Life can be very peaceful if you get along with your neighbors. But sometimes, it’s not the neighbors but the local homeowner association (HOA) that’s a pain in your neck. If the association starts fining its members for random things and flaunting its power, it’s bound to lead to a lot of frustration and disagreements.
However, not everyone is willing to sit idly by. For example, redditor u/DeraliousMaximousXXV, who had been given a massive and nonsensical fine, decided to get some revenge against his local HOA. His target? The elevators. His method? Tiny sound machines meant to waste the association's funds. Check out the full story below. Bored Panda got in touch with the author for further comment, and we’ll update the post as soon as we hear back from him.
It sounds ridiculous to be fined for bringing a piece of wood in the elevator with you, but some homeowner associations have weirdly strict rules
Image credits: MART PRODUCTION / Pexels (not the actual photo)
One building resident, angry about the unfair fine, came up with a creative way to waste the HOA's money. Here's his story
He later shared a lot more context about the association's despicable actions
Image credits: Nick Youngson / Pix4free (not the actual photo)
Image credits: DeraliousMaximousXXV
Generally, there are procedures that need to be followed before a HOA can impose any fine on you
Elite Management Services points out that even though HOAs can impose fines if they’re given the power to do so in the governing documents, it’s still good form to warn the residents before fining them.
A violation warning letter is a better first step than an instant fine. If the issue is serious and isn’t rectified, and there’s a communication breakdown between the association and the residents, then a fine may be the only way forward. However, these fines have to be reasonable and just, not excessive.
Depending on what state you live in, there may be specific procedures that need to take place before the HOA can fine you. For example, there may need to be a hearing before the board of the association.
And in some cases, there needs to be an advance notice of the violation details and info about the hearing.
If the violation isn’t valid or if the governing documents don’t grant the association the right to impose fines, the residents can challenge the HOA board. Whatever happens, both sides need to provide proof.
If you feel like your local homeowner association is abusing its power, you can and should appeal its decisions
The main question is whether your local homeowner association is reasonable or not. If they are, you can try to get through to them with a bit of dedicated communication. If you feel that they’re wasting your time and your funds by giving out nonsensical fines, you should appeal that decision.
Talk to the board. Talk to the head of the board! Put your position in writing and keep a record of anything and everything that’s related to your situation.
Meanwhile, if you can get at least a few of your neighbors on your side, you have a better chance of making the board go back on its decisions. There’s a lot of power in numbers, whether you’re dealing with a power-tripping HOA or some major toxicity at work.
If things don’t go your way, you might want to consider getting some legal advice from anyone who specializes in managing HOA disagreements. Getting fined $1,500 for using the elevator to bring something down from your property is utterly ridiculous. That’s what elevators are for.
No HOA is above the law, either. They’re not all-powerful organizations. If you as a building resident see the members of the association doing something that is clearly illegal, you have a duty to reach out to the authorities. It’s vital that you know your rights as a tenant and building resident.
The author decided to take a more subtle approach to get back at the HOA
Another issue that the OP brought up is one of corruption. As per the author, his HOA members are using the budget for “personal renovation projects” that haven’t been voted on. “They are currently being sued in court and may be charged with fraud,” the OP gave some additional context.
The idea behind the author’s revenge plan is brilliant, simple, and surprisingly cheap to implement. According to u/DeraliousMaximousXXV, he made the sound machines using a watch battery, phone speaker parts, some wires, a printed circuit board, and a magnet.
He plants these machines in his building’s elevators so that they emit really loud beeps 25 seconds after they detect motion. This then forces the HOA to spend money to send people to try and figure out what’s making the weird sounds.
“It’s so great. I hope they go bankrupt trying to figure it out,” the author wrote online. His revenge story made a big splash online. At the time of writing, his post had already racked up 27k upvotes. Meanwhile, over 1.3k people had commented on the story. While some people were wildly supportive of his plan, others were a bit on the fence about whether it was such a good idea.
Have you ever gotten into any serious arguments with your local homeowner association, dear Pandas? Has your HOA ever fined you for something ridiculous? What do you think of the elevator prankster’s idea? Would you have done anything differently? If you have a spare moment, share your thoughts in the comments.
As the story went viral, internet users rushed to share their thoughts about the battle within the building
