Damm the HOA to hell

So I decided to go to our quarterly HOA meeting this past Tuesday. Where do i get started? Well, let's start with the committee. It is comprised of three builder representatives, two reps from the property management company and two homeowners (only one of which showed up). This lone homeowner on the board is one of the most ignorant people that i have ever met. Yes, he's black, but that is really not the reason why I can't stand him. If I were the only homeowner on the board, I woould be making an effort to change things rather than just passively agreeing to everything that the property management company proposes. I know he has a difficult job, but he volunteered for it. So with the board comprised of mostly non-residents, it is pretty much impossible to get anything done. The board is alway making rules and decisions that adversely affect the homeowners or our pocketbooks. Here are a few examples:

- The board decided to disable the gate code without consulting the residents and without even notifying us.
- The board decided that we should just continue with our pest service even though they have done nothing about our rat infestation.
- The board decided that we should purchase Terrorist coverage because "it's only 40 dollars"
- The board decided that we should pay for a traffic study even though there have been no reported accidents in community, EVER!

To summarize this board meeting in a few words, it was "a waste of time". The only benefit from it was that I got to piss them off. The board seems to limit the time for "open" discussion so that they can all leave on time. If they were really concerned about homeowners, they would hear out all issues, especially if the homeowner took the time to show up at the quarterly HOA meeting.

Have you ever wondered how many people actually show up to the HOA meetings? We have over a hundred units in our community and only about 5-8 people actually show up. The meeting room is a tiny study room rented in the library. The most that this room would fit is about 40 people. They damn HOAs know that less than 5% of the homeowners actually show up, but I believe that's the way it should be. Homeowners shouldn't have to show up to these meetings. They trust that the board of directors will have their interests in mind when making decisions. Boy are they in for a rude awakening once I make my rounds!!!

I'm setting a goal to have at least 30 families represented at the next HOA meeting. I've already created a site and now all I have to do is market the site. The site is designed to show homeowners what the issues in the community are and give them a chance to respond or propose solutions. What I think and hope will end up happening is that the homeowners will see that the Board is not cutting it. Maybe I will be making picket signs pretty soon and even have news coverage!