in her driveway on the weekends. Let's not start on the grass length. The HOA will come out with a ruler and measure the grass. Oh, forget about garage sales...they will shut you down. If I purchase a home for over $300,000, you will not tell me what to do on my property. Especially if it's not causing a significant issue. These HOA are control freaks. I'm wondering, did they pick on this lady because she's African American???? I'm thinking they wanted her to move out of the neighborhood and they search for loopholes. You see they had the power to take her house. Who actually checks for a few inches of property space...who has the time for that????
I dismantled my HOA 4yrs back, they pulled some "luxury tax" because of my boat. They were charging me $60k monthly, I took everything to my attorney. He took it to the state and IRS. The HOA "president" got convicted with fraud, extortion, theft and embezzlement. I wasn't the only person being harassed, a neighbor with an RV and others with RVs and boats. The HOA supervisors were arrested and their house got seized. After the case and massive settlement, we had to go to a county congressional court hearing because of new HOA leadership for the neighborhood, so my wife and 2 other women from the neighborhood are the recent new HOA leaders. There's no more of that luxury tax nonsense, everyone pitched in $2k for our neighborhood to be gated, we had a coded gate installed; that instantly stopped the porch pirates. We're not a political neighborhood, we're nice people. Not even a single "Karen" in sight.
60k a month ? Or year ?
I realize I'm like the thousandth person to say this, but HOA's have way too much power, and something should be done to reel them in.
The person running the HOA is wasting all the other homeowners money with the court case
The lesson here is don't buy into a HOA.
HOAs should not be allowed to strip people of their constitutional rights.
Agreed. However the front organization for HOA property management firms and HOA attorneys---the Community Associations Institute---has spent millions lobbying for legislation which gives almost unlimited power to the HOA.
It's a scam.
HOAs do not strip anyone of their constitutional rights. The rights and duties of both the HOA and the owners are outlined in the CC&Rs, Bylaws, and related documents.
@@kentstallard6512 Actually it is not a scam; HOAs assist the entire community in maintaining property values, and assist owners when another owner violates the documents - often intentionally. Additionally, the HOA maintains common areas - which few if any homeowners want to be responsible for.
They're not. Everything an HOA does that the courts will actually back up is something you contractually agreed to when you purchased the property. The homeowners stripped THEMSELVES of those rights when they entered into that contract.
HOAs cannot strip anyone of their constitutional rights, stop being stupid. People who live in areas with HOAs have only themselves to blame. They have no reason to complain.
How in the heck did they determine to measure in the first place "I think that fence is over too far by eight inches" 😂
HOA are nothing but modern day gangsters.
So true. HOAs are SCAMS, period. Cash cows for property management firms and HOA attorneys.
Sounds like a very intuitive board member.
They know their community inside and out.
Good for them.
“Gangsters” typically don’t take such strict notes like this HOA. So I don’t see the correlation.
@@sendthis9480 they did follow due process that was in the HOA. So gangsters not following the “law”, and being idiots = doofuses
Why, if it was over by 8" ( later it was testified in court that it was less than 1") and what I seen in the video the corners on both side square up. Meaning that where it was out for this owner, there was another property that butted up squarely with it. Wouldn't that mean that the other property owner is also "encroaching" on the common area? So, it appears that this homeowner was targeted for this and not the other one as well since the fences butted up flush to each other.
@@careywalton1 I did fencing for 30 plus years and yes the video is shitty if they played the overhead view longer it would of showed the fence was inline so the houses on ether side was over also if that was the case
I would never buy a home in a community with an HOA .
I believe the HOA needs too be abolished. It’s too much now
I have never and will never live anywhere with a HOA. This kind of thing is exactly why.
They're all like this. I rue the fact I naively bought a home in a HOA.
why even buy into a HOA community how big can your ego big to move in a place like that? being told what to do, be at the mercy of other ego maniacs no way🤦🏻♂️
NEVER move into a community with an HOA
The lawyer representing the HOA should be disbarred. He was all about the money, not about what's right. What a loser. Glad he lost and has that on his record for other clients to see.
Easy big guy, easy.
@@johnv5156 Nice to meet the scumbag lawyer. Glad you lost!
Que the cliche rhetoric:
“Never buy in an HOA”.
Cliche but so wise.
@@kentstallard6512
Calm your emotions, kid.
I saw your other rant…you’re a TOTAL MESS!!
You have ZERO clue what you’re talking about.
Go make up more reasons to be upset, Karen.
The first judge should be fired and sued for fraud, the attys should be disbarred and the hoa should pay damages and cost, this is petty
The initial case she had an attorney with a fool for a client. Then that client wised up and got a real attorney, that understands how the laws and rules worked. Had she chose an attorney for the initial case, she likely would have prevailed the first time.
@@lennychorn147 no way an inch is an inch!
@@zerofukzgiven That's not the point. Neighbors fight over property line disputes as trivial as this everyday. If the person is found encroaching on the property line, they lose the case, regardless if it is 1 inch or 1 foot.
In some jurisdictions, you can still be 100% on your property, yet still be inviolation of encroaching on the Neighbors property, when easements come into play.
Let's not forget, the HOA was claiming she was 8" over across the entire fence line. Had she hired a lawyer from the start, instead of trying to represent herself. She most likely would have won the initial case, due to the same reasons a proper lawyer was able to get the case overturned and dismissed on appeal.
she lost on what the court calleda technicality which basically means that you dont speak their vernacular and the court doesnt take exceptions to those because it wanst you, to pay an attorney and the judge himself was an attorney
Which is precisely why I refuse to live with an HOA
Why would anyone want to live in an HOA? She almost lost her home over an inch of land
My fiance and I found our dream home a few months ago, but unfortunately our dream home was in a HOA. We immediately said no to the house because we didn't want to deal with this kind of bullshit. Can't deal with a handful of people who are on a power trip.
This is just one story of many across the Country. I am aware of a family within a Subdivision that had a HOA who lost their home due to the length of grass. The HOA says the grass had to be a certain inch however the Sod the Homeowner purchased would die so they had it cut an inch higher and the HOA Manager had a fit. They fought and lost.
I would NEVER waste money on a house in a neighborhood that is terrorized by an HOA.
Viewing this on a Sunday morning. Sometimes fairness triumphs. Thank you for jump-starting my week on a positive note.
Another reason Never Never Ever Never buy a house in an HOA controlled neighborhood.
There is no greater example of petty tyranny than your average HOA, especially if it's an upscale HOA. Some of them just can't be happy unless they're bossing people around.
I hope she wins, HOAs are becoming more and more tyrannical that ever before. They need to be put in their place when they overstep.
She was stealing land. How dumb are you?
Don’t know why anyone would buy a house with an HOA. Bunch of dictators
Now sue the HOA for defamation ,trying to force others to comply to their standards
Her attorney is beautiful!
Lesson when it comes to HOA's Never deal with them on your own. Always get a lawyer
The lesson is don't buy in a HOA.
Once you sign the CCRs you cede your rights, period. It is extremely rare for a homeowner to prevail in litigation against a HOA. This case was won on a technicality only because the BOD didn't follow their own rules to the letter. Not because the entire scenario was created by arbitrary and absurd rules.
@@kentstallard6512 Unforchantly for my brother when he bought his house 20 years ago. He got fined by his HOA for trimming a tree in front of his house because he did not want the branches hanging in the street.
Betty should sue them for pain & suffering and loss of the pursuit of happiness. I'd sue them until the day I die.
WTF? I am so glad I live in a country that does not have HOA.
Mallory made an incredibly naive statement. The days of attorneys' suggesting parties work out disputes are long gone. The price of living in our litigious society with lawyers prostituting an ancient, formerly honorable, profession.
What is naive is to believe the PR that HOAs exist for the benefit of homeowners.
Here is a fact. During the 1800's till around WW II. Average citizens had the courts jammed with lawsuit between average folks. Much more than we see today, in comparison.
If government is where people who cannot do anything of value anywhere in society, then HOAs are for people who can't even make it in government! Small minded, incompetent, very insecure people flock to those jobs! The HOA board members individually should be held financially responsible - not the association where they'll just hide the cost in future dues.
NEVER BUY A HOME WITH AN H.O.A.!
Never buy a home with an HOA
Don't worry! 😮
Many times, living in an HOA is like living on pins and needles, never knowing when your association will jump on you for minor issues, always threatening fines. For what you get, you give up a lot of liberty. I'm done with HOA living so I can breathe. This is a perfect example of HOA behavior.
Stop stealing land. Far more than an inch when you measure the entire spacd Karen
Never buy a home in a HOA. It's basically renting. They can control every little aspect.
Thank you for that advice peace
Congratulations to the home owner
Reason why I will NEVER live in a place with an HOA. I'm not paying hundreds of thousands of dollars for a house just to be told what I can and can't do with my house. Idc how nice the house is.