It’s your castle — your house, your yard, your garden. But if you choose to live in a subdivision governed by a homeowners association, you’re not always the king. In fact, you might be too much a king’s subject for your liking .Typically created by developers, HOAs act as private residential governments with leaders elected by other homeowners. They set and enforce rules aimed at protecting property values and collect dues to maintain common areas and costs typically absorbed by local governments. But HOA rules can turn ordinarily wholesome staples of suburban life — basketball hoops in the driveway, sheds, aboveground pools — into violations. Whether they know it or not, homeowners agree to the regulations when purchasing the property. But in this form of ground-level residential government, the rulers often matter more than the rules.
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