‘I won the war but lost the battle,’ says homeowner who spent $11k fighting HOA on parking fees – road became a campsite | 6Y4157Z | 2024-05-01 12:08:01
'I won the war but lost the battle,' says homeowner who spent $11k fighting HOA on parking fees – road became a campsite | 6Y4157Z | 2024-05-01 12:08:01
A HOMEOWNER took his HOA to court over vehicles parked on his neighbors' lawns and he spent almost $11,000 on the fight.
The frustrated resident said many of his neighbors shunned him for urging the association to enforce parking rules.
David Oakley and his wife moved into the Seven Springs Estates subdivision in Mt. Juliet, Tennessee, to retire in 2007.
They relished the idea that their HOA would keep the community quiet and attractive.
However, Oakley soon began noticing his neighbors were parking trailers, RVs, and boats in their yards – a direct violation of the association's bylaws.
Fed up with what he considered eye sores, Oakley took his HOA to court for failure to enforce parking restrictions that he claimed other neighbors were subject to.
"If I wanted to live in the Kampgrounds of America, I would have moved to the Kampgrounds of America," he told The Tennessean.
"It's called property rights."
As part of the legal battle, Wilson County Chancellor CK Smith amended the HOA's Declaration of Covenants to say that parking restrictions for recreational and commercial vehicles, trailers, boats, or non-operational vehicles "apply to all lot owners."
The HOA retorted that the amendment did not apply to those who purchased their home before 2007 due to a grandfather clause.
But the chancellor argued it cannot keep those homeowners from complying when other neighbors are held to the standard.
Interestingly, courts also dictated that the HOA did not have an obligation to enforce the parking restrictions, leaving Oakley to take a hit of nearly $11,000 in legal fees.
The legal battle dragged on as he attempted to recover the legal costs in general sessions court but his request was quickly dismissed.
<!-- End of Brightcove Player --> Oakley saw some relief when the HOA began enforcing the parking rule.
If RVs, trailers, boats, or non-operational vehicles were found on a resident's property, they would be fined $25 a month, a letter to residents said.
The president of the HOA, which was made up of volunteers, was a bit thrown off by the court battle over the parking rules.
Oakley brought the issue to court after arguing that the HOA "never" agreed to meet with him regarding his concerns.
Shawn Worlow, the HOA president at the time, said that Oakley's intensity on the issue "baffled" the association because Oakley hadn't brought up the concern at annual open meetings.
His complaints, Worlow said, were made in lengthy emails.
<p class="article__content--intro"> One in five Americans live in an area with a Homeowners' Association - or HOA. But what exactly is it that they do? </p> </div> </div> Despite the claims and the long-winded battle, Worlow maintains that no hard feelings were harbored.
"We don't have any ill will toward him," he said.
Oakley, however, could not say the same.
He argued that the $25 monthly fee is more cost-effective for his neighbors compared to a storage facility's fees.
He also claimed that his neighbors, once friendly, shunned him after suing the association and he never recovered the legal fees.
"I won the war, but lost the battle, the battle being reimbursement of my legal fees," he said.
"But the board has changed its tone 180 degrees. I am 100% convinced if I hadn't brought the lawsuit then nothing would have changed."
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