Imagine U.S. Presidential Candidates Running for Election to an HOA Board

Suppose candidates for president of the United States were running for election to an HOA Board. And some of the candidates were using words like losers, dummies and morons to describe their opponents in the HOA election. And suppose there were veiled and not so veiled observations about certain anatomical features of an opponent's body. And F-bombs and other cuss words, too.

What would an HOA election like that be like?

Whether an election is nationwide to pick a nation's president or very local to elect homeowners to serve on an HOA Board, the way in which candidates choose to conduct themselves is what it's all about.

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Houston!! We have an issue!

Two dinosaur sculptures in the front yard of a home located in an HOA in the Houston area just made ABC 13 Eyewitness News. The homeowner said "she's been contacted (by the HOA) and asked what her plans were" for the dinosaurs, a T-Rex and a Velociraptor. The homeowner's "plans are directly tied to their plans," according to the TV-news story. "She says she is prepared to contest any request that they be removed. It's about creativity, not conformity." Here's the thing about media coverage of just about anything...of organizations like HOAs, business firms and all the rest. It's the question of whether or not -- to what extent -- media coverage might influence situations and outcomes. When organizations -- and their policies -- are in the news, will media coverage influence policy decisions? Keeping in mind, of course, the key role of governing documents in policies and procedures.

What Homeowner Associations Can Teach Governments About Spending

by Harvey Radin People in government should take field trips to well-run homeowner associations. To experience fiscal responsibility first hand. To see how elected leaders in some homeowner associations -- HOAs -- are actually spending public money prudently and efficiently. Like governments, homeowner associations collect money to fund a host of community needs. Homeowners residing in HOAs pay dues to their association. This is similar in a way to government taxation. So, if there are roads in an HOA property that are not city-maintained streets, a portion of the money homeowners pay in dues may be set aside for the upkeep of these roads. Governments use tax dollars for public parks maintenance. Homeowner associations have what's known as common areas, landscaped parcels of HOA property that are often maintained by the homeowner association. Some HOAs assume responsibility for roof maintenance on homes, and painting maintenance. Some have recreational facilities that are mai

Heaven or Hell?

( Editor's note: There's an article in a North Carolina newspaper, "My descent into HOA hell in North Carolina." And there's this article with a distinctly different message about HOAs.) Here's Why HOAs Are a Big Deal by Harvey Radin Would you believe that homeowner associations outnumber U.S. cities by a huge margin? There are more than 300,000 homeowner associations and only 35,000 U.S. cities and towns. HOAs also outnumber the giant retail store locations, fast food restaurants, megabank branches and coffee chain locations. The biggest fast food chains have 7,000-14,000 restaurant locations. Megabanks have 4,000-6,000 branches. The biggest coffee chains have up to 24,000 locations in the U.S. and other countries. Homeowner associations are a big deal. Not only because of the surprisingly large number of them, but also because many of them are multimillion-dollar properties. And many are managed and governed by volunteers, by homeowners who are e

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