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Remember the rise and fall of Rome? Well, it's happening again -- right here in our own country. Historians tell us that the United States is in its last phase of social and financial decline (as if intelligent and rational Americans didn't already know that). Americans who have been paying attention know that our legal system appears to be irreparably broken, and that our local, state and federal governments appear to be in corrupt shambles. Illegal aliens (most from Mexico) appear to be taking over our country. I also read (from reputable and reliable sources) that the United States, Canada and Mexico have plans to merge into one country. Can intelligent and rational Americans peacefully stop this madness? Or will there be another bloody American Revolution? Those two questions are what this blog is all about. Please join me in discussing what steps We The Intelligent And Rational People need to take to turn our country around before it's too late. Jan Jackson

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Beware The Associations - Part III

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Contributed by: Jan Jackson on 5/5/2008

There are approximately 231,000 homeowners' associations in the United States, which is an increase from a mere 500 in 1965.[fn1]. Homeowners' associations control the housing of some 47 million Americans across the country.[fn2] In California, there are more than 32,000 homeowners associations.[fn3] Approximately fifty percent of all new homes built in major metropolitan areas fall within homeowners' associations.[fn4] In south Orange County, located on the coast of California, that number is even higher. There, more than eighty percent of new housing is under association control.[fn5]

Homeowners' associations sprung up in the 1970s in California. They became increasingly abundant following the passage in 1978 of a revolutionary initiative commonly known as Proposition 13, legally known as Article XIII A of the California Constitution.[fn6]

Proposition 13 cut deeply into property taxes, [fn7] resulting in less funding for parks, swimming pools and other features of residential areas. To entice home buyers and boost sales, developers began adding swimming pools, clubhouses and other attractive features to their developments.

The developers formed associations to oversee maintenance and care of the amenities. Associations were created for the purpose of managing a "common interest development" (CID). [fn8] A "common interest development" can be any one of the following the following: (1) a community apartment project; (2) a condominium project; (3) a planned development; or (4) a stock cooperative.[fn9] Homeowners have ownership in all of the common areas of the development as tenants in common, in equal shares, one per each lot. [fn10]

Cities and developers saw associations as an instant fix to the financial burdens of servicing a community.Once the developers built tracts and added some amenities the responsibilities for the maintenance were turned over to the homeowners' association. [fn11] Because the homeowners' associations pay for the landscaping, gardeners, utilities or other cost of maintenance, cities are not responsible for paying for them. Cities receive property taxes and then assess the associations. [fn13]

The homeowners' association concept provides a country club atmosphere with swimming pools, parks, tennis courts and lakes to persons who would not otherwise be able to afford these amenities. A community under association control provides attractive well-maintained common areas without the responsibility of maintenance. This can benefit the owners by maintaining property values ifthe board of directors is reasonable and uses common sense regarding the use of the association's money.

Supporters of homeowners' associations argue that associations help maintain order in the community and serve the best interest of owners and the association in general. [fn14] They are convinced that association rules help prevent potential chaos such as motor homes in driveways, oddly painted units, dilapidated pickup trucks, and poorly maintained landscaping. [fn15]

[There is a very "dark side" to this so-called Associations "paradise", however, which supporters of homeowners' associations must ignore because it doesn't fit with their fantasies about why they are living the way they're living. And in the case of HOA boards of directors, is doesn't fit with their fantasies of themselves as being benevolent dictators. You will begin reading about that "Dark Side of Paradise" in Part IV of "Beware The Associations."]

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