I had a "little" bit of success by complaining directly to my HOA about the management company's practices. I would regularly see their people creepily patrolling the neighborhood in a private car, stopping in front of houses to take photos with a long-lens camera and entering data in a laptop.

It was so creepy that one of my family members thought they were being followed by an abductor while walking the dog.

I also approached the car directly once and asked them to provide me with identification. I warned them that they looked like they were casing the houses for a break-in, and they were in danger of having someone call the police on them. Of course, they were freaked out that someone turned the tables on them.

The management company finally admitted that while it was legal, their system was creepy and since then, they have taken a much less aggressive approach.

In the midst of this, I also drove a few streets myself and noted long-standing violations that had existed for a decade or more, and sent them an itemized list asking why these weren't taken care of (for example, burglar bars and decorative iron driveway gates are forbidden but several people have these). The management company refused to explain those cases, citing privacy laws, but they stopped picking on me.

My theory on all this is that once a house has a single issue, the inspection crew continues to stop there to follow up and they notice other things that might be missed during a regular drive-by. So in essence, they do wind up picking on certain houses.

You need to read your CC&Rs. If either you or the HOA is operating on opinion, that doesn't work. Follow the CC&Rs to the letter.

Like the theory of hoas, hate them in practice. Happy to not have one now.

Years ago, in my old house, we received 6 notices within a week of buying and moving into our house. I asked why they hadn't made the previous owner (seller) do those things. They said he was "uncooperative.". So I guess they gave up on him. I told them I had most of their "items" on my to do list, but I would do them at my own pace, since they were preexisting.

Also found over the years, in addition to general incompetence with the hoa and management people, that it seemed to mainly be a way to harass people they didn't like or that maybe neighbors didn't like and reported regularly.

We changed landscaping regularly and never heard a peep. Neighbor changed theirs or did anything and they would get written up. Think other neighbors didn't like them and reported them.

As to the op. Definitely sounds like you are being targeted. Brown grass? Really? Had a section of my st a go brown this year. Worked on it Un successfully, but I would have been sol. That seems insane for the hoa to comment on,unless they are paying to fix it.

HOAs suck. Their purpose is not to create nice places to live. Their purpose is to make Associa money.

It's supposed to be at least a week's notice is what our HOA's attorney has told us.

If you make complaints, that'll get it fixed quick I assume, otherwise they (the HOA) lose their power.

The best things is that the HOA has to prove with evidence the "violation" so like this with the grass crap, "upkept manner" is total BS and won't fly. It will have to be changed to say, cannot be taller than 6 inches from the ground, then they'll have to have a picture of them with a ruler showing a majority of the yard exceeds that.


Some people serve on HOAs to control other people, folks like me serve on HOA's to restrict the HOA's ability from bothering good neighbors who are living normal lives.

My neighborhood has effectively flipped the HOA board, we are now a 4:1, "do what you want" board and let folks go about their own business.

Surprisingly, no one has brought home a junker car and left it in their front lawn!?