BACKROOM DEALS THAT SHAPED COMMON INTEREST COMMUNITIES

Many property owners view the overreach of rogue boards as the primary problem with association living, however this is merely the tip of the iceberg, reflecting a much deeper systemic problem.   

Industry insiders often claim that property owners benefit from increased values in planned communities. However, when you factor in additional fees, reduced municipal services, unexpected special assessments, risks from corrupt boards, and increased legal and insurance expenses due to mismanagement, this assertion becomes highly questionable.  In addition, your property, your financial investment is always at risk from bad board decisions over which you have no control.  

History........  

The current trend of common interest communities started in the late 1940’s and early 1950’s right after WW II with booming developments like Levittown. Associations at that time were new and there were no laws, regulations, or fees associated with them.  

Over the last 70 plus years, association living has exploded worldwide.  During this time, developers negotiated higher density variances with municipalities, offering public benefits such as parks, infrastructure, improvements, or affordable housing in return.   

Allegations regarding transparency issues lead to suspicions of favoritism or too much influence that developers may have had over local officials. These concerns included potential decisions favoring the developers over community interests. In addition, developers were able to legally charge and use HOA and Condo fees to defray their business costs before any association board of property owners was legally formed or even functioning.    

Because of higher density zoning, the developers increased their profits on the parcel size they purchased, and the municipalities benefited through an increased tax base.  By creating these “private” communities the ongoing and future costs of maintaining the infrastructures within those communities were placed squarely back onto the property owners.  Therefore, this model imposes dual financial responsibilities on property owners, requiring them to pay both taxes and additional fees to maintain their community’s infrastructure, while receiving only limited municipal services in return.  These services include maintenance for roads, lighting, police (security) patrols, drainage and more. These services are normally covered by your tax dollars alone if you live outside of a planned community. This creates an unfair two-tier system of taxation for property owners within planned communities by their very own municipalities.  This must be addressed and corrected.   

And what was the benefit to the individual property owner? 

No visible clothes lines,  

Uniform housing colors and shared lawn services,  

Restrictive covenants limiting your individual and property rights 

Unwanted and often illegal assessments by rogue boards,  

Selective Enforcement,  

Harassment 

Bullying 

and so much more! 

The Problem........ 

The original concept for these communities may have started out as a promising idea and with the best of intentions. However, over time these communities have morphed into a convoluted maze of antiquated governing documents, government “over regulation, with no accountability and inadequate or nonexistent enforcement.  Layers of conflicting statutes, bad legal decisions by the courts complicating the rule of law, rogue boards who are, ignorant or uneducated, bad property management companies who ignore illegal behavior, and legions of law firms who quickly defend bad boards, that only perpetuate the issues.  

This system prioritizes and protects the interests of industry insiders first.  Property owners often lack democratic representation and are expected to comply with imposed rules and financial regulations without having a meaningful voice in their own governance.  

It is a self-serving and self-protective system to the point that when rogue boards commit violations the entire apparatus closes rank to protect the board members and punish the individual property owners who act as whistle blowers and dare stand up for themselves, often crushing them into silence and financial hardship.  

Association Lawyers, Property Management Companies, CAI, and the Insurance Cartel hire lobbyists to write association legislation that leans in their favor. The system is designed to keep this artificial life form, “THE CORPORATION,” alive and well so it can keep feeding the industry insiders never really addressing or correcting the key issues faced by the property owners.  

If you search the internet, you will hear the groundswell of dissatisfaction from within these communities getting louder and louder as people share their horror stories. The cry for help is becoming deafening.  

This system is plagued with internal rot that is being exposed more and more each day that will eventually crumble from within.  

If anyone told me that by purchasing my condominium in South Florida, I was leaving the continental United States with both my Individual and Property rights compromised, I would not have believed it, but that is what the situation is. It is called a “restrictive deed or covenant.”   

When you buy into an Association Community you become part of a Business Corporation, no longer guaranteed the rights you would have had if you purchased a free-standing single-family home outside of a planned community.   

Our solutions........ 

The governing documents that created this system are designed and filed by the developers of these communities.  As far as we know, not much has changed in the last 70 years.  This system has been tilted in favor of the developers and to the municipalities from the beginning and not to the property owners who maintain them.  

USCFAR believes that this imbalance of power within a Common Interest Community is not fair or sustainable. The power belongs to the members first and must be redirected there.  

Excessive board power often leads to systemic abuses and financial mismanagement. Limiting this control is essential to addressing these issues and ensuring accountability within associations.  

USCFAR has a multiprong approach and proposes the following changes:  

Limit the power of the Boards. 

Implement an internal system of checks and balances so property owners can settle issues within their own communities.  

Enhance Transparency in fiscal management.  

Advocate for legislative reforms to realign power with property owners.  

It will take time and persistence to chip away at this behemoth system until it is rebalanced in favor of the property owners where it belongs.  

In Conclusion:  

Perhaps, our next step should be to demand that the State Government mandates that the Developer or someone selling a property within a planned community must add a warning label to your contract that reads:   

“Warning if you choose to purchase within a planned community, you may experience the loss of constitutional individual freedoms and property rights.  

You may be double taxed, and you may experience loss of your property through fines and foreclosure.”  

Protect your property rights.  Join USCFAR today.