This a perfect example of why I'd never live in a place with a HOA
By NJ Chicaa
@NJChicaa (124416)
United States
July 12, 2025 6:00am CST
HOA means homeowner association. They control what you do with your property including what colors you can paint your house, what flags (if any) you can display, what plants/trees you can plant, and where you can park your cars. It is nuts. And they pay thousands of dollars per year for it!
This guy does a nice thing by putting out a cooler of cold water for delivery drivers, people walking by, kids walking their dogs, etc. He keeps being fined by the HOA. They say "The Association does not object to a resident providing water bottles within the community; however, the community’s rules do not allow a resident to advertise water bottle distribution from a portable ice chest, located next to their garage that is visible from neighboring property.” Yeah a cooler with cold water for people is so offensive. 
Perfect example of why I'd never live in a place with a HOA. Mind your business Karen.
Perfect example of why I'd never live in a place with a HOA. Mind your business Karen.https://nypost.com/2025/07/12/us-news/arizona-homeowner-david-martin-fined-100-repeatedly-for-giving-out-free-water-in-heat-amid-clash-with-hoa/
11 people like this
10 responses
@FourWalls (78199)
• United States
12 Jul
You leave me out of it!!!! 
And you PAY these people to be Gladys Kravitz??? Sheesh!!
And you PAY these people to be Gladys Kravitz??? Sheesh!!3 people like this
@AliCanary (3373)
•
12 Jul
Well, you pay the management company - the officers in the HOA aren't paid, but they're usually the neighbors who want to go on a little power trip :/
1 person likes this
@DaddyEvil (158013)
• United States
12 Jul
My first wife and I owned a house in an area that was trying to start a HOA but we kept objecting to it in the meetings and they needed 100% of the homeowners to agree or they couldn't start it according to the city ordnances... They finally bought us out so they could get the HOA to go through. My wife only agreed to the buyout after they paid us almost three times what our house was worth. 
3 people like this
@snowy22315 (195087)
• United States
12 Jul
HOA's are a pain in the butt, but some are worse than others.
2 people like this
@JudyEv (361878)
• Rockingham, Australia
12 Jul
@NJChicaa We have a Council of Owners who can make minor decisions on behalf of the 150-odd residents here. I don't mean the residents are odd although sometimes that's debatable. Mostly commonsense prevails if some decide to get too petty about 'stuff'.
1 person likes this
@AliCanary (3373)
•
12 Jul
Yuck, that's really obnoxious. Those people are probably afraid it will "attract" homeless people. HOAs for basic neighborhoods aren't usually that expensive (ours is only about $200/year, total, and they don't bug me about anything), but they do get more expensive if your neighborhood has a pool, tennis courts, or needs a lot of exterior maintenance. Condos have HOAs, too, and they usually more expensive because they have to take care of landscaping and repairing the building exterior. Our condo is more like $200/month.
2 people like this
@LindaOHio (199079)
• United States
12 Jul
I love owning my own house without an HOA. I can do whatever I want to the yard and house.
2 people like this
@GardenGerty (165534)
• United States
13 Jul
There are so many ways it seems to me people give up their rights by buying in an HOA.
1 person likes this
@AmbiePam (102062)
• United States
12 Jul
I always thought a place had to be really special for someone to tolerate an HOA. My first problem was always telling someone what few colors they can paint their house. But I admire this guy for keeping up the kindness when they get super nitpicky.
2 people like this
@MarieCoyle (47702)
•
12 Jul
About 10 years ago, my oldest son purchased a nice home in a new subdivision. Some houses were about half finished, some sold, and a few ready to buy. He liked the location and the neighborhood, so they got the house. About 8 months afterwards, someone decided they needed an HOA in place. He decided maybe it wouldn't be too bad...wrong! They regulated everything they could. Even what type of Christmas lights you were allowed to have, you name it, they had a rule for it. They sold their home and bought another home just as nice in a nice neighborhood...without the high HOA fees. He is done with HOA!
1 person likes this
