HOAs - The Freedom to Disassociate
The US Constitution is a marvelous thing. It has withstood over 200 years of bickering, quarreling, and even a war that threatened to tear it to shreds. But there is one major thing threatening this document that is very close to home to every Floridian - and that is HOAs. HOAs have their reasons for existing, and I’m not diminishing this fact at all, but their power has stretched out to tyrannical standards. Today, we visit the Constitution and the right to disassociate.
Everyone who has studied US History has read the First Amendment:
Amendment I
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
It is a long-held interpretation that the First Amendment protects the freedom of association to advance beliefs and ideas. Through cases in the ’50s and ’60s and the civil rights era, the right of association was codified through a series of court cases. Bates v. City of Little Rock, Shelton v. Tucker, and other court cases showed that people had the right to associate with whomever they saw fit and that the government could not prevent them from associating with whomever they pleased.
By reason, this also shows that the government cannot force association upon anyone.
But Why HOAs?
HOAs, or Homeowners Associations, have been part of American life since the early 20th Century when they were first formed in Los Angeles County, beginning with the Arroyo Seco Improvement Association in Pasadena around 1905 and then the Los Feliz Improvement Association in Los Angeles, founded in 1916. These first HOAs were designed and set the legal precedent for zoning districts exclusively for upscale, single-family residences. The early deed restrictions and covenants were designed to exclude blacks and, in some cases, Jews and Asians from owning homes in these neighborhoods. HOA’s recent history has also been littered with discrimination and racism, with specific wording being used to require the approval of tenants and new owners, giving HOAs the power to permit less formalized discrimination.
But what if this didn’t have to happen? HOAs hold a monopoly on communities. If you aren’t the “right type of people” for a community, regardless of financial means, they can withhold the sale of a property to you. They can also turn around, sell you property, and then force you to leave if they don’t like your culture or who you are. How is that right?
That is why, from day 1, I will fight for the everyday Floridian. Because, let’s face it, I’m a millennial; I don’t have a large war chest. I don’t come from a family of means. I fought in the military and my personal life to get where I am today. I’ve spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on a home that requires me to abide by these same racist and elitist principles. And I’ve had enough.
What can be done?
I will propose The Freedom to Disassociate bill to limit the power of HOAs in our state.
First and foremost, what does it do?
Allows every homeowner who purchases a home in an HOA to disassociate with no retaliation from the HOA, with minimal cost and minimal time.
Also, a homeowner who purchases a home outside an HOA can associate with an HOA upon application.
Allows communities in an HOA to vote to dissolve the HOA in a regular meeting of the HOA.
Also, allow communities outside an HOA to vote to create an HOA.
Forces HOAs to have a reason to exist and outline the standards in clear, measurable metrics in the bylaws and,
Force them to be accountable to those standards.
If they fail those standards, they enter a probationary state.
And if they continue to fail, dissolve the HOA automatically.
Allow HOAs to contain as few as two households and allow the geographic area not to be a factor for HOAs.
If a resident wants to disassociate from an HOA, they will need to pay dues already owed for the time in which they are part of the HOA, with those dues ending on the effective date of the disassociation and being prorated to that date.
Definition: A disassociated member is a member of an HOA who has elected to disassociate from the HOA. Disassociated members do not include individuals who were never a part of the HOA. If a home is sold after the owner disassociates from the HOA, the house does not rejoin the HOA, and the new owner is not a disassociated member. The owner will need to apply to become a member of the HOA and be accepted.
HOAs cannot restrict access to a disassociated member’s property. Suppose the property is located in a gated community where dues go to the upkeep of the gate system. In that case, the disassociated members will retain access to the community through gate remotes. If changes to the system are made, those disassociated members will need to be informed of the changes by mail no fewer than 45 days before the change.
There will be no fees attached to association or disassociation. The only fees required will be the customary dues required with membership.
HOAs and disassociated members can negotiate for access to amenities such as playgrounds, pools, common areas, etc. If a common area is unimproved (just a grass lot, or grass space around a lake, forest preserve, etc.), that area cannot be closed off to disassociated members as it is public property.
If a disassociated member causes damage to the unimproved area outside of a reasonable amount, then steps through regular law enforcement and civil litigation can occur to recoup the cost of fixing the unimproved area.
Only upon continued damage can a disassociated member be trespassed from an unimproved area.
HOAs will be able to recruit residents into its HOA, providing incentives to members and creating partnerships with local businesses to offer discounts, clubs, or programs for members of HOAs. This could include membership in exclusive clubs, discounts for food delivery services or grocery stores, or even members-only access to golf courses. This law will make it possible for HOAs to provide membership benefits to make it attractive to be a member.
This law will also make it illegal for those businesses that already do business with the public to raise prices to disassociated members in retaliation for disassociation.
Common Questions/Comments
Don’t want an HOA? Move.
Why? It’s my property. Why would I allow someone else to tell me what I can and can’t do with what I paid for? If I don’t want to take advantage of what the HOA has to offer, I nor my property should be held hostage by that organization.
I like my HOA; does this mean I have to leave it?
If you like your HOA, keep your HOA! This law is not to dissolve all HOAs; it is meant to keep HOAs accountable and preserve the freedom of Floridians.
But if individuals in communities leave the HOA, it will lower the property values of those homes around them.
That’s the point. If an HOA does nothing to incentivize membership and create value for those members, they will lose members, which is the HOA’s fault. This law will allow HOAs to recruit residents and develop strategic partnerships with local businesses and members-only programs in order to provide value beyond what they already claim to do.
But you can’t buy into a community and then say you don’t want to be a part of it. That’s not how covenants work.
Currently, that is not how HOAs work. Membership in an HOA is required upon purchasing in a community that an HOA represents. Thus forcing the homeowners into an organization that may or may not represent their best interests or provides them value. The Freedom to Disassociate law allows individuals to choose whether they are members of the HOA associated with their home. Membership will no longer be required when purchasing homes.
That defeats the entire purpose of an HOA.
Then we need to redefine the purpose of an HOA. An HOA should not just increase property values but provide value to the members of the HOA. Give people a reason to want to be a part of an HOA and give HOAs a reason to do what is best for their communities rather than reasons that are expedient or woke.
You knew you were joining an HOA when you purchased your home. You shouldn’t get to leave when it’s no longer suitable for you to be a part of it.
Membership of any organization is an agreement between two or more parties. You do not get to dictate that a person cannot leave an organization with the property they rightfully own. No organization has any claim over property that an individual rightfully owns, and the idea that they do is theft. If an HOA has any say over a property inside of a community, it is because the owner of that property has ceded the ownership of that property to the HOA. Thus, that property then ceases to be the owners and becomes the HOAs.
HOAs are suitable for home values. Your community voted for it. You will have a hard time disbanding HOAs.
As said before, if you like your HOA, keep it! This law will make it so your HOA will be more accountable to you, the homeowner. It will force your HOA to provide value and give you a reason to stay in it. Because if they don’t meet the precise, measurable metrics that are voted on and adopted in the bylaws, then the association will cease to exist. If they target and harass different members, then they will lose those members, and everyone’s property values in the area will drop because of it.
Why punish all of your neighbors by leaving your HOA and dropping their home values?
Why would your neighbors choose to allow the HOA to treat you the way that they do, which causes you to want to leave the HOA in the first place? We, as Americans and Floridians are responsible for treating our neighbors with the same respect that we wish to have given to ourselves. If an organization no longer represents me, my family, or my values? Why wouldn’t I want to disassociate from that organization? Why would I allow an organization I paid for to have a claim on my property that they did not pay for?
In Conclusion
The Freedom to Disassociate law will usher in a new era of accountability for Homeowners Associations. Gone will be the days of an HOA targeting those who are different and using discriminatory practices to push out those of other faiths, colors, or creeds, and here will be the days of HOAs providing real and tangible benefits to being a member. We wouldn’t allow a business to use government to force you to purchase their product, why would we allow an HOA to force members of a community to retain membership if it doesn’t benefit the member?
