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Article Courtesy of The Washington Post
By Michelle Lerner
Published October 30, 2018
A new
www.Insurancequote.com
study says a large number of homeowners hate their HOAs.
Whether you live in a condominium, townhouse or single-family house, chances are
you have had experience with a condo or homeowners' association. Approximately
69 million Americans live in a home within a homeowners’ association, according
to the Community Associations Institute, or about 21 percent of the U.S.
population in 2016.
Americans have a love/hate relationship with their HOAs. Even among those who
actively participate on the board, just 57 percent said they love their HOA,
according to a survey by InsuranceQuotes.com. Thirty-three percent of those who
have never served on an HOA board said they hate them.
The survey also found a generational divide: 52 percent of baby boomers love
their HOA, compared with 31 percent of Gen Xers and 39 percent of millennials.
One reason for the lack of love: HOA meetings are known for argumentative
behavior. Those arguments are most common at condo association meetings, where
73 percent of respondents said they witnessed an argument, compared to 41
percent of townhouse owners and 55 percent of single-family homeowners.
The rulemaking authority of HOAs are both loved and hated by homeowners. The top
three most-hated rules include those applying to lawn appearance, parking
regulations and pet restrictions. Yet at the same time, the three most-wanted
types of regulations are about improved parking, improved noise regulations and
requiring residents to clean up after their pets.
There is a gender gap when it comes to the most common complaints about living
in an HOA. Men complained most about their neighbors smoking and being noisy,
while women complained most about their neighbors’ lawn appearance, pets and
home appearance.
Homeowners associations (or HOAs) are supposed to exist to make our lives
easier. Don’t want to mow your lawn or deal with noisy neighbors? Typically for
a monthly fee, HOAs provide property maintenance and a code of rules meant to
provide a uniform look and feel to a community. Sometimes, though, these codes
can cause controversy and frustration, such as when an HOA fined a military
veteran for displaying an American flag or told a family to take down their
daughter’s playground.
Recent studies show Americans still believe homeownership is the key to the
American Dream, but even more Americans say the American Dream is tied to
freedom of choice in how they live. It can, therefore, feel personal when an HOA
says your cherished lawn gnome or jam-packed flower bed is against the rules.
But beyond the rules and regulations, how do homeowners really feel about their
HOAs? We set out to gauge how much homeowners associations help or hinder
neighborhood residents. Surveying over 600 people from various demographics, we
asked about the value of HOA fees, the most annoying HOA policies, and the
craziest stories from HOA meetings. Read on to see what we found.
Who loves their HOA?
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Respondents demonstrated that the way they feel about their HOA depends on their
generation. Overwhelmingly, baby boomers were the most likely to say they loved
their HOA. As baby boomers reach retirement age, they might be more interested
in housing communities that create a peaceful, well-maintained environment.
Conversely, Gen Xers were the most likely to hate their HOA.
Beyond the generation gap, respondents’ feelings were affected by whether they
had ever served on their homeowners association board. Fifty-seven percent of
people who currently or previously served on their HOA board reported loving
their HOA, while roughly one-third of people who never served on their board
either hated their HOA or had no opinion. Similarly, 75 percent of current and
former HOA board members reported their HOA fees were worth it, compared to 59
percent of people who never served on their HOA board.
It seems board membership is key to helping residents see the value in their HOA,
perhaps because it gives residents a peek behind the curtain of how community
decisions are made. Studies show that most of us don’t like being told what to
do, so being a part of the decision-making process might just make the HOA
policies more palatable.
What's all the complaining about?
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We
surveyed homeowners to see what they complained about to their HOA and found
more differences based on generation. Millennials were the most likely to
complain to their HOA if their neighbors played loud music. This jives with
recent data that show millennials make the most sensitive neighbors. Gen Xers
were much more concerned with the appearance of landscaping on their neighbors’
properties. Baby boomers, however, seemed to be on poop patrol, as they were
overwhelmingly most likely to call their HOA if they found their neighbors’ pet
waste in their yards.
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Complaints by homeowners varied by gender as well. Men seemed to value their
physical comfort in a pollution-free neighborhood since they were the most
likely to complain to their homeowners association about loud noise and smoking.
Women were more concerned with the aesthetics of their communities and
complained to their HOA about their neighbors’ pets as well as the appearance of
their lawns and homes.
Attendance at HOA board meetings
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Homeowners associations hold regular board
meetings to discuss everything from codes of conduct to yearly budgets, and all
residents within the HOA have the right to attend and speak at these meetings.
If you’re concerned about the extra cost of snow plowing this winter or you want
the right to paint your shutters turquoise, the HOA meeting is the place to make
your voice heard. Unfortunately, our data show most homeowners do not attend all
HOA meetings. People who reported being current or previous HOA board members
were more likely to attend meetings – but even though board members are
responsible for voting on new HOA policies, 9 percent reported never attending
HOA meetings and 19 percent rarely attended. Of the homeowners who were never on
their HOA board, 74 percent never or rarely attended their HOA meetings.
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Homeowners were more than twice as likely
never to attend an HOA meeting if they hated their association. On the other
hand, roughly 73 percent of residents who said they loved their HOA sometimes or
always attended meetings. It stands to reason that if a homeowners association
hopes to improve its meeting attendance, it should start by improving its
reputation.
To go or not go (to an HOA meeting)
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Even more revealing is our data on why
people don’t attend HOA meetings. Most homeowners reported stayed away from HOA
meetings either due to a lack of time or lack of interest, but many homeowners
also felt these meetings were unproductive.
More than a quarter of homeowners felt these meetings were a waste of time
because their opinion didn’t affect the decisions of the homeowners association
board. Why go to the meeting if the result will be the same as if you stayed
home? Among baby boomers, 27 percent avoided HOA meetings because they felt they
didn’t accomplish anything. If HOAs were looking to attract more members to
their meetings, they would benefit from organized meetings with a clear agenda
that create space for members to feel like they’re a part of the decision-making
process.
Drama at the HOA meeting
So what actually goes down at these HOA
meetings? The majority of homeowners, no matter their property type, reported
witnessing arguments at an HOA board meeting. Seventy-three percent of condo
owners reported seeing an argument at their meetings. Among town house owners,
12 percent said they saw someone get physically aggressive at an HOA meeting.
Most homeowners reported they had seen HOA
officers missing from meetings, but attendance itself didn’t seem to be the
biggest problem. Homeowners were more likely to see an argument at a meeting
than to see an empty meeting room.
You’ve probably seen news stories that
make it sound like homeowners associations nitpick every knickknack and impose
impossible fines, but homeowners told a different story about their HOAs. On
average, homeowners said they only get notified for half of the rules they
broke, with the fines imposed by HOAs averaging $171 per year.
Room for improvement
According to a recent study by the
Community Associations Institute, 90 percent of homeowners said their
association’s rules either had a neutral or positive impact on their community –
but not all rules are created equal.
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To conclude our survey, we asked people
which HOA rules impacted their life most negatively and suggestions on how to
improve HOA rules. Respondents said HOA rules governing their lawn appearance
had the most negative impact, followed by parking regulations and pet
restrictions. It seems the negative impact of parking regulations led some
people to seek a better solution: The majority of residents suggested their HOA
should improve parking regulations. Other popular suggestions included improving
noise regulations and requiring residents to clean up after their pets.
When in doubt, get involved
HOAs are supposed to improve property values by keeping communities
aesthetically agreeable for all residents. Most of us can agree that a
well-maintained yard makes a property look more appealing, but our opinions
might diverge when it comes to the value of a bright purple paint job or 10
inflatable Santas on the front lawn. As long as these opinions diverge, so will
our opinions on HOAs, but our data show the best way to get along with your HOA
is to get involved. If you feel stifled by your HOA’s policies, your first step
should be attending a meeting and making your voice heard.
Unfortunately, you never know what life – or a disgruntled neighbor – might
throw your way. To make sure your home and your favorite lawn gnome are covered
for the unexpected, start with your free insurance quote today. Visit us at
www.insuranceQuotes.com
to learn more.
Methodology
We collected 649 responses from American homeowners using Amazon’s Mechanical
Turk. Four-hundred and fifty-four people were never members of an HOA board, 106
stated they were members in the past, and 89 said they were currently on an HOA
board. Seventy-one percent of respondents owned a house, 15 percent owned a town
house, and 14 percent owned a condominium. Fifty-three percent of respondents
identified as women, and 47 percent identified as men. Participants ranged in
age from 18 to 82 with an average age of 37.9 and a standard deviation of 11.4.
Data were not tested and is exploratory.
Fair Use Statement
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