I have a few of each experience, homes without HOAs, and homes/condos with. (Nearly all condos have them.) There are, of course, pluses and minuses to either.

I have a few of each experience, homes without HOAs, and homes/condos with. (Nearly all condos have them.) There are, of course, pluses and minuses to either. I bought an expensive home in a nice suburb, no HOA. My neighbors, who were there before me, suddenly decided to fill their back yard with old rusty cars on blocks they were “working on”. And get a fake deer for target practice. This cost me then of thousands of dollars when I sold my house. No HOA restrictions I’ve ever dealt with were worse than that so I’m now fairly pro-HOA. I have plenty of freedom and opportunity to buy a house without one but I likely won’t again.