Snobby HOA

[Emrld]

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/localnews/stories/DN-friscopickups_17met.ART0.West.Edition1.4d8a269.htm l

Basically Man owns a nice Ford truck. HOA is telling him he can't park it in his own driveway. Now if it was a Pricey (like Escalade) vechicle there would be no problem. Have to maintain the neighborhoods image don't ya know.

Ok - if it were up on blocks in the yard, covered in rust, an actual eyesore/ health hazard (dripping oil or other chemicals) I could understand. However, in good condition on his own property just because it doesn't have a high enough price tag - get real people.

Some people need a reality check.

[blas]

Wow...that is so snobbish. Note to self: keep my pile of shit decrepid nasty 10 year old Neon away from that neighborhood.

[AdminAssistant]

And that is why I will never live in a place with a HOA. If I own a house/property, I will do what I damn well please with it.

[sld72382]

There are some towns here in south FL that have the same HOA rule. The truck either has to have a covered bed, or it has be stored in the garage.

I asked a person who lives in one of those towns why, he said "I agree it's stupid, but the snobbish people who are on the HOA feel it makes the town look poor and low-class."

If I hit the lottery and wanted a big house, it would NOT be in a town that has an HOA.

ETA:

What really pissed me off in the article was the HOA guy telling him basically, "The Lincoln Mark LT (sld's note: basically an F-150 with a Lincoln badge) caters to a different class of people" than an F-150. What an ignorant stereotype. :mad:

I just configured an F-350 crew cab dually on Ford's site with leather, dual-zone climate control and an 8 speaker sound system. I'd rather have that than a Escalade. But according to that HOA idiot, I'm low class. :rolleyes:

[Jester]

I have to be contrary today and side with the HOA.

Is the rule snobbish? Yes. Is it elitist? Yes. Is it stupid, silly, and ridiculous? Yes, yes, and yes.

But the fact is the guy signed off on the HOA rules, so if he doesn't like them now that they are inconveniencing him, he has no one to blame but himself. Either he didn't read them, or he didn't have a problem with anything he read until he bought his new truck and suddenly those rules he had signed off on with nary a complaint were a nuisance to him. Basically, this guy is trying to have his cake and eat it too.

Sorry, but when one snob who lives in a pricey community has an issue with the other snobs that live in the same community, I could give two ratshits about the outcome. But if I am forced to take sides, gotta go with the HOA on this one. Sorry, Mr. Pickup, you LOSE.

[digilight]

There's also another reason why HOA's would not allow pickups along the lines of Ford, Chevy, and Dodge. They are commonly used as work trucks and may/may not have tools, logos, equipment, etc in them. While most HOA's will simply ban "Commercial/Work Vehicles" from driveways/HOA Property, they have gone to a whole nother level.

And yeah, it is a stupid rule. But the guy is also a dumb ass at the same time. The rules would have been made available to him prior to purchasing the place, and if he was currently a owner when he bought the truck then he allready had the rules. Its not the HOA's fault that he chose not to read them or ignore them.

[FuzzyKitten99]

You can configure a standard truck to nearly match what the luxury brand of the same manufacturer sells for an additional $10k or more. There are some features that are not available for the standard models, but usually that stuff is trivial. Really all you are paying for when you buy the luxury model, is the emblems and badges. The Escalade EXT and the Avalanche are the exact same vehicle, same chassis, same basic parts under the skin. The only differences are slightly more edged-out curves on the EXT, available color options, and a few standard vs. optional features.

[Emrld]

I don't know if the rules were in place when he bought his house . . .or have changed since. That part isn't really clear in the article/ news stories I have heard.

I have to agree if the rule was in place when the property was purchased . . .then sorry Mr Truck owner.

I don't know that I agree with Ford being considered low end.

I guess I see any vehicle that is maintained, not dripping fluid all over the place, inside kept clean bringing down a neighbohood's value. Also, isn't the fact that they claim to be so high end and only display high end vehicles make them a target for those that think becuase it is on the planet it belongs to them so they are taking it? (theft)

I also just think it is funny what some HOA's put into their rules.

Not all HOA's are bad. Where I live it is an optional $15 per year to belong. Only the city has control over if you need to do some home maintenance, give permits for construction, add on's etc. There is no rule packet I have to follow. I can paint the outside of my house any color I want.
Sadly this works against me also. Have a neighbor in my cul de sac that have painted the house blood red . . .then gone in with white paint and painted the grout lines white, with a green shingle roof. Rest of the surrounding houses . . .grey roofs, off white brick, grey brick, two multi colored brick including some red - not blood red. This house stands out and it isn't a professional job.
It is an eyesore and there is nothing to be done about it.

At this point if I get to a certain price point of house . . .I would want to live in an HOA with some rules . . .to help keep property value and keep a neighborhood looking liek what I bought into.

[sld72382]

I guess I see any vehicle that is maintained, not dripping fluid all over the place, inside kept clean bringing down a neighbohood's value. Also, isn't the fact that they claim to be so high end and only display high end vehicles make them a target for those that think becuase it is on the planet it belongs to them so they are taking it? (theft)

I wouldn't live in a gated community for the same reason as you stated. The chance of burglary in a gated community is always higher because if you live there, thieves will automatically assume you are rolling in dough.

[smileyeagle1021]

I have to be contrary today and side with the HOA.


thank you Jester... having grown up in a place with an HOA and never having lived anywhere that doesn't have one I must say I find it difficult to comprehend why people wouldn't want to live in one. The one's I've been in have been pretty good, most of their rules have been reasonable, things like keep weeds down, no uncovered storage, no abandoned vehicles... so the rules really do help, and in a lot of cases there are advantages in better maintanence than what the city would provide for streets and parks (oh and more green area than what would be in a comparible neighborhood that is outside of any HOA) and they act as a perfect moderator between home owners.

That said, I'd say that rules regarding having a nice enough car are a bit extreme and over the top, but having lived in HOAs I know you aren't allowed to take possession of your home title until after you have signed agreeing to the terms of the HOA... if you don't like the terms then you can buy elsewhere.

[Emrld]

In the Dallas Fort Worth Metroplex . . .HOA does not always equal gated.
I am not sure if this man lives in a gated community or if the last person quoted was just saying that it didn't matter which type of community it is.

[digilight]

HOA never means gated. Its simply an Association of the owners who run the day to day operations of the community, including maintinance, finance, and owner issues.

You can have gated HOA's but it doesn't always have to be that way.

[Tanasi]

If the HOA rules says no trucks parked out side but then their board makes exceptions then the whole thing falls under arbitrary and comprecious and that's illegal. If he has the room in his garage then park it inside but I'd tend to tweak them by replacing the Ford badging with Lincoln badging and see what they have to say.
A lot of the HOAs around here are run by busy-body old women and men and a goodly portion of those are damnyankees. I can't stand them and IMO are very very socialistic.

[crazylegs]

The whole thing smacks of nimbyism, however the rules are the rules, and he did sign the document so hard cheese porsche.

[freeatlast]

The whole purpose of an HOA is to prevent people from doing things on their property that would reduce the property value of the other residents. Some of them do go on a power trip, though. In the subdivision I lived in, they allowed a homeowner who lived right by the entrance to have race cars parked in the driveway and on the street in front of his house. They dripped oil all over the place and looked like hell. One family had a really nice RV and put up a 6 foot privacy fence so that it could be parked inside the fence. It was not noticable and seemed to be a really good solution. But the HOA did not agree. They gave them a really hard time about it. They only parked in the driveway on the night before leaving on a trip so that they could load it, and usually for only one night upon returning from a trip to unpack. But they heard from the HOA about it every time. They finally ended up renting parking for it at another location. I had a portable basketball goal next to my driveway that they never had a problem with. After a wind storm where it blew over onto the spot where my daughter's brand new Toyota Tundra was normally parked, I moved it into the grass and left it laying down to have a chance to figure out a better way to anchor it. Within two days, I had a letter giving me 10 days to remove the rusty debris from my yard. It had a few rust spots on the post from being outside in the weather. I waited until day 10 to move it into the garage. I finally sold it, as I didn't want to have them constantly checking to see if there were any violations with it. But, for the most part it seemed that it was beneficial to have an HOA to keep people from letting their houses look trashy or paint them weird colors.

[Jester]

You can configure a standard truck to nearly match what the luxury brand of the same manufacturer sells for an additional $10k or more. There are some features that are not available for the standard models, but usually that stuff is trivial. Really all you are paying for when you buy the luxury model, is the emblems and badges. The Escalade EXT and the Avalanche are the exact same vehicle, same chassis, same basic parts under the skin. The only differences are slightly more edged-out curves on the EXT, available color options, and a few standard vs. optional features.

What you are missing here is that they banned all pickup trucks, not particular models. The models they were allowing were all SUV's. While an Avalanche can be configured as a pickup, it is considered an SUV.

Also, if they had wanted to, they really could prohibit certain vehicles, as everyone who is IN the HOA signed off on the HOA rules.

I don't know that I agree with Ford being considered low end.

I don't think it was the Ford brand specifically they had a problem with, so much as the fact that it was a pickup truck. Just saying.

If the HOA rules says no trucks parked out side but then their board makes exceptions then the whole thing falls under arbitrary and comprecious and that's illegal. If he has the room in his garage then park it inside but I'd tend to tweak them by replacing the Ford badging with Lincoln badging and see what they have to say.

Once again, I don't see the board making exceptions if the rules state no pickups but SUVs are okay. Hell, if the rules the dude signed off on say Pintos are fine but Blazers suck, and I signed them, then I would have to figure out what to do about the Jestermobile (a Blazer).

The rules may suck, and may be elitist, and you may not like them, but they are not illegal.

[Tanasi]

What you are missing here is that they banned all pickup trucks, not particular models. The models they were allowing were all SUV's. While an Avalanche can be configured as a pickup, it is considered an SUV.

Also, if they had wanted to, they really could prohibit certain vehicles, as everyone who is IN the HOA signed off on the HOA rules.



I don't think it was the Ford brand specifically they had a problem with, so much as the fact that it was a pickup truck. Just saying.



Once again, I don't see the board making exceptions if the rules state no pickups but SUVs are okay. Hell, if the rules the dude signed off on say Pintos are fine but Blazers suck, and I signed them, then I would have to figure out what to do about the Jestermobile (a Blazer).

The rules may suck, and may be elitist, and you may not like them, but they are not illegal.


For the most part I agree with you but in my state the bill-of-sale, the title, and insurance list SUV's as trucks so if the same is true for OP's state then he's got a case, maybe one that won't make him very popular with his neighbors.

I've gone round and round with two different HOAs that adjoin my farm and it finally took a judge's order to stop them from filing law suits against me, for some reason they couldn't understand that my farm wasn't part of their HOA and therefore not subject to it. One of these HOAs has a rule if your car/truck is over three years old then you can't park it outside. The average age of my automotive fleet is 30 years.

[tollbaby]

I have to agree with Jester here. Yes, the rule is absolutely ridiculous - HOWEVER, everyone who lives within the purview of this HOA accepted the rules, and affixed their signature to indicate as such. The guy KNEW this rule before he bought the truck, and yet he figured they'd just let it slide. That was presumptuous, and he should have at least approached the HOA's board before making the purchase to see what the reaction would be. There's no excuse for disregarding rules you were perfectly well aware of, and then complain that you were called on breaking the rules.

That said, I agree that the rule is absolutely stupid. But he DID agree to it ;)

[draggar]

But the fact is the guy signed off on the HOA rules, so if he doesn't like them now that they are inconveniencing him, he has no one to blame but himself. Either he didn't read them, or he didn't have a problem with anything he read until he bought his new truck and suddenly those rules he had signed off on with nary a complaint were a nuisance to him. Basically, this guy is trying to have his cake and eat it too.

Sorry, but when one snob who lives in a pricey community has an issue with the other snobs that live in the same community, I could give two ratshits about the outcome. But if I am forced to take sides, gotta go with the HOA on this one. Sorry, Mr. Pickup, you LOSE.

I have to disagree. Our HOA didn't show us any rules until AFTER we moved in and tried to charge us an application fee AFTER we moved in. By then, it was too late, we're not going to move out of a house we had owned for less than a week because the HOA refused to show us the bylaws (and a 1400 mile move makes it difficult to change plans on the fly).

We even asked to look at the bylaws and they were going to charge us $100 for a COPY of the bylaws (BTW - it's not 400 pages (at $0.25 a page).

But, if we break one little rule (it took 48 hours for our fence to be painted after being built but they were threatening to fine us because it wasn't painted immediately after it was painted - but half of the fences in the neighborhood are either damaged or not painted. No one told us it had to be painted until they threatened to fine us.

In my experiences HOAs cater to their friends and make life difficult to the people who don't kiss up to them.

My own HOA threatened to use my wife and I because the previous owner didn't pay 2 moths association fees (didn't come up in the title search) while the president and her friends didn't pay any association fees for years.

[Jester]

For the most part I agree with you but in my state the bill-of-sale, the title, and insurance list SUV's as trucks so if the same is true for OP's state then he's got a case, maybe one that won't make him very popular with his neighbors.

What the state classifies as a truck really has nothing to do with this, as the HOA was not banning trucks in general, but pickup trucks in particular, and for that, and the HOA makes rules that may or may not have anything to do with the state's classification of various vehicles.

Our HOA...(tales of draggar's HOA's idiocies)

I imagine that that kind of behavior is not typical of most HOA's, and from what I saw in the article, was not the case with the pickup owner.

Your HOA, by the way, sounds like it is, to put it diplomatically, completely fucked.

Once again, I am glad I don't have to deal with an HOA. My new apartment management company has its issues, but ya know what? I can live with pretty much all of them so far.

[draggar]

Your HOA, by the way, sounds like it is, to put it diplomatically, completely fucked.

Sir you have just won the understatement of the year award!!! :)

We've been trying to overthrow the board but we haven't had elections in over 2 years.

[tollbaby]

Can't you, y'know, SUE them for that?

[Jester]

we haven't had elections in over 2 years.

Isn't that vaguely, oh, I dunno....IL-FUCKING-LEGAL?

And if not, isn't it at the very least against the charter of the HOA itself? I would think there could be something you could do within the framework of the HOA's own rules, if not through the courts.