3 ms·
Many condos/townhome developments in the US have "homeowners associations" (HOAs) which often empower your neighbors to do precisely that -- enforce parking and
by United857 7y ago
Many condos/townhome developments in the US have "homeowners associations" (HOAs) which often empower your neighbors to do precisely that -- enforce parking and other rules within the bounds of the development.
Speaking from personal experience, while it's private property and legally allowed, and despite the HOA having good intentions in theory, this leads to an attitude of distrust amongst neighbors, people weaponizing petty complaints or viewing their neighbors as "informers", and/or a cabal being vocal, passive-aggressive complainers about everything.
A better solution would be farming this out to a private unaffiliated company -- although by no means perfect, would prevent the detrimental effects on quality of community.
- AbrahamParangi 7y agoThe obvious implication of farming it out would be that instead of simply being beholden to your neighbors, you would concentrate power in whoever or whatever group is paying the firm. That seems strictly worse to me.
- droithomme 7y agoOn the HOA note I lived in a couple. Both times a small club of elderly women with nothing to do during the day would walk the neighborhood multiple times per day and enforce every single rule for every neighbor that they didn't like, which was nearly everyone. Car 13" from the curb? Citation. Shrubbery not trimmed? Citation. Visiting relative's car parked in driveway more than 3 nights in a row? Citation. Guest parking on street overnight? Citation. Watering your lawn not enough, too much, or during the wrong hours? Citation, citation, citation. Some tomcat or stray dog in the neighborhood pooped in your flowerbed and you didn't even notice it and thus didn't remove it? Citation. Fence paint peeling? Citation. Repainted the fence the same color as before without getting written approval from the HOA architectural committee, which was never even established? Citation. Got the committee established and got written permission to paint the same color as before but painted your fence a slightly different color of grey from the neighbors' since theirs have faded over the years? Citation. Unapproved lawn buddha statue in the backyard where no one can see it? Citation. American flag in a flag holder on the post next to the front door? Citation. These types see themselves as defenders of law and order, protectors of good, and take pride in that not a single infraction on any day anywhere goes without a citation. They know all, and see all, and disapprove of all. And the HOA management association loves them because they bring in tens of thousands of additional revenue per month, and even enables them to confiscate a few houses now and then should the homeowner contest the charges and refuse. I would never ever ever ever live in an HOA controlled area again.
- HillaryBriss 7y agomaybe I've lived in the wild west of Los Angeles's chaos and deterioration for too long because what you've just described sounds refreshing
- noobermin 7y agoFarming it out to a private company would be worse given the potential perverse incentives. We already see this in things like private prisons lobbying against more lenient drug sentencing.
- m463 7y agoAll this makes it more amazing how the architects of government pulled it off back around 1776. I think one of the key ideas was "checks and balances"