How to get HOA advisory to be more direct

Hi!

I recently moved into a new home that is part of an HOA. The builder didn't do a good job with the landscaping and didn't properly grade our yard. It hasn't been a fun experience for me, with lawyers and whatnot. But what is making it worse is I have an HOA advisory member who is being very....sneaky. There's been 2 occasions where she/he has made a big deal out of something that could have easily been solved by knocking on my door and having a quick conversation.

Let me be clear - I'm not trying to shirk my responsibilities here. I just wish they were communicated in a way that didn't feel like a total invasion of my privacy.

Occasion 1: Our builder did not properly grade our property, and there were was some serious erosion going over the sidewalk. I was aware of this and had worked with my lawyer to divert a substantial amount of money into escrow at closing until the builder fixed this. But I couldn't delay closing due to other reasons. Since the permit was in the builder's name, any violations from the city/county would go to them, not me. After closing, I got a couple of violations from the county, but I cleared with them and my lawyer that they were the builder's responsibility. Nonetheless, the big violation signs would remain on my lot until the problem was fixed. 3 weeks after I closed, I was moving in. I was sitting on my front porch waiting for the moving truck to arrive, when the county water commissioner pulled up. He told me he had received a call from my HOA letting them know that I was home (since someone saw me on the porch), so he came over to tell me I had to fix the lot. I reminded him of what was going on, this was in the builder's name, you need to contact him, here is my attorney, etc., and he commented he was basically just here because someone from the HOA is calling and complaining every day. I'm a little agitated because someone was specifically waiting to see when there was a person home, and when they saw me, instead of coming over and asking, "What's happening with your lot here?", they called the county. I just feel like I'm being spied on.

Occasion 2: When our builder finally did fix the lot, they put the discharge pipe from the sump pump into the street, which is against our HOA bylaws. I was calling around for estimates to get someone to bury this, when I received an email from the HOA president. They received a complaint from an "HOA advisory member", and enclosed 15 (yes, fifteen!) photos taken of the pipe from different angles on my property. Whoever took this was all over my yard taking pictures. Now I'm even more agitated! A simple call or ringing my bell, explaining to me that it had to be moved while I was waiting to get someone to bury it, and I would have moved the pipe. But to wait until I'm not home, then trespass on my property, and taking an obscene number of photos to demonstrate a violation that was visible from the street... I don't know, I really feel violated here.

Both of these issues, I want fixed as much as the HOA. I'm not unreasonable, and would be happy to share with anyone who asks on where we are with resolving them. But I would like to communicate back to them that this sneaky behavior really is unnecessary, and is making me uncomfortable.

Thanks for reading. Just really upset that I have been in a new neighborhood for a month, and I seem to have my own personal spy/stalker.

Hi Tim - yes the HOA was aware of the issues.

Invite neighbors to a house warming party.
Then at the party, explain the issues you have been having with the builder and how they are being resolved. This way, if it's one of them, they will be aware of the issue. If it's not one of them, the word may spread.

Well that's a pretty bad way to greet a new neighbor! Quite the opposite of being neighborly for sure, and something that should be addressed, even though it is likely to fall on deaf ears. I would ask if this is how they handle every violation in the community, sending someone one on the lot to take pictures and then have someone watch for you to be there to send in the cops so to speak is pretty hardcore.

You can be nasty or you can be civil about how you respond, but you should respond to let them know their behavior is appalling.

Good luck with this Board!

I agree that any violation or concern should be handled by the property manager. As far as I can tell, calling someone a "HOA Advisory Member" and then having that individual scout out others for violations amongst their neighbors is nothing more than a recipe for animosity. Calling Mrs. Kravitz.....

Glad to hear it has been somewhat resolved.

More important, you have made a few friends with the neighbors and learned a bit about the issue. You also discovered that you were not specifically targeted by the individual but that it has happened to many others.