Florida Democrats are proposing a law that would require HOAs to donate 15% of their dues money to charities in the community where they are located. The bill text is found here. (pdf warning)
This amounts to a 15% tax placed on the backs of all property owners. What this means is that all HOAs in Florida would have to increase their association dues. This will increase the costs of housing for everyone in the state. Even renters.
Democrats: they hate property owners. They hate America. The only groups that they like are sexual deviants, criminals, and illegal immigrants.
So how do you fight this, should it pass? The law doesn’t specifically say what organizations that the donations have to benefit. This is what it requires:
Donate or use at least 15 percent of the association’s total annual income to benefit the community in the county in which the community served by the association is located.
What constitutes a “benefit the community”? Perhaps using it to donate to a progun group, establishing firearms safety courses, or some other pro-liberty cause. I mean, increasing gun ownership benefits the community, at least in my opinion.
16 Comments
John in Indy · January 12, 2024 at 11:43 am
But … these are HOAs, the places where small people get drunk on their limited powers, and even in Florida, where donating to the “wrong” public benefit will get threats of lawsuits.
This looks like their usual attempt to steal something from everyone in an attempt to bypass the legislative process, and hide that they are raising taxes.
Don W Curton · January 12, 2024 at 11:57 am
I would hazard a guess that there’s some level of resentment toward the companies that manage HOAs. I know the HOA I live in has switched managing companies 2 or 3 times in the 18 years I’ve lived here (and the rates went up each time, imagine that!). I’m currently struggling to get approval for some patio modifications and arguing with someone 3 states away who’s never been in the state, much less seen the actual neighborhood. I know I was a little pissed last week sending my yearly dues to an address 3 states away.
On the other hand, we have a local board of directors who picked that company and ensures that it serves our needs. Therefore the arrangement is both private and beneficial to both sides. For a politician to decide they don’t want money leaving the state and mandating “charity” is bullshit.
And yeah, per the article, I can see many homeowners suddenly deciding not to pay their bill.
SP RN · January 12, 2024 at 5:13 pm
It’s a protection-racket shakedown: the Democratic party will be the approved charity.
WallPhone · January 12, 2024 at 7:10 pm
The smart HOAs will establish a non-profit charity that solely exists to provide for the upkeep of the medians, organize the annual egg hunts and pumpkin rolls, and mail the quarterly newssheets and coloring contests.
Voila! Letter of dumb law complied with.
Phineas · January 12, 2024 at 7:49 pm
Donate to the ‘Home Owners Association’ group that it is taken from as a way to pay for community enrichment – like the stuff that dues pay for.
It's just Boris · January 12, 2024 at 8:01 pm
How about giving a gift card, equal to 15% of the HOA dues paid, to members to a home improvement store, garden center, or grocery store of their choice? Make the neighborhood better, help feed families, all the usual blah blah.
Illinois Hound · January 12, 2024 at 9:46 pm
“ This amounts to a 15% tax placed on the backs of all property owners. What this means is that all HOAs in Florida would have to increase their association dues. This will increase the costs of housing for everyone in the state. Even renters.”
No. It will increase the cost for those that choose to live in a house in an HOA. Not everyone does. Why anyone would choose to live in an HOA is hard for me to understand. It’s bad enough you have to pay property taxes to the local taxing body but in an HOA you get to pay them also. They also severely restrict what you can do on property you “own”.
Divemedic · January 13, 2024 at 12:17 am
More than 85% of all new homes in the US are in HOA controlled neighborhoods.
Joe Blow · January 13, 2024 at 5:39 am
As a consumer, you are the one choosing to spend your money where you spend it. Coke, pepsi, or RC? Well, 85% of the people drink coke or pepsi, so… fuck that independent!
There are 15% of new neighborhoods that do not have HOAs. Happy house shopping.
That you would sacrifice the soveriegnity of your home for something so petty is telling. HOAs are easier than dealing with your neighbors yourself! Everyone takes the easy road now. Thats why we’re where we are. It was easier than standing up.
Fake birth certificate?
Nah, I don’t want to fight _that_ hard…
… why we are where we are. I could make that list as long as you like, but it still won’t change anyone or anything – because change is hard, we do it the easy way now.
Divemedic · January 13, 2024 at 8:31 am
Not neighborhoods. At least not in Florida. Cities, and many counties, require that neighborhoods pay to build and maintain certain improvements such as sewage lift stations because the county doesn’t want to raise taxes to cover what is largely seen as building infrastructure for the benefit and profit of real estate developers. That means the cost is borne by everyone in the neighborhood, and the only way to force everyone to pay for that is have an HOA. That system was put in place by, you guessed it, Republicans.
The 15% that aren’t in an HOA are houses that are located on land that you then hire a contractor to build on. There are disadvantages to that- the house is more expensive, you are on well water (which in FL smells like rotten eggs), there is likely no high speed Internet, no streetlights, etc.
Florida has more homes that are covered by HOAs than any other. 82.4% of newly constructed homes sold in Florida during 2021 were part of HOA communities.
So you are left with a couple of choices- the easiest way to live in a neighborhood without an HOA is to buy an old house. If you want a new one- good luck with that. It’s pay a builder to build one on your own land, and deal with the disadvantages, or it probably won’t happen. Building it yourself is a non starter, because it’s almost impossible to get financing. We had $150k to put down and 800+ FICO scores and couldn’t do it. When we were house shopping, we looked at all of those options, and it wasn’t happening.
So what do you do? HOAs are essentially political entities. All politics is local. The best defense is to show up to the annual meetings and be the voice of reason. That’s what I did in my last neighborhood, and I wound up on the board, where I promptly stacked the rest of the board with reasonable people that I trusted to not be assholes about their positions. It worked pretty well, and only required 4 or 5 hours a year of my time.
Joe Blow · January 13, 2024 at 10:15 pm
My last real estate transaction was 8 or 9 years ago. We bought land, built. Can bury me here. You do you.
Divemedic · January 14, 2024 at 4:41 pm
You in Florida?
Vlad · January 13, 2024 at 9:29 pm
“HOAs are easier than dealing with your neighbors yourself!”
I tried to “deal with my neighbor” myself.
It got me absolutely nowhere. Her boyfriend kept putting garbage on my property and didn’t give a shit. Since pumping 20rd mags of 7.62 through their house would be frowned on, I let the HOA and the police (littering) deal with it. You are not allowed to dump trash on your neighbors property in my HOA. I “didn’t take the easy way” I took the way that kept me out of prison.
Aesop · January 13, 2024 at 4:03 pm
Natzsofast:
You’re burying the lede!
Okay, pass that law.
Then abolish HOAs, and the law becomes moot in 0.2 seconds.
Win-win.
Next problem.
Google what happened when Nixon tried to control the price of certain cuts of meat.
There’s no law so stupid that you can’t drive a caravan through the loopholes.
Paulb · January 13, 2024 at 7:48 pm
Wallphone beat me to it. “The Community” can be the HOA members. Great. Now it’s just a matter of changing the name of a line item on the annual budget and nothing else. That being said, no. Eff them. It’s not their money. Luckily even the retard who proposed this knew it wouldn’t fly, and is just garnishing an otherwise bland CV.
I’m going to be the turd in the toilet bowl here, though. I frigging LIKE my HOA. Yes, it’s got drawbacks. But I like having retired and off-duty armed cops making pocket money manning the gate into my neighborhood. And I like that every neighbor here busts their ass to be able to afford to live here and renters aren’t allowed Sure it’s galling to have to petition the crown to repaint my house, but OTOH, my a-hole retired NYU professor neighbor can’t paint his house F You Black because he hates everything and everyone and the HOA who wouldn’t let him put up a Black Lives Matter flag.
As Joe Blow says, you do abdicate a certain amount of self-determination and control in the process… but you know I spent 6-7 months a year driving a floating bomb moving cancer-causing liquids from A to B, so any moments that I spend doing absolutely useless BS involving people I don’t like are to be avoided. I get paid to live with, manage, and work for people I don’t care for. In my precious and limited time at home, I’m happy to pay other people to deal with trashbags. I get paid to do that and don’t want to do it for free.
Aesop · January 14, 2024 at 12:35 pm
Some comments of Benjamin Franklin regarding liberty and safety come to mind, somehow…
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