Should I contact my homeowner's association about this?

[artvandalay]

My subdivision has a home owner's association. We do not have street lamps. The only light that lights up our subdivision are the lightposts that are in front of each house. We are responsible for changing the bulbs. We get reminders in our newsletters to change any burned out bulbs because otherwise it looks dark.

I live at the back of a cul de sac. The house to the left of me is vacant. The owners are living in their other house. They have had the house up for sale for a year. They periodically come home to check on things. The bulbs in their lampost have been out for months. It is quite dark in our cul de sac because of this, also their house is pitch dark (no coach lights or anything).

Should I call about this? I don't expect them to fly home to change a couple of lightbulbs, but I know there is an electrician on the board who does odd jobs, I know he could just come and change them. I asked my son to get the mail earlier because I forgot - and he was afraid to go to the mailbox because it was so dark!

Adding: The board is a bunch of old fart busybodies, so I really don't like dealing with them but this is really annoying me.

[WolfpackMom]

Can you change it yourself by chance? I would try that first...

[elbenn]

Yes, I think that is something you could definitely contact the HOA about. When you do, you should probably remind them that the house is vacant and perhaps they could change the light bulbs for some minimal charge to the homeowners. Most HOA documents provide for the HOA to remedy the situation after appropriate notice is given to the homeowner and charge the homeowner.

[ohsara430]

Can you change it yourself by chance? I would try that first...

:yeahthat:

[artvandalay]

Well, I could change it, but the kind that we have is not just one bulb, but 4 (I think). All 4 of theirs burned out. I feel like I pay a boatload of association fees so they should be taking care of this (calling the owners and then if they don't do it/then the HOA should do it and then charge them the minimal fee). I just don't want to come across as b*tchy or anything. THe people on the board are really gossipy and weird.

[Penny's Pappa]

There's absolutely no reason you should have to change the bulbs. That's not your responsibility.

The first thing I would do is try to contact the homeowners if that is at all possible. Let them arrange to have the bulbs replaced. Do they even know the lights are out? If you can't get a hold of them only then would I go to the HOA.


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[jiggaman]

:yeahthat: I wouldn't touch it. What if it's broken and they get suspicious that you broke it? More headache than it's worth.

I would definitely contact the HOA. It's their responsibility to maintain the overall appearance of the community and ensure the residents are meeting the requirements.

You pay HOA fees each month, part of that is having the board enforce rules. I would have them do the work of contacting the owner. That way if it doesn't get done the HOA has the ability to pressure the owner to do it.

[ha98ed14]

You know, I would not be surprised if there is something in the covenants that says it is against the rules to let your house sit empty for more than X amount of time (i.e., the time it would take to go on vacation or something.) Unless it is a 50+ community filled with snowbirds, it is probably against the rules. You might check your covenants just to be aware when you call that you might be making more trouble for them than you want. That said, I very much agree that it's not your responsibility and you should not feel guilty for calling. If they were friends and you were feeling neighborly, then I would try to change the bulbs. If not, I would ask the HOA to contact them.

[artvandalay]

Hmm.. I have no idea if anything like that is in the covenant. I doubt the HOA knows they aren't living there but the HOA is very gossipy, so perhaps they do know.

The neighbors maintain the house very well, even though they don't live there. Landscapers come weekly (in warmer months when the grass grows), and whenever it snows they have a private service come and plow their driveway (it's a big U shaped one). It's just this lighting issue - it affects our cul de sac because there aren't many homes in it and it is so dark.

I think I will call the HOA tomorrow.

[WatchingThemGrow]

I would try to contact the homeowners first, then the HOA.

[ha98ed14]

I dunno if you watched X Files, but there was a Season 6 episode (Arcadia) about this exact situation where the president of the HOA was murdering people for failing to adhere to the rules including keeping their lights on. If you haven't seen it, it might give you a good laugh.

[rin]

I would try to contact the homeowners first, then the HOA.

:yeahthat:

If they're as involved as it sounds like they are, I wouldn't be surprised if they had someone who they would just get to come and take care of it. That way you come across as helpful "Hey, neighbor, did you know that your lights are out?", and then you can always say something like "If it's easier for you I can ask the HOA to take care of it, but I wanted to check with you all first".

[bigpassport]

If you want immediate results, change the light bulbs yourself.

If you want to solve the long-term problem, contact the HOA.

Since the homeowner is trying to sell the house, I wouldn't bother with the HOA. I'd just change the bulbs myself.

[artvandalay]

I dunno if you watched X Files, but there was a Season 6 episode (Arcadia) about this exact situation where the president of the HOA was murdering people for failing to adhere to the rules including keeping their lights on. If you haven't seen it, it might give you a good laugh.

:hysterical: My H and I would die laughing if we saw this! He's been watching X Files lately on Netflix streaming, so I'll tell him about it!

Also, I have no way of getting ahold of the neighbors. I'm not even entirely sure what state their other home is in. They were never very friendly with us, they kept to themselves, and half of the time they were out of town or at their other home. I can't wait to get new neighbors. I hope someone normal moves in.

[Penny's Pappa]

:hysterical: My H and I would die laughing if we saw this! He's been watching X Files lately on Netflix streaming, so I'll tell him about it!

Also, I have no way of getting ahold of the neighbors. I'm not even entirely sure what state their other home is in. They were never very friendly with us, they kept to themselves, and half of the time they were out of town or at their other home. I can't wait to get new neighbors. I hope someone normal moves in.

Then I'd go to the HOA. Claim you're concerned about the safety and security risks posed by the outage. Hopefully, the HOA will do their job and either contact the homeowners somehow, or arrange to have the bulbs replaced at the owners' expense.

[TwinFoxes]

Then I'd go to the HOA. Claim you're concerned about the safety and security risks posed by the outage.

:yeahthat: I don't know what other option you have. You can't contact the neighbors, you're worried about changing the bulbs yourself. Other than contacting the HOA, your only other option is to just live with it.

[artvandalay]

:yeahthat: I don't know what other option you have. You can't contact the neighbors, you're worried about changing the bulbs yourself. Other than contacting the HOA, your only other option is to just live with it.

Yeah.. I"m gonna call them this morning and voice my complaint and hopefully they will take care of it.