Sam, please post on the website. What a horrible story. Thanks, robin
HOA Misery
Our journey in HOA misery began in July of 2009. We purchased a foreclosed home in a mid-tier neighborhood in North Charlotte called Lexington. We moved to be in a better school area as well as to expand our family to three generations. We thought it would be an excellent place for us to move, after all this is the same neighborhood our police chief lives in. What safer place is there in Charlotte, than where the police chief lives? Unlike a lot of homeowners, we did our research. We received the covenants and design guidelines before submitting an offer. We asked questions of the management company. We drove the neighborhood and talked to neighbors. The responses satisfied us enough to purchase the home.
After purchasing our home, we hired a contractor to come in and make improvements on the inside of our home. What we didn’t know at the time was that we lived directly across from the HOA president. While fixing our home, our contractor posted a sign on our lawn. He didn’t think anything of it since around the neighborhood several homes were in the midst of roof replacements. Those companies boldly displayed their signs in neighbor’s yards, our next door neighbor being one of them. However, the HOA president approached our contractor and told him if he didn’t remove the sign, he would fine us $100 per day. We had not moved into the home yet and were already being threatened by a fine. The next day as we were visiting the home to check the progress, our contractor told us of the orders he received. We were then approached by the HOA president and told the same information. We removed the sign, but, let him know that there were signs throughout the neighborhood including our next door neighbor. He said that was none of our concern.
After we moved in, we started receiving violation letters averaging 1-2 per month. They ranged from missing window grids to shutters. By December, we were called into a hearing for not fixing our window grids within the 10 day window allotted. While in that hearing, we were asked about our roof, which was damaged during a wind storm. We told them it’s in the insurance company’s hands and once approved we would repair it. Our insurance company only approved the front elevation of the roof. We had our contractor repair only the front elevation due to several leaks infiltrating our home. While we continued to work with the insurance company to have the rest of the roof repaired, we received more violation letters. They either wanted us to return the rest of the roof to the original color, or complete the rest of the roof. We responded that we were working with the insurance company to repair the rest and that it will take time to go through the process. They gave us 10 days to repair it. During this time, one board member entered our property on two occasions to look for violations. At that point we reached out to our lawyers who sent a letter to the HOA. Their lawyers threatened us with foreclosure if we didn’t complete our roof and stated that HOA members have the right to enter our property anytime they felt. We continued to receive violation letters. We finally repaired the rest of the roof and thought things would calm down. They only got worse.
Our house sits on a corner lot and has a basement. One critical item that was non-negotiable for us was the ability to erect a privacy fence. We saw many homes in the neighborhood with privacy fences. We received confirmation from the management company that fences are allowed; all we have to do is submit a request. In April 2010 we submitted a request to build a privacy fence. We went to the board meeting with the request. They asked no questions nor did the express any concerns regarding privacy fences, as a matter of fact they said not one word to us.
We received a denial back from them stating that they are thinking of doing away with privacy fences and that they felt that privacy fences bring down property values.
It was during this time frame that one of the then board members entered upon our property multiple times, after the third time that the same board member entered our property in June of 2010, we decided to erect our privacy fence to add a layer of protection and privacy. We felt that this board member was purposely attempting to harass and intimidate us. This board member has not entered anyone else’s property but ours. Each time he entered our property we received violation letters thereafter.
After receiving the denials we responded with alternatives, such as adding landscaping to soften the fence & removing the hinges from the gate, placing them inside to eliminate the appearance of a gate (not required). None of that mattered. We also let them know that we have parents that were handicap and the can only access the home two ways; by ramp at the front of the house or through the basement. Where the fence would provide privacy and preserve their dignity. They still decided not approve our fence.
In this same time frame, the board approved a fence (for a white family) that was not legal per the guidelines but would not approve ours. As of this reading, almost 12 months later, our fence is still not approved. They have since approved without incident the same exact privacy fence for a friend of a board member who lives directly across the street from us (An interracial nonblack couple). If this is not discrimination, I don’t know what is.
Our intent is and always was to have our parents move in or spend significant time with us. Mom is non-ambulatory and suffering from Alzheimer’s and Dad is a veteran that has limited mobility. When we notified the board that we need to keep the drive gate on our fence to support their access to our home here are some of the responses we received at last week’s board meeting (2/17/11), three current HOA board members made the following statements:
· We can add an elevator in our garage that goes to the basement and it only costs $5000 and that we should be able to afford it. They said that they have been in our house before and it would not be seen by neighbors.
· This is a single family community and we would not be able to move our parents in.
· We should be able to wheel our parent from our driveway on one side of the house, across our walkway and down a hill more than 20 degrees grade to have access to the back yard on the opposite side. And that our father should also be able to walk that distance.
· We will not be able to allow our parents to enter and exit the vehicle at the back of the house.
The Lexington HOA selectively enforces the rules and changes them to suit themselves. In November we paid a $100 fine for covenants violations for the fence which we paid under protest, we have now received another covenants violation fine for the fence for $5,234.50.
Nearly a year has passed and we have not received approval. They have also written a slanderous letter, a personal attack on my character to a local news station painting me out to be a criminal and a thug. We can provide supporting documentation for everything, including several letters written by our attorney which they have ignored. The board has now turned this matter over to their attorneys to begin the lien and foreclosure process. Please Help.
In our current economy where I have lost my job, had my unemployment cut off, been forced to start a small struggling foreclosure cleanup business, all while assisting financially with the care of my aging parents we have never missed a mortgage or HOA dues payment.
So to be facing foreclosure in these turbulent times for erecting fence is unfathomable to us.
Please Help
As the father of two adopted African American young men 10 and 12 years old who have been with us for over 7 years now, I struggle with how to respond when my boys ask “why are they doing this to us daddy? Why are they trying to break up our family? Why don’t they like us? Are we going to have to go live with someone else?”
We have filed discrimination complaint with HUD in hopes of obtaining an investigation. Per the HUD representative it can take 4 to 8 weeks before our case is assigned to an investigator.
We have also written to a local news investigative outlet Action 9, but after receiving the slanderous letter they declined to investigate further.
We have lived in some of the worst neighborhoods in New York and nothing has been worse than living in the Lexington Charlotte Community. Please Help
This type of discrimination continues to permeate through un-governed HOA’s. They have the backing of their attorneys who encourage escalation of behaviors so they can make money off of fees and lawsuits. Our board uses intimidation as a means to continue to push their agenda. They selectively enforce the rules and change them to suit them. Our management company has shared information with us that board members were fining a homeowner for the same violation that a board member had, but the board member never received a violation letter.
We have a few recommendations:
1. Expiration date on covenants and by-laws. This will force the HOAs to renew only by a vote of the neighborhood.
2. Registration and complainant website, similar to BBB. HOAs should be required to register with the state and allow for ratings. What potential new homeowners don’t get is a rating of how well their HOA is run. Anyone who creates a website that sheds negative light on a HOA will be sued by their lawyers.
3. Appoint a special office to monitor HOA’s. Corporations are currently monitored by the government for any potential wrong doing, why not the same for HOA’s.
4. Eliminate foreclosure as an option for collecting dues & fines. It’s not necessary to foreclose for dues. Chances are if the bank forecloses and resells, the HOA will still collect their dues. The dues are not the issue; the incessant fines are the issue.
5. Reduce or eliminate or cap the amount an HOA can fine. Since an HOA is a private entity isn’t it unconstitutional to allow them to fine? Two states found fining unconstitutional.
6. Finally, homeowners should be allowed to violate and fine the HOA board when they don’t follow the rules. There has to be some consequence for bad HOA boards.
Please Help
PS: We were extremely excited to learn the DNC had selected Charlotte NC as its host city, and immediately volunteered to be a part of this historical event. We are also considering opening our home to party members that may need residence.
But how can we in good conscience host and speak positively about our home town while entrenched in such an ugly battle for our home?
