If you are currently house hunting or weighing your options, the best way to determine if a neighborhood has a nice HOA is to do your homework.

Beverly Bowman

3 min read

Jun 17, 2026

“By wisdom a house is built, and through understanding it is established; through knowledge its rooms are filled with rare and beautiful treasures.”Proverbs 24:3–4

In my experience with my friends having to deal with HOA’s, I don’t understand why anyone would want to live in a place with so many rules and regulations, and you have to pay for those rules and regulations on top of your mortgage/rent.

It’s important to stay calm due to HOA members can make your life miserable, who needs that? They can come up with all kinds of rules and regulations that can make you start to feel very uncomfortable.

If you can keep a low profile and and respect the rules by trying not to piss off an HOA board member, or your neighbor for that matter, if you can make sure you are in good with your neighbors especially those who are in good with certain HOA board members.

“If you find yourself disagreeing with the HOA, suck it up and keep it moving, especially if you can’t afford to move or happened to like where your living. Being in a disagreement isn’t the end of the world.”

Ask yourself was the disagreement worth the hell these HOA people can bring to my doorstep because something was said in a disagreement that had them feeling offended?

For you life is good, you like where you’re living. Everything was great until this misunderstanding. Be the bigger person and eat this one, don’t let this get under your skin, being right isn’t always the best way to go. “Having a peace of mind where you rest your head is much more important.”

Keeping your head down and trying to stay humble when it comes to HOAs isn’t always going to work. You have some HOAs who are on a power trip and love reeking havok on unsuspecting homeowners.

If you feel like you have been targeted by an HOA board member, for breaking a rule, there are some things you can do while still in your calm mode. Ask to see the rule that you broke in writing, then make sure you get involve, read the bylaws. The less you say, the more you will be targeted.

Research and community psychology suggest that the “tyrant” or “power-hungry” HOA worker or board member is a real phenomenon driven by the structure of power rather than just bad apples.

• A good HOA ask homeowners to keep grass reasonably maintained to prevent neglected properties from lowering neighborhood appeal. They send friendly reminders before taking actions.
• A bad HOA fines a home owner because the grass is to tall after a week of heavy rain or due to the owners being sick.
• A good HOA allows homeowners to personalize their homes while maintaining overall neighborhood attractiveness.
• A bad HOA dictates every paint color, decoration or flower choice with little flexibility.
• A good HOA provides transparent budgits and explains how dues are spent.
• A bad HOA raises fees regularly without explanation and refuses to share financial records.
• A good HOA enfoforces rules consistently for everyone.
• A bad HOA lets board members violate rules while fining other residents
• A good HOA keeps residents informed through newsletters emails and meetings.
• A bad HOA makes decisions behind closed doors without informing homeowners.
• A good HOA creates reasonable parking rules that balance safety and convenience.
• A bad HOA aggressively tows vehicles for minor infractions without warning.

At the end of the day both parties need to view the HOA not as an adversary, but as a mutual tool to protect property values and maintain a harmonious living.