HOA Help!

[draggar]

Something to reallt think about:

The OP asked ahout the HOA and the seller said NO. The seller flat out lied about this. WHAT ELSE ARE THEY LYING ABOUT?

[poofy_puff]

The more I read about this, the more it looks like this is an ad-hoc HOA and not a legal HOA.

Good luck to the OP and PLEASE get legal counsel like the grown-ups said to do.

[LewisLegion]

I’ve emailed my realtor and I’ll try and call her when I get a chance. I told her about the HOA and I want her to look into it again and see what she can find. I’m trying to look into attorneys as well depending on what she says but as of right now I don’t know what I can get out of this except not having to sign into the HOA. If it's an ad-hoc HOA and not a legal one I'm going to tell them to sit on it and spin anyway.

As for the previous owner, this was a bank foreclosure. So the seller was the bank and the bank’s selling agent. So I doubt they came out and removed the ramp for no reason.

A couple people mentioned reversing the sale of the house... that is SO not happening. I went through hell for eight months to get this house, my apartment lease is done, and I have friends moving in from across country within the next couple of months. Reversing the sale and going back to square one is so not an option right now.

[Broomjockey]

Reversing the sale and going back to square one is so not an option right now.

You say that, but keep in mind, if it's a "legit" or whatever class of HOA that you'd have to sign in to, you'd be well within your rights to make the bank pay for storage and lodging while you found a new place, if you couldn't get out of being in the HOA. That'd be part of reversing the sale and punitives.

[sms001]

LL:

One piece of advice that I haven't seen here yet is to IMMEDIATELY start your paper trail. Note the times and dates of when you attempted to gain knowledge of any home owners association concerns with your prospective property. Create a timeline of all the events so far.

Do not get 'stuck' in this situation. Please. I know how hard it is to tackle an enormous project like this, but if it saves you decades of misery down the road, it will be well worth it.

I would also seriously follow up on the ramp business. There isn't a magic window between a prospective buyer's final inspection and an actual closing - if there was people would strip homes bare all the time. A semi-permanent structure that wouldn't reasonably be expected to be removed certainly shouldn't have been. Involve the police. It isn't that you need the ramp (or even want it) but it's an avenue to explore exactly what you are getting into here.

Good luck and please keep us updated.

[AdminAssistant]

I know absolutely nothing about houses or mortgages or housing rules or anything like that. It seems to contain numbers and it all confuses the hell out of me.

But, damn, that really sucks, and I sincerely hope you're able to get it all sorted out.

[LewisLegion]

Well I got an email back from my realtor and she was floored. She confirmed what I'd said, that no HOA was ever disclosed and no CCRs were signed. I'm keeping the email and any further ones she sends to me regarding this. She's going to talk to the gentleman who was there at my closing when I signed the papers.

According to another of my new neighbors (really nice guy, moved in two weeks before I closed), HIS HOA paperwork claims that the dues go toward insuring the small playground that is right across the street to my house, in case any children are injured while playing there. He talked to my stepfather before I arrived at the house this evening so I didn't hear this directly from him. Next time I see him I'll ask if he signed his HOA paperwork at his own closing and if he knew about it beforehand, or if he signed when the HOA rep came to his door and presented papers. If its the latter then its more proof that the HOA is ad-hoc and not technically legal.

[draggar]

If the bank owned the house before you bought it chances are that they did NOT pay the "HOA" fees if they were due and didn't pay any liens when the property was closed on - make damn sure there are no liens on your property now for any back-fees that were due and not paid for (including any special assessments).

My HOA had a unit owned by the bank and they actually had to ttake the bank to court to get them to pay the fees and special assessments.

As for insuring the playground across the street - is that on the property managed by your "HOA" or not? If not - then legally you do not have to pay for the insurance and it sounds more like a savvy investor is trying to scam you out of $25 a month to pay for his bills.

This is getting fishier than low tide in New Jersey.

[poofy_puff]

Next time I buy a house I'm asking for something in writing saying proactively that there IS NO HOA and no liens. Even when you do your homework and work with a professional agent there is no guarantee against this BS.

I can't wait for them to ask you to sign something. You will refuse of course and watch them threaten to take you to court. Realize that if they were to do so, it would be on THEM to prove that you must comply, and courts are only interested in enforcing valid, legal contracts. In this case, one doesn't exist.

You will be in for some aggravation, but DO NOT CAVE and you will come out right-side-up in the end.

And that bit about paying for the playground: If it's on public property, your TAXES pay for any liabilities, and if it's on PRIVATE property, and it's not YOUR private property, and you don't have kids playing there, you are NOT required to subsidize the administration and maintenance of it.

This DOES sound like a scam.

[telecom_goddess]

I don't know much about real estate, I've never bought or sold a house. But this situation would make ME mad.....cause I feel the same way. If I ever do buy a house I do NOT want an HOA. In my opinion they provide no benefit and it's just an excuse for a bunch of people to tell you how to live in your own home that you own. If I want to live with a lot of rules I will continue to rent, where I would expect that. But if I own a house, I will be damned if anyone else will tell me what colors I can use, what grass to grow, how to decorate etc. If it's MINE I will do what *I* want.

I hate HOA's with a passion. And if I bought a house and found out later there was an HOA I would be PISSED!!!

[Stormraven]

Well, HOAs do have some benefit, in certain situations. I live in a PUD (Planned Unit Development) with Townhomes. All the common area is handled by the HOA, including landscaping, parking, etc. Also, outside maintenance, such as fences, painting and the like is usually covered. They also pay the water bill.

That, however, is due to the nature of the development itself. HOAs for detached houses with yards, where they're nothing more than an attempt to keep properties more or less identical - they need to be nuked from orbit, they do.

[LewisLegion]

Not sure if the playground is on public or private property. It's hard to tell. I would assume public property but yeah...who knows. I'll have to find out.

[poofy_puff]

Not sure if the playground is on public or private property. It's hard to tell. I would assume public property but yeah...who knows. I'll have to find out.

Even if it's private property, I'm hard pressed to believe it's YOUR private property and therefore your responsibility.

Many towns have an online GIS like this:

http://gis.lowellma.gov/

TONS of goodies on there. Your town might have one too. Otherwise you can get that type of information at the City Hall or Registry of Deeds. It is a little more work to track it down the old-fashioned way, but it is public information and you should only have to pay money if you want copies made, and then maybe only if they are certified ones.

[Pairou]

We have a particularly... 'fun' HOA. After some hurricanes, we repainted our house with a gorgeous bright yellow-orange sort of color (it sounds weird, but it looked really beautiful, we were always getting compliments). The HOA forced us to repaint the house- with our money of course- even though they had OK'd the color beforehand.

Then my parents added a window A/C in their bedroom. But the HOA is apparently made up of bored housewives with nothing to do- they wandered by our backyard, saw that my parents had the AC, and demanded we remove it. You cannot see it at ALL form the street or even from the next-door houses, my house is at a cool angle.

They get angry because our roof isn't very clean. They got mad because my grandparents' driveway was dirty. They threaten to take us to court over these things.

...And I think I hijacked the thread there, sorry! My point was basically, I am going to make sure there's no HOA wherever I end up moving after college. :/

[Eric the Grey]

Otherwise you can get that type of information at the City Hall or Registry of Deeds. It is a little more work to track it down the old-fashioned way, but it is public information and you should only have to pay money if you want copies made, and then maybe only if they are certified ones.

Actually, this may be your best bet. City Hall should have all the necessary documents on the land and who owns it, if there are any liens against it, and if there is an HOA in force.

If there is NOT an HOA, then I would plan to have the "association" people come back after you've had time to read the document and meet with you, along with the police.


Eric the Grey