Living Under the Umbrella of a Homeowner Association in Iowa

This book delves into the integral role that Homeowner Associations play in today’s housing landscape. Homeowner Association living makes up a sizeable percentage of today’s housing market and that percentage is growing with more residents being added each year. The Community Associations Institute (CAI) estimated the number of community associations in 2017 to be between 345,000 and 347,000, housing more than 70 million residents. Homeowner Associations are registered, not-for-profit, entities that operate the same as any other non-profit organization. Some govern high-rise condominium apartment buildings, others govern converted warehouses and townhouse communities. Still others govern covenant-directed single-family neighborhoods, gated golf course communities, and Planned Unit Developments (PUD). PUDs are a zoning classification for a mixture of independent commercial, residential, and multi-family owners agreeing to be governed by a master HOA. In some communities, two Homeowner Associations may exist; a Master HOA and a subordinate one.These non-profit Homeowner Associations are required to establish a board of directors (made up of HOA members) and within the membership to elect officers who manage the Association’s business affairs. Individual HOA members are expected to participate within in the scope of the organization’s legal, managerial, social, and/or financial affairs. Unlike moving into a residential neighborhood, Homeowner Association members move into an organized community. And ultimately, the entire HOA membership becomes responsible for the Association’s well-being… if for no other reason than to protect one’s own financial interest. In other words, after work, co-owners are expected to do more than just drive home, park, walk inside to cook dinner, settle in to watch television, and then hit the rack. Everyone is expected to do some of the heavy lifting.