By Marland Mosley, Jr
Contributing Writer
It always feels like a cheap shot when people are slighted and bombarded with fees out of nowhere. Whether you’re an existing or new homeowner, getting told information decades later can feel like a slap in the face. When you buy a home, typically you’re supposed to have all the documents and information on the different regulations over what you can do in those homes.
DeSoto residents are highly upset about their new H.O.A. regulations. On Thursday, July 20, 2023, at a meeting held by Daniel Cruz and Byron Bradford in the Blue Bonnet Room in Desoto, there were plenty of upset residents raving about the discomfort of being ambushed with an H.O.A. Some said they do not want their neighborhood to be dominated by H.O.A.s. Others pursued the option of trying to amend the ordinance, while keeping the phases maintained. A resident said if the city is already cutting the grass, no homeowner should be paying a voluntary fee. It seems egregious to both pay taxes and then pay an H.O.A to oversee what was already funded.
Neither Bradford nor Cruz, wants anything to do with the H.O.A. Bradford calls the situation a double tax, in a sense that the residents pay their city tax and then pay the H.O.A. to do the same maintenance that the city had already done.
Also, some owners who bought their homes in 2003 and 2004 had never received any documents pertaining to the H.O.A. According to Sylvia Hines of Metro News, Bradford was never notified that he was moving into an H.O.A. area. Some DeSoto residents simply don’t want an H.O.A. because they don’t feel they had a choice to either accept or reject it. It is normal for people who are forced into accepting something to be hesitant.
The phases 3A and 3B consist of streets, such as Strayhorn Drive, Sage Wood Drive, and Turtle Point Court. The homeowners that live on these streets are not in favor of an H.O.A., so they want it removed. Bradford also says that he’s waiting for the city to reach out in terms of taking further steps. He feels that if this situation is to be dissolved, it should be 3C that should be made H.O.A. and leave 3A and 3B out of it.
Cruz also had this to say regarding the meeting. “Don’t just take the builder’s word. Have them state in writing whether or not there is an H.O.A.” Documentation should also state whether the H.O.A. is active or inactive, and whether participation is voluntary or mandatory, he said. It’s terrible enough that the residents feel blindsided about being in an H.O.A area, but to not be notified and to not have a choice is unacceptable.
The H.O.A form details a lot of the prohibitions regarding the Desoto area, such as air conditioning units being prohibited, as well as outdoor drying of clothes and the burning of trash outdoors.
These residents are paying an H.O.A. fee to be instructed on what they can and cannot do. When the NewRoc Services was contacted, a lady by the name of Azalea Fuentes said, “I’m not in charge of that property; you’d have to contact the property manager.”
With or without a straight answer, there’s no denying that the H.O.A. is putting restrictions on people’s livelihoods. All in all, DeSoto residents are in utter disbelief that they’re in an H.O.A. area. They’re upset at the fact that they weren’t even notified that they were in an H.O.A. area, on top of having to pay a fee to keep up the same maintenance the city was once doing.
These residents are hard-working, tax paying citizens, like anyone else. The very least that should happen is that they’re notified of what’s going on in their neighborhood. The residents are asking that, moving forward, they need to be informed on what’s happening, or if push comes to shove, they’ll leave. It is expected to be a tedious process and take more than an email, but the residents will stop at nothing to make their voices heard.
