Because I Can't Say It to Their Faces

Just a little forewarning: I'm about to launch into a full scale rant, so if you are the mood for light and entertaining or warm and fuzzy, you probably won't find it here today. (Though I may just poke a little fun at some ridiculously naive people.) Hopefully, when I'm finished I can quit having this argument in my head and move on with my day.

I'm pretty sure I've described the pitiful state of affairs in my community before. Our HOA is flailing about trying to stave off bankruptcy, and we've had a neighborhood that looks trashy for awhile now. Keeping up the landscaping has been one of those things the HOA simply could not afford for nearly two years. Last year, when it became obvious that things were going downhill fast, I joined an email list of other residents wanting updates from our management company about just where things stood. Unfortunately, since I'm copied on everything, it means I get to read every whiny complaint that someone sends to the management company.

All of their complaints center on one thing: they think our management company is doing a crappy job because our neighborhood looks terrible. They think the management guy is giving them the runaround, and that the $3000 a month the company gets paid is being shoved into the pockets of some lazy people who just don't give a d*** about what happens down here. And on and on and on and

on . . . .

The poor guy supervising our community comes back with the same explanation every time: we'd love to help you guys look nicer, but the money just isn't there. We are owed $700,000 from people (mainly two builders) who are not paying up. What is the management company going to do about that? They've filed the lawsuits, they're working to get us something out of these debts, but there's only so much you can do. In the meantime, the management company earns their money by juggling our own HOA debts, trying to keep us from being sued. They make sure our bills for the trash service and the pool and the utilities (like our streetlights) get paid. Oh, yes, you stupid people. Our streetlights are not paid for by the county. Our HOA pays for them.

There is some light at the end of the tunnel because one of the bankrupt builder's lots are all being sold. At last!!!! Maybe we will get an investor who will actually pay us the $10,000 a month, so our HOA can get a least a little landscaping taken care of. But do these fanatical idiots who think the management company is in league with the devil rejoice with the rest of us? NO!!! Now we have some idiotic resident (who is apparently a law student or something) who wants us all to sign a petition to try and fire the management company. Since he is a budding lawyer, what do you think is his solution? He wants us all to quit paying our dues and instead file a class action suit against the management company. (I wonder who he wants us to hire to represent us. . . . no self-interest involved, I'm sure.) So just when there is a possibility of our HOA getting turned around, he wants us to SUE the company trying to get the lots sold and holding everything else together.

And what is the grand point of this brilliant lawsuit? Is it to get the $700k from the management company? Um, no. (They only make $36,000/year from us.) No, it's just so we can get them fired. But then, nobody's paying their dues, so there's no money coming in to pay for even our trash service, and we don't have anyone actually managing the community. And seriously, do you think we are going to be able to convince any other management group to take us on? With iffy income coming in and residents who sued the previous one? Yeah, right.

It makes me want to scream!!! Besides, half the reason our community still looks bad is because the residents act like we live in a run-down trailer park! That's the fault of the people who live here. Can't really blame that on anyone else. I suspect that even some of these loud whiners have a good deal of weeds in their yard, seeing as it has taken me four to five hours every week to keep our front yard clear of them.

*taking a deep breath here*

Well, it's true there is no shortage of stupid people. I understand the frustration, since I wish everything was in shape too, but come on, people-- let's not shoot the person trying to help us out of the pit, OK?