This is a story you must pass onto your family and friends who do not live in an HOA – and don’t plan to – and who believe they are immune to abuse and legal action by an overzealous homeowner’s association board.
Bill Peters, Bel Air, MD, just spent $50,000 over the past 4 years fighting Emerald Hills Homeowners’ Association – even though Peters does not reside in the Association-Governed Community.
The HOA sued Peters because, it insisted, a 2 foot patch of his new concrete driveway encroached onto HOA land. However, the small parcel of land had been granted an easement, according to the attorney hired by Peters to defend his case against the HOA. The court recently decided the case in favor of Peters.
In this case, then, HOA members are stuck paying for a wasteful lawsuit and a homeowner not legally obligated to be a member of the HOA had to spend tens of thousands of dollars to defend his property rights. Read more: