Question of the Day — 3 Dec 2019

[Editor's Note: Jeffrey Compton is, among other things, the writer of our Living Local (and Large at Low Cost in Las Vegas blog. Not only because he's mentioned in the question, but also because he's extremely knowledgeable about this kind of issue, he graciously wrote this QoD.]

 

HOAs have their good points. Many developments have common property or amenities that require local input, control, and maintenance. Also, they allow for many decisions (amount of grass versus desert landscaping, pet rules, parking) to be made at the lowest possible level of government.

 

Unfortunately (based on personal experience), HOAs attract two types of people: "empire-of-their-own" retired executives who want to run everything (sometimes they do a very good job and sometimes they don't, especially if they're anti-innovation) and "busybodies" who spend their days making sure that everyone is following "the rules." Both tend to dominate HOA meetings and general business. 

 

Because of the amount of new construction in Las Vegas over the last 25 years, especially in pre-planned developments, there are many more HOAs here than in other cities. Some are very large (Summerlin, Sun City, Anthem), while others cover as few as 10 units. But because there are so many and they by their nature hit homeowners where they live, HOAs in Las Vegas are often newsworthy.

 

Thank you, Jeffrey. We cede the floor to everyone who's been dying to comment on HOAs, but haven't had the chance -- up until now.