More than 80% of homeowners would rather live in a neighborhood without a homeowners association (HOAs), according to a new report from HomeAdvisor released this week.
HOAs can have their benefits, as 59% of 1,000 surveyed homeowners confirmed the main benefit is improved neighborhood aesthetics, however 1 in 3 homeowners said their HOA causes them regular stress.
Key highlights:
- HOAs commonly have restrictive policies and rules, which 84% of homeowners said these policies are a downside.
- Lawn and holiday decoration restrictions, architectural rules, and limits of pet size and quantity are found to be the most restrictive rules to more than half of homeowners.
- Overzealous board members and invasive behavior were found to be some of the worst aspects of HOAs by 73%.
- 68% say their HOA’s response was unfair to infractions, and 83% agree that they pay too much for dues and fines for infractions.
- The most commonly broken HOA rules center on lawn and holiday decorations, parking, and home maintenance, to which 34% of HOAs have responded with fines and 78% have responded with warnings.
- HOAs also bring about invasive behaviors from neighbors (yard peeping and reporting tiny infractions to the board), which is an issue to 71%.
Major takeaway:
According to the report, 13% of homeowners have tried to leave their HOAs, with younger generations such as millennials being especially upset at 16% attempting to leave.
One Gen X homeowner, as stated by HomeAdvisor, explained that their HOA “is a nightmare. People years in arrears with their dues, a president who stole money and mismanaged the insurance and vendors, bullies, etc. I will never buy into another HOA when I leave here.”
“Homeowners acknowledge that while HOAs can provide some benefits, the difficult behavior from the HOA itself—and nosy neighbors—can make membership more trouble than it’s worth,” said the authors of the report.
For the full report, visit www.homeadvisor.com/r/problems-with-HOAs.
