I have had enough of the crap from these people. 1st they complain cuz I work on cars in MY DRIVEWAY nothing is left out to look like an eyesore and these people ask me to fix their cars but complain about me working on cars and trucks. One person complained about the oil stains in my driveway which I am out there every weekend scrubbing my driveway down removing the stains (which are from my old ladies Pontiac) and I wanted to make the driveway look nicer and more oil resistant so I etched the driveway and expoy painted it Ford blue at at the beginnig of the driveway there is a nice big blue oval with Ford written in it. Looks sharp i had lots of compliments on it. But now I have gotten a nasty gram from the homeowners association telling me I must remove the paint and the Ford emblem from MY driveway or face legal action

 

Do you live in one of those controlled neighborhoods where the houses cannot be certain colors, you can't add additions, your dog can't bark and you have to attend monthly meetings? I'm sorry if you do pal. Since when is the United States of America a communist nation where we must all do the same as everyone around us? I hope to God I never have to live in one of those "communities". I think they're FALSE communities.

Ryan
1986 F-250 HD 4x4
4.10 gears, C6 trany
351W, Edelbrock 351 Performer intake
Edelbrock Performer 600cfm 4bbl carb
Edelbrock Pro-Flo air cleaner
Extreme 4x4 camshaft
Flowmaster 30 series dual exhaust
Custom headers
3" Warn body lift

 

I understand that homeowners associations are designed to keep communities "looking good" but I completely disagree with them. I have seen some homeowners associations that get as picky as suggesting where you can and cannot place window air conditioners. Some don't allow them at all! (They get picky in the area I live in) In my opinion these homeowners associations just plain stink. I could never live in a community that has them. They think they have the right to tell you your house color, what you can and cannot do to your property, to go as far as saying you can't work on your own vehicle?? Whats next? they'll start telling you what kind of car to drive? what you should wear? No thanks... not for me.. I enjoy the freedom to do what I want when I want!

James Kern
1970 F250 4x4

 

I just finished reading a book about this subject. "The Association" by Bentley Little. This is the guy Stephen King calls scary.
I suggest getting a couple copies of this book and giving them to the association board of directors. See what kind of reaction you get.

Roger Lane
Test Analyst
Sr. Automated Test Engineer

 

While I HATE those associations, I did see a good example of how it can go. Picture this: All-white painted homes, nice and neat. THEN, one BRIGHT PURPLE house with a tall ORANGE iron fence around it. I never found out what happened to the guy that did it, but it sure drew attention. My friend had gotten into trouble there, just for planting the "wrong" color of flowers, so I imagine this guy received the death penalty.

 

Did you sign an agreement stating that you would not change the look of your house when you bought it?

If not, how can you face legal action?

If you built it, then screw em!

1978 F250 4x4 - 351M
Don't crush them, restore them!

 

Fortunately, I don't live in one of those so-called "communities". The thing I don't understand is how they can tell you what you can or can't do to your home when you're the one paying the 30 - year mortage. I think it would be cool, if you had enough money, to buy an empty lot in one of those places and park a bunch of rusty junk cars on it, as well as letting the grass grow about 3 or 4 feet high. I would love to see the reaction on the faces of the homeowners association members . Too bad an empty lot still probably costs $50,000 or more in those subdivisions.

 

I have been hit by one of those association neighborhoods once - they made me make a finished parking place on my land, and not park on dirt or grass. I do not live there now, and will not live anywhere that thinks they can tell me what to do on my land.

Wm
http://wsphotofews.excite.com/032/Mp/Wb/5M/EN89478.jpg
'96 F450 Custom Crewcab 4x4 Flatbed, Powerstroke, Banks Powerpack, Chip, Tranny control,Aux tranny, engine worked giving 340 hp and 660ft-lbs

 

[font size="1" color="#FF0000"]LAST EDITED ON 08-Nov-01 AT 07:45 PM (EST)[/font][p]why on earth are these people telling you what to do? where i live no one cares what people do. 2 houses down from me have 3 scrap cars in there back yard, no one cars, barking dogs, purple and oragne hopuses ect, no one cares. no one interfers with anyone. i'll work on my truck sunday at 10 hammering ect no one cares. they come and tell me how nice my ford is, and if i ever wanna sell it to call them! it's your driveway and house you can do w/e u want! id tell these people to go take a long walk off a short peer
that's the way i c things

Joseph

1978 Ford F100
300 6
Carter yf1 barrel
All original, but not for long
And always being worked on :-)

 

[font size="1" color="#FF0000"]LAST EDITED ON 08-Nov-01 AT 08:08 PM (EST)[/font][p]I have something to say to reply to theologians post. I was parking my car at a place next door and paying the guy, since my place didn't have parking (I RENT). Well, to let the other guy park there I had to park on the grass/dirt.

Well, someone must have complained, as I got a warning that I was not to park on any surface not prepared for parking.
(like a bucketfull of gravel makes a surface prepared for parking)

So anyway, the damn fine was going to 3000$ US!
I guess it is a by-law offence to park on a surface not prepared for parking. This is in a 100,000 population city.

edit - What a joke eh?
My parents live in the country and no one is going to tell me where to park my FORD TRUCK!!!!!

1978 F250 4x4 - 351M
Don't crush them, restore them!

 

I can relate to alot of these posts.. I used to live in a an area that was ran by an association. I will never again live in a home where you have to follow certain rules. I remember getting notices because there was a small tear in one of my screens and they were going to charge 50 bucks if I didn't repair by a certain date.. 50 Bucks for something that costs 3-5 bucks if you were to buy it yourself... They also didn't allow working on cars in your driveway. And would not allow any unregistered vehicles on your property at all.. Never again.. I can kinda understand the way they handle the painting of your home and so forth... Cause it does affect your neighbors.. Maybe not in the country but it City areas..


49 Ford F-1 on 73 Ford F-250 3/4 ton 360/435/205 4 wheel drive chasis.

 

This kind of thing has even become a problem in rural areas. For example, in my (quite rural) township there is an ordinance that says you can't have any vehicles without current registration that are parked outside - they don't say that you can't have them, just that they have to be inside a full enclosed building. So, technically I have to keep my non-registered farm truck inside my garage - though I have enough land that I can park it way out back and nobody notices. This ordinance is becoming very common, even in extremely rural areas...

Part of the reason that they can do this sort of thing is because the condition of your property affects the surrounding property values - so it becames a balancing act between your rights and the rights of others. For example, if you paint your house pumpkin-orange and it ends up reducing my property value by $10,000, you could be found legally liable for that reduction and in a court of law might be forced to pay me the $10,000. This is even true in an area where there are no ordinances...and I think is part of the reason behind homeowner's associations.

Another example: there is a local dirt racetrack that runs 1 day a week, and anyone who has been around those tracks knows that they make a *lot* of noise. If the person who owns it decides to start running races 7 days a week, everyone affected by the increased noise could form a class-action suit which would either prevent him from doing it or cause him to end up paying out a fairly large sum of money.

You have the right to do whatever you want on your own property, until it starts to affect the rights of others that live near you...which is one of the base principles of our Constitution.

LK

 

You know, this kinda gets to me. I realize that what you do to your property may affect others, but when you have an acre or two between your home and someone else's, what the heck, what does that do to them at all?

Kinda reminds me of a thing here in Mass. There is a lake in western Mass, supposedly one of thelongest names of a lake. It's an old Indian name, and I can't think of it, but the translation goes as follows: "You fish on your side of the lake, I'll fish on my side of the lake, and no-one will fish in the middle". Now I think those are words we can all live by and follow. Basically to say, leave your brothers alone, let them do as they wish, but have a neutral zone. Say for exapmly, not literally or physically to keep on "your own side of the lake", but more so that is you can't say or do anything good to your neighbor, then don't say or do anything at all, just live and let be. Just my take on things. That's why I plan on living in New England all my life. I was born here, I've lived here...I'll die here for sure. I will move up to New Hampshire where I can live free or die, I'll own a few acres in the woods, away from everyone, not that I want to be isolated and anti-social, it just sems that someone's always out to dog you, to crap on your parade, to say something to you to get you mad, to try to get you in trouble. If things were only the way they were in the old west, where men lived by the gun....

Ryan
1986 F-250 HD 4x4
4.10 gears, C6 trany
351W, Edelbrock 351 Performer intake
Edelbrock Performer 600cfm 4bbl carb
Edelbrock Pro-Flo air cleaner
Extreme 4x4 camshaft
Flowmaster 30 series dual exhaust
Custom headers
3" Warn body lift

 

[font size="1" color="#FF0000"]LAST EDITED ON 09-Nov-01 AT 12:28 PM (EST)[/font][p]I still don't see how these associations can 'charge' you money for not repairing something. How can you be forced to pay a fee for something like that unless you are sued?
Thats ridiculous.

We live in a rural area and the road to our house splits into a V. Effectively, our house is inside that V, so if you go straight through instead of merging either way, you run onto our lawn. So after many nights of drunks trapsing through our lawn, as well as the snowplow pushing everything fromt he corner onto our lawn, my dad and I put up two posts that were in line with OUR property line, right up against the pavement. (Keep in mind that when they paved our road, they curved the corner and took away 5 feet of our land.) So, as a courtesy to drivers, we put up that reflective tape that can be seen for miles at night on both posts. So anyway, people complained, and I believe that the townships lawyer called the house. So my dad explained to them that if they want him to rip up that godforesaken pavement that he would pull up the posts. Haven't heard from them since!!

1978 F250 4x4 - 351M
Don't crush them, restore them!