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this post was submitted on 15 Aug 2026
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Automated License Plate Readers (ALPRs) are AI-powered cameras that capture and analyze images of all passing vehicles, storing details like your car’s location, date, and time. They also capture your car’s make, model, color, and identifying features such as dents, roof racks, and bumper stickers, often turning these into searchable data points. These cameras collect data on millions of vehicles—regardless of whether the driver is suspected of a crime. While these systems can be useful for tracking stolen cars or wanted individuals, they are mostly used to track the movements of innocent people.
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Flock cameras aside, I would never buy a home that's part of an HOA. There have been too many stories over the last 10 years of these terrible people abusing their power, up-to and including stealing people's home out from under them. That neighborhood is unlivable.
Something like 35% of all homes in the US are governed by HOAs and roughly 2/3 of all new developments are adopting HOAs.
Reason number 4629 why I'll never be immigrating to the US. "Land of the free" my ass.
I've recently just understood what a HOA is. As a Canadian I thought they were "Unincorporated Municipalities" or there's also "Rate Payers Associations" which is like a proto-town where there's a group providing town-like services amongst themselves. Which to me is some sick ass anarchist shit. But an HOA is just letting your neigbours tell you what to do? That's lame.
HOAs were created because racists didn't want black people in their neighborhood. I fucking hate HOAs.
Judging by another guys post, HOA's are way of offloading a whole new tax structure on individual neighborhoods. The whole being racist thing is how they convinced everyone to pay it.
Yeah, the town didn’t even plow or maintain the roads in some HOAs. And the property tax “savings” instead go to scumbag property management conglomerates.
Wait until you learn about when they created SATs.
I don't have an HOA but my property operates under deed restrictions that limit property owners in meaningful ways, establishing usage of the wells, easements, number of structures and so forth.
One of my neighbors repeatedly referred to herself as "the head of the HOA" and I told her she needed to stop saying that because we don't have one. I didn't say as much but I would hire an attorney to send a C&D if she were to keep that up.
HOA's! Fuck me. I mean, say what you want about the tenets of municipalities, Dude, at least it's a system of governance!
Local governments are subject to monitored elections and the bill of rights.
HOAs are neither. Their elections can easily be cheated, and they're under no legal obligation to respect the civil rights of their members.
Well, the quote I butchered was meant to denigrate HOA's and say that municipalities were indeed a form of governance whereas HOA's are a form of tyranny. So I'm not sure what point your making, but high five!
My neighborhood is deed restricted but most of the rules are just how to be a good neighbor. Trash cans can only be out from this time to this time. Your grass can't be over grown. Personally, I like the structure and I like living on a street where everyone agrees we want our immediate environment to look and feel nice. I've never heard of anything ever having to be enforced because everyone just does it, and when someone doesn't, it usually just means they need to be checked on.
Sure, but there's a chance they could become the ones fucking their neighbors over for cheap thrills! That makes it okay! /s
HOAs vary a lot. In my city, every new development has one as a condition of getting permits from the city. That's mainly because cars and their infrastructure are stupidly expensive, the city just can't afford to maintain it all without raising property taxes. I have friends who live in an HOA neighborhood, and basically they just pay an extra monthly bill to cover snow removal, maintenance of common areas, and such. For them, it's nothing like the horror stories of HOAs that can take your house if your mailbox is the wrong color. It is just a group providing services that the city can't afford anymore.
So they aren't a proto-city like an unassumed municipality, they are like a posto-city where late stage capitalism goes to retire and find a new revenu stream.
So, instead, everybody gets to pay HOA fees. I guess as long as you don't call it a 'tax' people will go along with it.
kinda funny though in that the city only exists to do that stuff so why not get rid of it and have the county run all the little developer cities.
It is free, but that privilege doesn't come for free.
As long as you have enough money and don't step on the toes of other people who have money, you can seemingly get away with everything.
"With freedom and justice for all who can afford it."
I have heard many municipalities only allow new construction as planned communities because they don't want to do the trash and local roads and simplifies connections water/sewer wise and they require water run off management and such.
The municipalities know the suburbs are a Ponzi scheme and don't want to be left holding the bag. Single-family homes on large lots simply don't generate enough tax revenue to pay for the infrastructure they use.
Time to go live on the other 65%.
I'll live in a goddamn cardboard box before I live in an HOA house.
But it's FOR THE GREATER GOOD.
More like the gated good
Your point is not invalid, but in this case I was referencing Hot Fuzz.
The Greater Good.
... before you could say 'gypsy scum' we were knee deep in dog muck, thieving kids and crusty jugglers!
Daily reminder that one of the most famous serial killers stopped killing after he became president of an HOA because he got just as much satisfaction from it as he did torturing people to death.
Can't remember if it was Dahmer or the BTK killer but the point is still there
Was he president of an HOA? I thought he was just a very annoying municipal compliance officer. I can see how people would cross those streams, given both roles are built for assholes who want to measure your grass height with a ruler and check your house paint against a swatch.
My HOA seems to be one of the best options - $300/year and zero rules about bins being x inches from the house, paint restrictions, etc. The money goes towards the subdivision pool and that's it.
But I'm worried that the two trustees (who are in their 70s) will kick it and someone less hands off will take over.
Oh sweet summer child.
Nobody thinks THEIR HOA can turn to shit, but all it takes is maybe five people to take over and fuck it entirely. I moved into a one of these shitbag neighborhoods because it was the only thing available at the time that fit the budget and met the other criteria. Buying during late covid was a mess. I've spent a LOT of time pouring over the legal documents, charters, etc and pulling as many docs out of the county recorder's website as I could find. The pastiche of state and local laws that interleave into HOAs is a confusing mess at best. In the case of mine, the board members got something through that changed the voting requirements for dissolution of the HOA from 60% to 95%. No, they did not hold a vote to do it, they just did it via the procedures laid out in the founding documents. I've NEVER witness or been invited to any voting activities, yet we have a new board president somehow. It's the same group of ten white boomers that just trade back and forth. Right now, the only thing that's holding them down is that they pissed away all the money so they have little to nothing left to engage in any sort of legal battles with homeowners. However, they did just raise the fees (again, no voting that I am aware of) so that may change.
Your HOA may be benign now, but all it takes are a handful of assholes to fuck up the whole thing and create misery in the process. A few boomer busybodies, maybe one lawyer and you're fucked.
Also, many of these things will "sell" the management to a 3rd party that will run them like a slumlord. They will send people out to generate infractions and fines that they get to keep. Grass too long, fine. Mailbox not right, another fine. Garbage out too early/late, that's a fine. Most of the money goes to the management company, the board trustees will put the rest into the HOA funds, but there is almost zero oversight for what happens to the money.
HOAs are bullshit I would love to burn mine down; I'm half tempted to start a legal battle with mine just because I know that they dont' have a lot of money and I might be able to bully them into something, but I'd never get rid of it. Plus it would be an expensive gamble.
Would it hurt to sound less condescending?
No, that post is factual.
Yep. Doesn't matter if this HOA is 'one of the good ones'. It can become a horror show at any time whenever the leadership changes.
Mine failed to file the correct paperwork with the state and lost all their enforcement power over land they don't directly own.