August 16, 2026 | Mark Luis Foster

Is there an HOA expert in the house?

I seem to be involved in a lot of HOA related meetings, including our own chapter meetings of the HOA Leadership Network (we soon will have six per month), and I often find myself asking that question. I’ve been on an HOA board for more than five years now, and have been on previous HOA boards and owned property in more than a couple HOAs in my lifetime, including two such properties now. But that likely doesn’t qualify me as an “expert” by any means. However, it does allow me some perspective.

Being a co-owner of the HOA Leadership Network, we hear lots of angles and perspectives from board leaders about issues that we all face. There’s a certain amount of new “anxiety” out there now — largely due to the upcoming legislation that goes into effect on January 1. It’s not all from that looming deadline, but it makes up a large part of the uncomfortable nature that seems to be gripping some boards.

It’s starting to dawn on me (and I guess I’m a little slow on this) that new legislation is a direct result of what I would call the “undercurrent of discontent” in HOA land. We all know there are some very discontented and unhappy residents who love to make the lives of board members miserable. Do these residents have a point in their complaints and anger toward boards? Some likely have qualified and legitimate issues, yes. But many of these discontented people are those who don’t understand the rules of the HOA in which they own property, have never read the rules, and are not about to do so anytime soon.

And yet, it’s many of those types of people, in my humble opinion, who caught the ear of our elected officials, resulting in more legislation being snapped on top of existing legislation (MCIOA). Whenever I get into a debate on some issue, especially debates that are leaning political, I try to take my father’s advice and put myself into the other person’s shoes. Now my dad was a professional man (an eye doctor) who had a wonderful way of engaging with people. After all, he spent hours in a darkened room with complete strangers. He taught me a thing our two about engagement.

I may have failed miserably, but when I try to understand an angry resident’s perspective on certain topics it makes me think of five areas of continual fallacies and misconceptions among said residents. I’ve tried to summarize those points below. Am I being a little jaded about it?  Warning: Probably.

The HOA Resident Misconceptions (at least a few):

1. HOA Boards are there to serve as my complaint call center.  Certainly not true. As a board member I’m there to serve and do the best job I can, but I’m not there to take your orders. We are not running a restaurant and nothing about an HOA is made to order. If you have an issue, then I and the board will listen, but it doesn’t mean you’re right and we’re wrong. Don’t expect immediate results.
2. Board members are fine serving forever and I have no obligation to volunteer. Part of that is right. You don’t have an obligation to be on the board. But it sure would be nice if you tried. Well-meaning and currently-serving board members have lives too. There are term limits for board positions and unlike Congress, the same board members serving over and over is not okay and not healthy for the association (probably not good in Congress either, but I digress). With no support from other residents, the whole thing just starts to fester.
3. HOA Rules are made to be broken. Negative. You’ve bought into an HOA and the rules are the rules. Are there bad rules that need to be revisited from time to time? Sure. Why not run for the board or get involved and show up to a board meeting to make your case? Rules can be changed, but breaking them only makes everyone’s job harder. If you don’t like rules, why did you move into an HOA?
4. I don’t have to pay my association dues if I disagree. See how that goes for you. See #3 above.
5. Boards can’t tell me what to do or make decisions that affect my property.  But they can. Boards are there to enforce the rules and maintain property values. You may not want part of your driveway or sidewalk replaced because you don’t like how it will match the rest of the existing concrete, but if it’s association property you have little to say about it. How often do residents think that the grass in front of their townhome is theirs? Read the rules and covenants. Most often it’s not. Yes, a board can remove a tree. Yes, they can shut down a pool. Yes, they fine you for violation of rules. And yes, they can still foreclose on you if you don’t pay your association dues.

It’s a small population, but there are some residents who will just never understand. Rules are rules, and quite likely, their “swimming upstream against the current” is just how they roll. As board leaders, we simply need to know it when we see it.