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Well we thought it was going well but found out this afternoon the listing agent didn't include that there's an HOA in this neighborhood, which has been a no-go for the wife and I since we started looking. Our realtor learned about it today while talking to the title company. We at least were able to get our earnest money returned but unfortunately we're back to square one. 
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Dec 23, 2023 02:59
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An HOA that is like $100 a year to maintain a shared road is fine. The more usual several hundred a month and the bylaws dictate your window shades and your mailbox color, I 100% agree gently caress that noise.
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Dec 23, 2023 03:01
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Yeah I have only ever lived in HOAs, they're usually fine. My current one is on the better side, there are almost no bylaws and it's 3 (three) dollars per month. I don't like the concept in principle but neighborhoods newer than 50 years are likely going to have one. You could treat its disbandment as a pet project, make the world a little better. Walking away is okay too of course!
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Dec 23, 2023 03:32
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Yeah my wife is adamant about staying away from them due to bad experiences when her family lived in neighborhoods with them, and I'm just inclined to agree We have some other homes we saw over the last few weeks that we really liked which are still on the market so we may revisit them while checking out some new ones. It just won't be til the first week of January probably since next week will be a busy one at work.
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Dec 23, 2023 03:52
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Leperflesh posted:An HOA that is like $100 a year to maintain a shared road is fine. The more usual several hundred a month and the bylaws dictate your window shades and your mailbox color, I 100% agree gently caress that noise. It's $100 a year to maintain the shared road until the retaining wall supporting it reaches the end of its useful life and starts crumbling, and the HOA hasn't updated the capitalization report in 25 years and there's a $10,000 special assessment and everyone is angry and no one wants to serve on the board oh god
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Dec 23, 2023 03:56
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Devor posted:It's $100 a year to maintain the shared road until the retaining wall supporting it reaches the end of its useful life and starts crumbling, and the HOA hasn't updated the capitalization report in 25 years and there's a $10,000 special assessment and everyone is angry and
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Dec 23, 2023 04:01
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I'm always perplexed that I don't see more left-wing folks fighting to take a position on their HOA boards to leverage that authority toward the betterment of the community as they see it. Like, shift things from busybody policing of minutiae to improving common areas and building community between neighbors? The stereotypical HOA situation is a nightmare, sure, but I'm perplexed that people spurn co-opting an existing vehicle for building up a solidarity network in their neighborhoods to do good within and beyond it. Dissolving an HOA and leaving every home an island seems like it should be the libertarian approach, but a lot of left-leaning folks appear to be vocally on board. More appealing to preach burning it all down and attempting to assemble solidarity in the ashes, I guess?
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Dec 23, 2023 04:43
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Cugel the Clever posted:I'm always perplexed that I don't see more left-wing folks fighting to take a position on their HOA boards to leverage that authority ? I've done it. The benefit is you can sometimes keep the hoa from doing actively stupid things. The problem is you can't make them proactively do good things, because it's prohibitive to get people to agree to spend money for the collective rather than individual good.
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Dec 23, 2023 05:08
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Cugel the Clever posted:I'm always perplexed that I don't see more left-wing folks fighting to take a position on their HOA boards to leverage that authority toward the betterment of the community as they see it. Like, shift things from busybody policing of minutiae to improving common areas and building community between neighbors? The stereotypical HOA situation is a nightmare, sure, but I'm perplexed that people spurn co-opting an existing vehicle for building up a solidarity network in their neighborhoods to do good within and beyond it. Dissolving an HOA and leaving every home an island seems like it should be the libertarian approach, but a lot of left-leaning folks appear to be vocally on board. A lot of "left-leaning" folk are all talk, and will gladly reap the benefits of a conservative HOA/local government while ranting about it online.
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Dec 23, 2023 05:12
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Cugel the Clever posted:I'm always perplexed that I don't see more left-wing folks fighting to take a position on their HOA boards to leverage that authority toward the betterment of the community as they see it. Like, shift things from busybody policing of minutiae to improving common areas and building community between neighbors? The stereotypical HOA situation is a nightmare, sure, but I'm perplexed that people spurn co-opting an existing vehicle for building up a solidarity network in their neighborhoods to do good within and beyond it. Dissolving an HOA and leaving every home an island seems like it should be the libertarian approach, but a lot of left-leaning folks appear to be vocally on board. Arguably the government (in general) should be run by neurosurgeons and other equally talented people who can be giant force levers for their community; but there's more money to be made in the private market so you end up with a bunch of wind bags filling the talent vacuum in government. Occasionally a constitutional scholar like Obama ends up in charge but it's rare. I've come to the conclusion that rich people making large donations is the best use of their resources in many cases from a time vs positive outcome perspective. Equally, what would that neurosurgeon rather do in their spare time, sit on the beach in Mexico sucking down $3 mai tais, or fighting in an otherwise empty room with racist karens three nights a month?
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Dec 23, 2023 05:50
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As someone on the HOA board. it is a thankless job.
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Dec 23, 2023 06:01
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Cugel the Clever posted:I'm always perplexed that I don't see more left-wing folks fighting to take a position on their HOA boards to leverage that authority toward the betterment of the community as they see it. Like, shift things from busybody policing of minutiae to improving common areas and building community between neighbors? The stereotypical HOA situation is a nightmare, sure, but I'm perplexed that people spurn co-opting an existing vehicle for building up a solidarity network in their neighborhoods to do good within and beyond it. Dissolving an HOA and leaving every home an island seems like it should be the libertarian approach, but a lot of left-leaning folks appear to be vocally on board. If you want to become friends with your neighbors and build up a solidarity network you can already do that without being on the HOA board. On that point specifically I see no reason or advantage of using the HOA for this. You'd be better off joining a mutual aid group in your community If your common area is in disrepair then yeah, it makes sense to try to fix that, but there is no such thing as a left-leaning list of paint colors that you're allowed to use on your home's exterior; someone who is actually left-leaning would simply get rid of the list. Continue maintaining the common areas, burn down the rest of the busybody rules.
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Dec 23, 2023 06:34
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As a left-leaning person myself, if I wanted to do good in my local community my target wouldn't be my already-hands-off HOA board; it'd be a position on a city advisory board or maybe a council position. I actually applied for a position on the local library board but I was up against an actual retired librarian, whereas I had merely been a library volunteer for many years; her bonafides were better, I'm glad she got it instead. School board is on my radar, but I'm not sure if I can swing the require time commitment I just don't see any good being possible from joining the HOA board; I'd be preventing the HOA from doing more harm, at best
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Dec 23, 2023 07:13
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QuarkJets posted:I just don't see any good being possible from joining the HOA board; I'd be preventing the HOA from doing more harm, at best Also, the exact moment it becomes clear that you lied in your statements and that your primary focus is not to maximize home values at all costs (you got elected, so you definitely said those magic words - nobody votes for you otherwise), you will either be removed from the board by group vote for failure to perform your duty (e.g., maximize home values), or you will watch yourself get wiped out in the next cycle. A single reasonable person in a group of jerks isn't going to even prevent harm; they're just going to be ejected. YMMV by state rules.
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Dec 23, 2023 09:17
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I sent in an offer on a house yesterday. In PA that means I sent the completed paperwork for a purchase, and if the seller signs it then it's a done deal barring contingencies (which, yes, includes various independent inspections). The seller has until the end of today to respond, and so I get to spend the rest of the day being anxious and trying to think through the logistics of moving cross-country with an 11-year-old, 70-pound dog and a workshop's worth of heavy woodworking tools. Fun fact: the sale agreement includes a clause stating that I don't own any coal under the lot, and whoever does has the right to mine it and is not liable if the house is damaged by vibrations/settling. The house is in the middle of pretty dense suburbs, so I can't imagine that clause being relevant, but what the gently caress?
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Dec 23, 2023 14:47
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Yeah that's called mineral rights or Split Estates. Basically it means whomever set up the neighborhood or a previous owner acquired the rights to any minerals or resources under the house. In large property purchases in Texas you can sometimes buy the mineral rights for more monies if you think you strike oil.
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Dec 23, 2023 15:37
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Oh poo poo, they accepted my offer. I hadn't planned this far 
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Dec 23, 2023 21:15
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TooMuchAbstraction posted:Oh poo poo, they accepted my offer. I hadn't planned this far lol you're hosed now! Start asking for loan estimates (on a HUD-1 form or it doesn't count) from lenders and get your inspections scheduled now. Shop for homeowners insurance soon.
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Dec 23, 2023 22:37
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Submitting an offer the Friday before a long Christmas weekend lol God drat!
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Dec 23, 2023 22:37
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QuarkJets posted:lol you're hosed now! Oh, I'm not that hosed  . Inspections are on Wednesday, I have financing lined up. Homeowners insurance is gonna need to be set up, but I have USAA, that shouldn't be a problem.It's more of an "oh poo poo, I'll be moving across the country" situation. And yeah, ideally don't do this during a holiday period, but it's when I'm in the neighborhood, so  .
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Dec 23, 2023 22:40
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TooMuchAbstraction posted:Homeowners insurance is gonna need to be set up, but I have USAA Just be sure to get it quoted elsewhere also. USAA home insurance was like $800 more/year (even when bundle with my car insurance at USAA for a discount) than was quoted to me with similar coverage when I got an insurance broker to quote out other options
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Dec 23, 2023 22:44
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Noted, thanks!
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Dec 23, 2023 22:48
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Congrats!
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Dec 23, 2023 23:49
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TooMuchAbstraction posted:Oh poo poo, they accepted my offer. I hadn't planned this far Let the mining begin! It is actually pretty cool when then mine the seam under the ground like 30-100' and then the ground settles by how thick the coal seam was. We had to work on some Transmission Line towers that were in this situation and they all dropped by 10' after the mining took place. In reality though coal is slowly dying so you are probably in the clear, especially since it is eastern coal (way dirtier than western coal).
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Dec 24, 2023 00:51
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Cugel the Clever posted:I'm always perplexed that I don't see more left-wing folks fighting to take a position on their HOA boards to leverage that authority toward the betterment of the community as they see it. These are basically intentional communities (cohousing, co-ops, etc). I’m joined a cohousing development that’s going to start construction soon, ama. They don’t operate like hoas. There’s a whole separate and additional governance layer that’s even more time consuming than a regular Hoa - but it’s a lifestyle that people opt into from the outset. Generally the buildings themselves have a ton of communal space and the places organize a community meal once a week. The busybody stuff gets minimized (or maybe focused differently maybe) because you eat meals with people and get to know them and their lives and also because the lifestyle element means that the people who opt in from the outset to communal living know what they’re getting into and arrive with a deeper willingness to work on poo poo together and share the load and show some appreciation to each other for the stupid amount of work it takes.
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Dec 24, 2023 01:37
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El Mero Mero posted:These are basically intentional communities (cohousing, co-ops, etc). I’m joined a cohousing development that’s going to start construction soon, ama. 
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Dec 24, 2023 01:38
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I mean places like this not some weird farm with a yurt and a persistent weird smell or a sex/murder retreat cult
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Dec 24, 2023 01:45
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spwrozek posted:Let the mining begin! Yeah, giant potholes and massive earth subsidence are one of those things that I abstractly think are cool but would 100% not want to be anywhere near. Especially if the most expensive thing I own is involved But I very much doubt that anyone would dare mine coal in this neighborhood. Regardless of what the law says, it's just too densely-populated (read: suburbia of mostly 5-10k sqft lots) for the risks to be worth it.
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Dec 24, 2023 01:53
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El Mero Mero posted:I mean places like this not some weird farm with a yurt and a persistent weird smell or a sex/murder retreat cult  (obligatory)
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Dec 24, 2023 02:11
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That sounds pretty cool. Some people buy 10 acres build a house on it and then live isolated from society for the next 40 years and die alone separated from everyone Building a large structure/s with 3-10 other families sounds like paradise in comparison. There's probably some positive benefits to building it all together that results in larger living space for not a lot more If having kids has taught me one thing, it's that we're incredibly social animals
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Dec 24, 2023 03:05
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I was wary about our hoa but I read the bylaws before we bought and it’s mainly about taking care of our several mile long gravel road. lol our last meeting was a proposal for gates and cameras at the entrances. It failed and the gnashing of teeth from the conservatives was hilarious. They all have gates on their driveways so I dunno what their problem is they’re afraid of poor people
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Dec 24, 2023 03:13
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El Mero Mero posted:
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Dec 24, 2023 03:50
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HOAs are like miniature governments, if the only people who were allowed to vote were property owners and each property qualified one vote. You know. An aristocracy.
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Dec 24, 2023 03:58
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In a lot of cases the city mandates an HOA as a condition of subdividing the land. Helps offload the tax burden of supporting unprofitable sprawly suburbs. Property tax rate really ought to be 2% not 1.1% in California This was an interesting view. I haven't double checked their math (or read the comments  ) but they make some interesting pointshttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Nw6qyyrTeI Spoiler: that title card image is property value $/acre and the purple area is the urban core of some flyover Midwestern county seat type town of 50,000ppl and the green parts are suburban HOA sprawl I've heard the "live downtown!" arguments and even bought a condo in downtown but this is the best explanation of the property tax math at the city/county level I've seen Hadlock fucked around with this message at 05:22 on Dec 24, 2023 |
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Dec 24, 2023 05:14
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Sloppy posted:Yeah, I loved that part too, I'm always intensely nosy and curious and judgemental about how other people live, decorate, etc so it was super fun. My job takes me into a lot of houses also, it's one of my favorite parts (unless they are gross and filthy). It's honestly shocking how little regard some people have for how they present themselves to others. I'm thinking of one house I was measuring where the wealthy banker and his wife just left underwear randomly laying around, kitchen messy, etc. even though they had weeks advance notice I was coming. I only saw one depressing house where they had sleeping bags for beds and two sad barking dogs in the back. but I did see a house where someone had a whole twitch streamer setup including a neon sign of their username which felt very contemporary
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Dec 24, 2023 18:48
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Hadlock posted:Some people buy 10 acres build a house on it and then live isolated from society for the next 40 years and die alone separated from everyone Sounds like a plan, needs to have access to good internet though.
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Dec 25, 2023 00:21
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Duck and Cover posted:Sounds like a plan, needs to have access to good internet though. Starlink is pretty cool, too bad Elon went full dumbass.
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Dec 25, 2023 03:21
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spwrozek posted:Let the mining begin! Mining engineer here. Totally depends on mining method and how aggressive the miners were and era mined. Older, rural areas will generally be mined to subside or have multiple levels of various strength, whereas newer areas won't likely be pushed to the edge. Subsidence is generally hard to sell nowadays, especially in populated areas. For the record, eastern coal is "cleaner" than western coal. Higher BTUs, less sulfur, and way less ash residue. Western is generally viewed as preferable because of the limited populations and its easier to get to (larger seams per square ft of disruption). Now you know. Dead Pressed fucked around with this message at 03:36 on Dec 25, 2023 |
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Dec 25, 2023 03:32
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Baddog posted:Starlink is pretty cool, too bad Elon went full dumbass. I said good internet, and I wouldn't want to be rural enough for that to be the best option. edit: Also yeah gently caress Elon like I probably would go with Starlink if that was my fastest option but I certainly would not move somewhere where I'd have to make that choice. Duck and Cover fucked around with this message at 18:38 on Dec 25, 2023 |
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Dec 25, 2023 03:38
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| # ? May 17, 2024 04:16 |
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Dead Pressed posted:For the record, eastern coal is "cleaner" than western coal. My gown is white From dawn till night Along the road Of anthracite!
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Dec 25, 2023 05:28
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