RESIDENTS of a rural community have learned that they are obligated to follow the HOA's rules, even if they never joined the organization.
Most residents recall being told that their community in Wedgefield, Florida, outside Orlando, either did not have a homeowners association or had one that was voluntary when they moved in.
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However, neither situation was completely true.
An HOA had existed in the community for years with one board member who essentially maintained a website and published a monthly newsletter, according to local news station WFTV.
Joining the HOA was voluntary and cost just $54 a year for the privilege of voting in board elections and HOA decisions, and just 10% of residents were members, the station found.
When the Wedgefield community got a new HOA company earlier this year, new board members decided to rebuild the organization.
As part of their revival mission, the HOA board decided to revise the community's rules and enforce existing ones, leading them to send out warning letters about potential fines for violating these guidelines.
Residents soon discovered that, according to old deed restrictions put in place by the developer, all Wedgefield properties — not just those of dues-paying members — were under the HOA's jurisdiction.
“A lot of people are hitting that reality, like holy cow, there is actually an HOA here and they do have some restrictions,” resident Adam Yunker told WFTV.
“A lot of people move here because they didn’t want those restrictions.”
The regulations include aesthetic improvements like fencing rules and restrictions on parking areas, in addition to more controversial animal-related guidelines.
The new rules limit the amount and type of animals that can live on area properties, and severely restrict how long any pets other than dogs and cats can be outside.
“There’s been horses that have lived here longer than the current HOA board, and they’re trying to say, you can’t have them out for more than an hour a day,” said Jenna Sanchez, another resident.
“I just feel like it’s not needed.”
WFTV attempted to contact the president of their HOA, Kelly Hoffman, for comment, but she denied all requests after making one short statement.
“The Board has answered all questions promptly… This story/interview request is ill-timed, as the November Newsletter should be delivered tomorrow to all residents, which has additional information,” Hoffman told WFTV.
Some residents think the HOA is going for a power grab and have attempted to rally other residents to officially join the HOA to gain voting power to oust the current leadership.
They told WFTV that they want the HOA to go back to its previous state of leaving homeowners more or less alone.
“We have food trucks every Tuesday. A lot of the community here organizes a Halloween parade,” Yunker said.
“That’s the kind of stuff this HOA really should be engaging in.”
