The ultimate liberal-conservative balanced sob story.
Disgusting. Homeowner Associations are thieves.
(sniff), (sniff)....smells like bullsh*t.
But, then, this IS Mother Jones. Big time supporter of our troops don'tchaknow. Oorah.
There's your problem, right there.
The SSCRA would have inoculated the Captain from such foreclosure. Had he contacted his unit JAG, they would have helped him make the appropriate notification to the HOA, which would have legally disallowed the foreclosure, court order or no court order - federal law trumps Texas state law.
Remember that Memorial Day posting? Here’s another of the same kind. People seem to find new ways to shaft the men and women in uniform.
I would think the Servicemen’s Relief Act, where servicemen are protected from suit while deployed, may save their home for them. The attorney for the HOA filed an affidavit that neither of the couple were in the service. That wasn’t true, so I think they can get the foreclosure set aside.
This transaction... selling a home for $3,500... is bound to have some interesting details; like who was the 'lucky' property flipper or how come there were no other higher bids.
There is probably more to this story than is being stated.
In some U.S. states (such as Texas) a homeowners association can foreclose a member’s house without any judicial procedure in order to collect special assessments, fees and fines, or otherwise place an enforceable lien on the property which, upon the property’s sale, allows the HOA to collect otherwise unpaid assessments. A proposed constitutional amendment in Texas would limit the power of HOA’s in such matters. A case in point involves a soldier who was informed his fully paid for $300,000 home in Frisco, Texas had been foreclosed on and sold for $3,500 by his HOA over unpaid dues of $800 while he was serving in Iraq. This case is still pending. Federal laws protecting military personnel may be his only defense.
Other states, like Florida, require a judicial hearing. Foreclosure without a judicial hearing can occur when a power of sale clause exists in a mortgage or deed of trust.[25]
A report self-published by a professor at Washington University disputes the claim that HOAs protect property values, stating, based on a survey of Harris County, Texas (which had an unusual legal regime regarding foreclosures): “Although HOA foreclosures are ostensibly motivated by efforts to improve property values, neither foreclosure activity nor HOAs appear linked with the above average home price growth.”[26]
Homeowners association boards can also collect special assessments from its members in addition to set fees, sometimes without the homeowners’ direct vote on the matter, though most states place restrictions on an association’s ability to do so. Special assessments often require a homeowner vote if the amount exceeds a prescribed limit established in the Association’s by-laws. In California, for example, a special assessment can be imposed by a Board, without a membership vote, only when the TOTAL assessment is 5 percent or less of the association’s annual budget. Therefore in the case of a 25 unit association with a $100,000 annual operating budget, the Board could only impose a $5,000 assessment on the entire population ($5,000 divided by 25 units equal $200 per unit). A larger assessment would require a majority vote of the members. In some exceptional cases, particularly in matters of public health or safety, the amount of special assessments may be at the board’s discretion. If, for example there is a ruptured sewer line, the Board could vote a substantial assessment immediately, arguing that the matter impacts public health and safety. In practice, however, most Boards prefer that owners have a chance to voice opinions and vote on assessments.
Increasingly, homeowner associations handle large amounts of money. Embezzlement from associations has occurred occasionally, as a result of dishonest board members or community managers, with losses up to millions of dollars.[27] Again, California’s Davis-Stirling Act, which was designed to protect owners, requires that Boards carry appropriate liability insurance to indemnify the association from any wrong-doing. The large budgets and expertise required to run such groups are a part of the arguments behind mandating manager certification (through Community Association Institute, state real estate boards, or other agencies).
He didn’t pay his dues....he suffers the consequences....that’s how we evaluate it here on FR usually...too bad...so sad.
I call BS. I am a lawyer in Joisey. While I don’t do collections, I am 99.9% sure parties have to file an Affidavit of Non-Military Service before defaulting someone.
Glanced at this:
http://dockets.justia.com/docket/court-txedce/case_no-4:2009cv00560/case_id-119777/
Texas ain't what it was.
Its now the new California.
This is the second time this story has made the rounds but let me just say that The Soldiers and Sailor’s relief act prevents this sort of thing from being done.
He could not have his house foreclosed on while he was deployed and anyone that did is going to find out very quickly that the law protect his rights while he is overseas.
Moral of this story......never, ever, ever buy a home that is in a Home Owner Association. Nobody, and I mean NOBODY, is going to tell me when to take out the garbage, how many dogs I can have, when to mow my yard, what color I can paint my house, if I can put up a fence, etc.ect.etc. That’s why I live in the County on a farm with NO neighbors, few services and NO rules other than to obey the local laws and there aren’t many of those. I have sense enough to take care of my own property and I don’t give a fig what my neighbors, even if I don’t have any close enough to see, do with their property.
While I feel sorry for the serviceman and I really hope he gets his home back along with compensation, I hope he remembers this lesson and doesn’t buy another home with one of these associations. I can’t believe people don’t read contracts or would even consider buying property anywhere that allows a group to tell them what they can do on their property.
Living in the middle of nowhere away from people has it’s perks. :-)
(3) No sale, foreclosure, or seizure of property for nonpayment of any sum due under any such obligation, or for any other breach of the terms thereof, whether under a power of sale, under a judgment entered upon warrant of attorney to confess judgment contained therein, or otherwise, shall be valid if made during the period of military service or within three months thereafter, except pursuant to an agreement as provided in section 107 [App. § 517], unless upon order previously granted by the court and a return thereto made and approved by the court.
(4) Any person who shall knowingly make or cause to be made any sale, foreclosure, or seizure of property, defined as invalid by subsection (3) hereof, or attempts so to do, shall be fined as provided in title 18, United States Code, or imprisoned not to exceed one year, or both.