Replies

Why read what you agree to, Uncle Sam will make it all right.

Homeowner's Associations walk like a local government and quack like a local government, they just aren't considered a local government. Local governments are bound by the Bill of Rights in regulating your free speech, pseudo-governments are not.

My fear with Homeowner's Associations are that they will, over time, expand to cover nearly all the livable space so that you pretty much will get one wherever you go. They then become a non-government government restricting you outside the Bill of Rights.

Imagine if all the neighborhoods in the nation were under a Homeowner's Association....and all of them restricted firearms to live there. Yes, the governments would have no ability to make you give up your weapon, but in order to live in a house anywhere you would have to sign that right away.

They should be treated as pseudo-governments since they are citizens of an area voting to tell other citizens in the area how to live. They should be bound by the Bill of Rights just like any other.

Homeowner's Associations walk like a local government and quack like a local government, they just aren't considered a local government.

Probably because they are not one. If someone signs a contract they should read it. If the government goes about changing privately agreed to contracts, the contracts will become as valuable as a land Title in Zimbabwe.

Arkinsaw wrote:

>> My fear with Homeowner's Associations are that they will, over time, expand to cover nearly all the livable space so that you pretty much will get one wherever you go. They then become a non-government government restricting you outside the Bill of Rights.

>> Imagine if all the neighborhoods in the nation were under a Homeowner's Association....and all of them restricted firearms to live there. Yes, the governments would have no ability to make you give up your weapon, but in order to live in a house anywhere you would have to sign that right away.

>> They should be treated as pseudo-governments since they are citizens of an area voting to tell other citizens in the area how to live. They should be bound by the Bill of Rights just like any other. <<

These points are very well taken!

In fact the situation is already worse than you may suspect, because some municipalities are now REQUIRING that all new subdivision developments must be governed by homeowners' associations.

I seem to recall moreover that there have been a few cases where municipalities went into existing neighborhoods and forced the residents to group themselves into owners' associations, where no associations had previously existed.

I'd say that at least in these sorts of cases, there can be absolutely no question that the associations are acting "under the color" of government and should be subject to the Bill of Rights, etc.

NRA take note!

Homeowners associations are composed of the homeowners. Where we live, there are strict rules on what trees can be cut down a certain distance from the lake and the house must be approved by the architeural review committee. No boats, boat trailers, trash cans or anything else is permitted outside. Even mailboxes must be a certain style and conform to a tqo page blueprint design. The list goes on...