She called her pet a "puppy"

She lived in the HOA for almost two decades and called her 10 yr old Lab, her puppy. Naturally board President Gladys Kravitz (of Bewitched fame) finally got word. Gladys was on a mission and fully intended to rid the neighborhood of puppies. You can imagine the scenario; Gladys the ever present gadfly saw a dog defecate on her yard 15 yrs ago. She vowed she would rid her community, if not the world of DAWGS. So she ran for the board. Then she looked for other dawg-hating comrades and recruited Cruella De Vil. Next, the secret meetings in the underground bunker. After heavy campaigning the CC&Rs were changed ... dogs that were grandfathered in could stay, but anyone new to the neighborhood would need to dispose of their dawgs. Can you hear the mantra "NO NEW DAWGS!" "NO NEW DAWGS!"

Does this improve property values or diminish property rights? Communities don't want dogs, cats, kids, grandkids or playgrounds. What's wrong with this picture? They don't want 12" American flags in a 5" pot. They don't want any religious symbols or political signage. They don't want trucks ... after all a truck sitting in the driveway is a sure sign of working class people and that's not the image Gladys and Cruella want to project.

Don't assume the board knows what they are doing. Think twice or thrice about voting for the latest and greatest new CC&Rs scheme. Be wary of the HOA who continually changes CC&Rs wasting community money on legal fees for boilerplate material that can easily be pulled off the internet. Expensive changes to CC&Rs likely won't make your property more valuable and it could be the cause of stress and grief for your family.

Oh, the case above ... The Member refused to provide proof her Lab was a decade or more old. In the meantime the board did everything possible to intimidate her with fines. The board finally backed down after considerable legal expense.

Think twice if you want to raise a family, have pets and grandchildren in an HOA. You are not the buyer the neighborly(?) board wants in the community.

If you have suffered HOA abuse, contact HOATruth.com. Dennis Legere is the principal advocate. Or you can reach me at EarsUp@iCloud.com. Full disclosure, we are not attorneys. We just don't like bullies. It's a free service.