There is nothing like getting a nastygram (or two) from your HOA. In general, I don’t mind being in a community with an HOA. Lots of people whinge about the CC&R’s, and having to comply (no, you can’t have a 40′ “murican flag in your font yard, thankyouverymuch).
I have found that they have been very willing to work with you if you ask them. In our house in Tucson we had two primary interactions with the Silverado Hills HOA, both positive. First was to do something about the idiot ATV riders blasting through our property. The second was when we put solar PV panels on our roof (they were cool with it, as long as we tried our best to keep them obscured from view).
However, here in Chandler, where we moved in July of 2012, it has been less positive. I should back up. We bought a house that was foreclosed on, bank owned, and finally bought by an investor who did a great job cleaning it up before selling it to us. We are (mostly) really happy with the house, but we knew that the exterior paint was a bit rough when we bought it.
Last week, we came back from a short trip to San Diego to a nastygram. The one I expected was for the out of control weeds. It is astounding how fast they sprout up and take over the yard. But no, it was about our paint “not meeting standards” and gave us 10 days to rectify it.
The thing is, from the front it isn’t too bad. A hose to wash off some of the dust would spruce it up. The real rough parts are in the back, and that is clearly not in their purview.
So we got some quotes, and have filed an appeal. It has also caused us to look at the houses in the neighborhood. There are LOTS that are in worse condition than us. I hope they all got the nastygrams.
But I suspect that they didn’t. I get the feeling that the HOA had been watching our house, and when owners came in, who live here they pounced on the painting.
Sigh.
