RESIDENTS fought back after their homeowners’ association attempted to raise their monthly fees exorbitantly.
Locals have ousted their HOA after the association had said they could raise prices up to $4,000 a month, according to reports.
News crews showed the damage to the complex’s exterior steps and balconies[/caption]
Residents rallied together to remove all of the HOA’s board[/caption]
Earlier this year, the homeowners shot down a plan that the Modesto, California, HOA proposed asking for a $25,000 per-unit assessment that would replace rotting staircases and steps.
When the HOA attempted to pass the almost $4 million endeavor, many had feared they would lose their homes.
“It seems like they have literally done nothing as far as continuing maintenance for years and years and years,” Art Cooper, a resident, said earlier this year to CBS Sacramento.
“I don’t know where I’m going to be living a month from now because of them.”
The Walnut Orchards HOA board then said that if the assessment failed, it could up their monthly fee by 20% every year, eventually pushing costs over $4,000 every month for the owners.
Their monthly fees had risen almost 80% since 2020.
In August, the HOA stood by its warning: it raised costs to about $660 a month for the residents, beginning next year.
“We had a $75 increase, just like that, and we have no say on that,” Maria Rodriguez, a homeowner, said to the outlet.
“We had to just sit there and listen to them increasing our dues.”
In response to the fee increase, fed-up residents launched a ballot measure to remove the entirety of the HOA board.
Ninety out of 100 ballots cast agreed that the board should be removed after a six month battle between the two groups.
“Where is our money going,” Rodriguez said.
“Why aren’t they fixing things around here?”
Currently, multiple balconies and decks are red-tagged, meaning that the structures have been deemed unsafe.
HOA crackdowns in the US
States across the country are working to restrict the power of HOAs.
- In Minnesota, lawmakers introduced a bill that would require HOA boards to create a schedule of fines and fees and distribute it to homeowners; ensure homeowners can contest an HOA fine; provide reasonable time to correct rule violations; and outlaw the practice of charging homeowners for asking questions.
- In Arizona, lawmakers are cracking down on HOA budgets. Under a newly proposed law, HOA boards would have strict guidelines for how they approve expenses.
- In Florida, a bill was passed that restricts the amount of control HOAs have over tenants’ property. It also stops HOAs from fining homeowners for leaving trash cans out and holiday lights up.
- In Atlanta, bipartisan bills were introduced to reign in overly aggressive HOAs to protect homeowners.
- In California, a new bill requires HOA elections to be monitored and the board to comply with certain homeowner requests.
- In Colorado, new HOA rules require greater transparency between HOA board members and tenants.
- And the Federal Fair Housing Act sets housing standards for all homeowners, tenants, and landlords.
News crews went to the complex to show the severe rotting that had happened to outside structures such as staircases and balconies, with residents claiming that nothing has been fixed despite rising costs.
“The costs keep rising, and we don’t have anything to show for it,” a homeowner said.
“Who has that kind of money.”
Residents will now have a new HOA board installed in November after banding together to remove its current members.
“Get to know each other, know your neighbors, and work together to make sure that the best thing is done for everybody and not just a few people,” Cooper said.
A new board will be put in place after a November vote by the homeowners[/caption]
Multiple outside structures have been ‘redtagged’[/caption]
