As of right now, the laws governing Homeowners Associations (HOAs) are very weak. It is essentially the Wild West of the legal system. Board members are free to persecute, terrorize and even defraud homeowners and there is no agency to regulate their behavior or prosecute them for misconduct. Associations are even forecolsing on homeowners, taking their homes away from them and then turning around and renting them out for a profit. And they can foreclose on an owner for even the smallest of infractions. For most people, their homes are the largest single investment they will ever make. These boards should not have the right to take away a person's lifesavings.
In the past when the California State Legislature has tried to pass laws regulating these bodies there has been tremendous pushback by investor groups and the Associations themselves (who often have millions of dollars in reserves for just this purpose).
HOAs were originally started to protect Homeowners. And most do that job adequately and morally. However, for the few that don't, there needs to be an agency that makes sure these bodies are doing just that, and not victimizing the very people they were elected to protect.
Dear Speaker Atkins, Governor Brown, Speaker Pro-Tem Steinberg and Esteemed members of the California State Assembly and Senate:
As the trend to build new and affordable housing that is governed by a Homeowners Association increases and more and mor Californians find themselves forced to abide by the rules of these boards, the time has come to put into place a regulatory body for HOAs and the boards that govern them. There have been instances of investor led HOAs foreclosing on people's homes for minor infractions and then turning around and renting them out for a profit, leaving people who have spent their lives working hard to afford their own home, out in the cold with nothing. The only recourse available to these homeowners is costly litigation, which few are able to afford. It is likely that this trend is only going to increase and most affect the indigent and the elderly. The result will be a plethora of people needing public housing and financial aid.
In addition, HOAs can practice block busting by only enforcing these rules against the minority homeowners under their domain. All of this is currently legal for them to do.
We the undersigned are urging you to form a public regulatory agency or committee that will ensure that abuses such as these are not allowed to happen without severe penalty to the HOA and the individual board members who perpetrate them.
Very Sincerely,
