The HOA is an exclusively American phenomenon that has been mercifully spared upon the rest of the world. It might genuinely be a curse placed upon the nation for once building suburbs on ancient burial grounds. Nowhere else on earth do people voluntarily pay money for the privilege of having strangers police the color of their mailbox and dictate whether they can park in their own driveway.
One man put a trampoline in his backyard for his three young sons, and his HOA board decided it was an eyesore that needed to go. Their pettiness unleashed a whole world of trouble, giving them a taste of their own board-approved medicine.
More info: Reddit
Over 53% of American homeowners live under HOA rule and fewer than half of them actually think their neighborhood is better because of it
Image credits: freepik / Freepik (not the actual photo)
A dad put a trampoline in his backyard for his three young sons and nobody said anything about it for over a year until his neighbor decided to sell his house
Image credits: pressfoto / Freepik (not the actual photo)
The HOA president/neighbor could have knocked on his door and had a conversation but instead filed complaints and forced him through an official review process
Image credits: freepik / Freepik (not the actual photo)
The board denied the dad’s appeal and claimed they’d sent him a letter explaining why, but when he asked for proof, he quickly saw that it was fraudulent
Image credits: freepik / Freepik (not the actual photo)
He recruited three friends to run for the board with him and also went canvassing from door to door in the neighborhood
Image credits: koldunova_anna / Freepik (not the actual photo)
The four of them won in a landslide victory as the neighbors all gave them proxy letters to vote on their behalf
Image credits: hi_internet_friend
As the new board majority, they could fire the property manager and restore law and order to the system
A man put a trampoline in his backyard for his three young boys, and nobody said a word about it for over a year. Then, in the spring, his neighbor, who happened to be the HOA president, went to sell his house, and his realtor suggested the trampoline might hurt the sale price.
Rather than knocking on the door and having a conversation like a normal human, the neighbor convinced the woman on the other side to complain as well, and suddenly the trampoline was a problem that required official forms and board approval. Obviously, his “official” request and subsequent appeal were denied. He was told there was a letter in the mail explaining the exact denial reasons.
A week later, he asked again, and the property manager insisted she had already sent the letter and forwarded the email as proof. The email looked extremely suspicious, with edited responses in different colors, a meeting reference that never happened, and his name in the address field with no timestamp or forwarded message marker. The savvy dad got one honest board member to admit the fraud.
The year-end meeting was approaching with four board positions up for election, so he recruited three friends from the street to run with him. He went door to door, speaking to homeowners about their frustrations with the board and collected signed proxy forms, which gave him the right to vote on their behalf. He walked into that meeting ready to stage a coup for the ages.
The vote was a landslide. He and his three friends were elected; one terrible board member remained, but was now the minority. They promptly fired the property manager for being dishonest and uncommunicative. The trampoline stayed exactly where it was, and his wife agreed they would never live in an HOA again, which he considered an even bigger victory than keeping the trampoline in the first place.
Image credits: ungvar / Freepik (not the actual photo)
Approximately 40 million households in the USA, over 53% of owner-occupied homes, are part of a homeowners’ association. Nearly 44% of homes currently for sale carry HOA fees, and roughly 30% of the entire U.S. population live in HOA-governed communities. This is not a fringe phenomenon. This is mainstream American suburban life. It is almost as unavoidable as taxes and going to the toilet.
Speaking of toilets, that’s where the approval ratings are. A survey found that fewer than half of HOA residents believe their neighborhood is actually better with an HOA in place. Fewer than two in three feel their HOA honestly handles its finances, while 10% of HOA residents are actively considering selling their homes specifically for HOA-related reasons.
So can you actually get rid of an HOA? Technically, yes, but it is extraordinarily difficult. Most governing documents require a supermajority vote or even unanimous consent from all homeowners to dissolve the association, which is nearly impossible to achieve in any community larger than a cul-de-sac. State laws vary, but you will be navigating a legal minefield that costs more than most people are willing to spend.
What this man did was considerably smarter. He did not try to dismantle the HOA. He just took it over, fired the dishonest property manager, and installed a board that was not going to weaponize bylaws over a trampoline. Sometimes, the revenge is not burning the system down. It is becoming the system.
What is the worst HOA encounter you have ever had? Let’s spit some venom in the comments!
The internet gave a standing ovation for this inspiring story of revenge that gave everyone some hope for their own HOA nightmares
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