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A HOMEOWNER has claimed she was ordered to pay nearly $3,000 after she tore down a fence she alleges her HOA wrongly installed in her garden.
Patricia Dean, 58, a staff assistant in Atlanta, Georgia, said the conflict with her HOA first began in 2023.
Her association allegedly replaced a 75ft long fence in her backyard without permission – moving it a foot closer to her home.
In response, Dean took the fence down and reinstalled it along what she claims is the proper boundary – prompting the HOA to fine her $2,800.
Instead of paying the fine, she had her lawyer provide proof that the fence was professionally reinstalled in the appropriate location on HOA property, she mentioned.
She then heard nothing for an entire year, she claims.
But that changed in October 2024, when Dean submitted her name for candidacy to join the HOA board.
Almost right away, the HOA started pursuing her once more, but now with a $1,055 charge termed “attorney fees,” which she believes is connected to the original fence fine that she still hasn’t settled, she explained.
She said she was given no explanation or itemized breakdown, despite repeated requests.
“They will not give me anything showing what that $1,055 is,” Dean said.
“I cannot resolve anything. It’s as if it’s a one-man show.”
She added: “This whole situation is a mess. All of this could have been avoided.”
Dean believes the charge is tied to a survey the HOA had to conduct after encroaching on her land – a cost she says she shouldn’t be responsible for.
Now, she’s being threatened with a lien on her home unless she pays the charge within 13 days, she claims.
“I worked very hard to have my first home,” she said.
“I’m feeling some type of way because I’m a single parent.”
HOA crackdowns in the US
States across the country are working to restrict the power of HOAs.
- In Minnesota, lawmakers introduced a bill that would require HOA boards to create a schedule of fines and fees and distribute it to homeowners; ensure homeowners can contest an HOA fine; provide reasonable time to correct rule violations; and outlaw the practice of charging homeowners for asking questions.
- In Arizona, lawmakers are cracking down on HOA budgets. Under a newly proposed law, HOA boards would have strict guidelines for how they approve expenses.
- In Florida, a bill was passed that restricts the amount of control HOAs have over tenants’ property. It also stops HOAs from fining homeowners for leaving trash cans out and holiday lights up.
- In Atlanta, bipartisan bills were introduced to reign in overly aggressive HOAs to protect homeowners.
- In California, a new bill requires HOA elections to be monitored and the board to comply with certain homeowner requests.
- In Colorado, new HOA rules require greater transparency between HOA board members and tenants.
- And the Federal Fair Housing Act sets housing standards for all homeowners, tenants, and landlords.
Dean purchased her four-bedroom, two-and-a-half-bath home in the Waverly Park Community in College Park for $116,500 in May 2010.
She now fears losing it due to what she describes as “fraudulent” HOA practices.
She isn’t alone.
She asserts that other residents have voiced worries over enduring problems within the HOA, including corruption, mismanagement, and a supposed power grab.
She also claims the current president has held office since 2013 despite term limits in the HOA’s bylaws.
“She’s been on since 2013. When we mentioned to her that we only can serve for a couple years and then we have to go off, now she’s lying saying she’s been off,” Dean alleged.
Dean and other concerned homeowners are trying to gather enough support to vote out the current board.
But she believes newly elected members are being blocked from taking office.
“She will not let them be on the board,” Dean said.
She added: “They are in a leadership role. They need to act like it.”
The Waverly Park Homeowners Association did not immediately respond to request for comment.
