How do we evaluate the home owners association if there is one?

Under terms established by covenants (agreements) that were recorded when a neighborhood or condo complex was first built, a home owners association (HOA) may have powers to set rules for the neighborhood, control alterations to homes or landscaping, and assess fees to maintain the neighborhood and/or the buildings. We you buy a home under the jurisdiction of an HOA, you’re effectively buying into a corporation which may have rules you’re not comfortable with and which may have debts that you’re assuming part of. We’ll routinely obtain the minutes of HOA meetings, the financial statements of the HOA, and the rule, regulations and covenants which govern the HOA to make sure that you’re not buying into unknown problems.