Can We Hope the Tide is Turning Against Predatory HOA Behavior?

AT THE STATE LEVEL: Today, a bill awaits Maryland Governor Wes Moore's signature that will curb one of the worst abuses of HOAs (and other debt-generating entities). Consider this example ...

"In 2020, in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, a Montgomery County woman was arrested and briefly jailed over a dispute with her homeowners association, despite the fact that she never received notice of the court date that she missed."

Maryland House Bill 127 is known as "End Debtor's Prison." Unfortunately, it will not automatically end many of the HOA abuses we are experiencing here and now in the Quail Valley HOA community, but it is a good start at reform.

AT THE NATIONAL LEVEL: A recent U.S. Department of Justice "Dear Colleague" memo, quoted below, may sound familiar to QV homeowners who have suffered HOA harassment, including liens placed on your homes resulting from HOA bills of $5,000, or $10,000, or $20,000 for the "crime" of chipped paint on your front door, a loose cable wire, or rusty brads on your mailbox. The source of your rights is the U.S. Constitution. Perhaps HOA boards across America need to rethink their budgets and start repairing relationships with their own constituents. (Bolded text, added by SL, indicates special relevance to homeowners living in HOA communities.)

The basic constitutional principles relevant to the imposition and enforcement of fines and fees ... are grounded in the Sixth, Eighth, and Fourteenth Amendments to the U.S. Constitution. These principles, explained in subsequent sections below, are:

(1) The Eighth Amendment prohibits the imposition of fines and fees that are grossly disproportionate to the severity of the offense;

(2) The Fourteenth Amendment prohibits incarceration for nonpayment of fines and fees without first conducting an ability-to-pay determination and establishing that the failure to pay is willful;

(3) The Fourteenth Amendment requires the consideration of alternatives before incarcerating individuals who are unable to pay fines and fees;

(4) The Fourteenth Amendment prohibits the imposition of fines and fees that create conflicts of interest;

(5) The Fourteenth Amendment prohibits conditioning access to the judicial process on the payment of fees by individuals who are unable to pay;

(6) The Sixth and Fourteenth Amendments require due process protections, such as access to counsel in appropriate cases, as well as notice, when imposing and enforcing fines and fees; and

(7) The Fourteenth Amendment prohibits the imposition of fines and fees in a manner that intentionally discriminates against a protected class.

The DOJ memo then discusses each of these seven points in detail. (See also this short article in THE HILL.) Although HOAs are not mentioned specifically in the DOJ memo, it does list "loss of one's home" and "homelessness" among the harms that result from cruel and unjust fines and fees. HOA predatory behavior (and the resulting housing insecurity that families experience) is one of the great underreported stories in major media today. Perhaps the tide is turning toward basic fairness and common sense. After all, we all want to enjoy the community that we live in.

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Steven Sellers Lapham is a 21-year resident of Quail Valley. A retired editor, he can be reached at MuskratMusic@gmail.com. The "Living on Cuckoo Court" collection of essays is on Patch.com.