Posted by Rod on May 24, 1999 at 19:34:55:
Sounds like a case of “bark worse than bite”, almost all subdivisions are ruled by covenants usually not alterable by the homeowners assoc. Your best bet is to read the contracts of several sales in the area and determine if the association has all or no control over the individual properties. I live in an area which has a homeowners association and it’s sole purpose is to rally the troops whenever encroaching commercial zoning fails to be of benefit to the area. We’re simply trying to protect the market value as a whole, not tell the residents what they can or cannot sell their property for. Check a little closer and maybe you won’t need to pass up all those possibilities.
Homeowners’ Associations Property - Posted by Matthew Chan
Posted by Matthew Chan on May 24, 1999 at 18:52:38:
Bill K (AZ) brought this up in another thread but I thought it was important enough to start another.
It has been my experience that Homes are under the jurisdiction of homeowner associations are dead giveaways in the way the whole neighborhood appears. In my opinion, they have this “sterile” clonelike appearance. All the houses look related. But those neighborhoods are extremely clean and well-kept, almost a forced unnatural look.
I personally don’t like homeowner association properties because it would seem that your next deal is heavily and unreasonably influenced by the last deal in the neighborhood. There seems to be too much of a tendency to do a straight apple-to-apple comparison.
Granted when you pull comps for any property, it does influence your sales price. However, market price is more flexible because there is less likelihood of two houses being alike.
Another thing that annoys me (but good for others) is that an acquaintance told me they couldn’t do much improvement or make even minor changes without getting permission first.
That just goes against my nature, having to ask permission to do anything different with the property.
My point? It is obvious I have a negative bias towards homeowner association properties. But all emotion aside, I would like someone to tell me that I am being shortsighted and not seeing the advantages that it can present. There has to be something else than saying to the buyer that the neighborhood MUST be clean. Right now, I see a FSBO sign in that type of neighborhood, and I just run away (which may be the wrong thing to do). I just hate bureaucracy.
Someone please enlighten me. Thanks!