Living Well 60+ September – October 2015 | Page 24

24

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015

Why Join a Homeowners
Association?
Numerous benefits
are balanced by restrictions

by Jamie Lober, Staff Writer

When deciding whether to purchase a property, one question that
should cross your mind is whether
you want to be part of a homeowners association.
“Homeowners associations are
designed to keep the values of
homes and neighborhoods high,”
said Joe McClary, CAE, RCE and
CEO at the Kentucky Association
of Realtors. If you have a vested
interest in the future of your subdivision and do not mind abiding
by a few regulations, a homeowners association could be a good
option.
“Homeowners associations do
not want everyone trying to put
up different mailboxes or buildings
behind their home,” said McClary.

Association fees vary. “In one
of the neighborhoods in Richmond, the homeowner fees are
about $1,200 a year,” McClary
said. “That includes a guard who
stands outside 24 hours a day and
guards entry to your subdivision.
Others have fees of $250 a year,
do not have a live human being
standing out and guarding and
just enforce the covenants that
go with the land in the neighborhood.”
Finding out the requirements
of the homeowners association is
crucial before you move. “It governs where you can park, what
you do with your trash, what you
do with your mailbox, what you
do with your lawn and the decorations in your lawn, including
political signs,” said McClary.

The homeowners association makes sure residents don’t
do anything that will bring the
house values down. “When
someone’s grass is overgrown or
they do not weed eat their lawn,
the homeowners association
goes to bat and makes sure it is
taken care of,” said McClary.
Some associations have
stricter rules than others. “One
association may fine you if you
leave your newspapers out in the
driveway in the mornings but
others would not,” said McClary.
The more expensive the neighborhood, the tighter the restrictions may be.
Homeowners associations can
go as far as to kick people out.
“Recently in Lexington there
was a true story about a lady

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who did not pay her dues for 10
years,” McClary said. “Someone
actually came and sold her property, which was perfectly legal
since the dues were in the deed
or covenant that she agreed to
when she purchased the house.”
As you’re considering moving,
find out who runs the association. Some associations are run
by paid management or local
neighborhood volunteers. Learn
where the documents are kept.
All financial transactions should
be transparent.
“Being transparent means
providing financial statements
on a regular basis to show how
the money is being spent,” said
McClary. You should also be
aware of laws about special
assessments and the policies behind then. “This information is
supposed to be made available.
Any time you sell your house
you have to provide it to the new
buyer so they know what they
are getting into,” said McClary.
Not having this valuable information can delay sales.

Some homeowners
associations
are run by paid
management or
local neighborhood
volunteers.