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It’s Christmas time – time to get in trouble
with your association?
By
Jan Bergemann
Published
December 7, 2012
In
case you want to get in trouble with your association about
Christmas decorations, just watch the movie “Christmas
Vacation” and follow
Chevy Chase
’s example. You can be sure neighbors, board members and the
community association manager will be after you – and the
association attorney gets some lucrative billing hours for
Christmas.
But
even if you totally forego Christmas decorations, you can get in
serious trouble with your neighbors – remember Tim Allen in
“Christmas
with the Kranks”?
According
to these really funny movies, you can get in trouble, no matter
which way you go: Going overboard or doing nothing – there
seems to be no one-fits-all solution.
So
before you start decorating your home to get everybody in the
Christmas spirit, make sure you read the rules of your
association and follow them – even if you think they are
absolutely stupid or infringe on your rights of freedom of
speech!
If
you love Christmas decorations and think it’s an old American
tradition to decorate your home on the outside, you will soon
realize at Christmas time that you gave up a lot of your
“rights” when you bought a home in a mandatory homeowners’
association.
Since
the rules and regulations regarding Christmas decorations are
very vague in most associations, you may get into trouble, no
matter which route you chose to go. Because the fact is that it
often depends on the taste of your neighbors – you know, the
ones who are board members and/or your association manager --
to determine what is and what isn’t allowed, each year
the media has a lot to write about all the fights in
associations over Christmas decorations.
Do
these legal wars about Christmas decorations make sense?
Definitely not! Does it improve your property values if your
community monitors each owner’s Christmas decorations?
Definitely not! Does it improve neighborly relations? Definitely
not!
But
we see it happen every year – and it seems that association
attorneys are looking forward to the Christmas bonus they
receive from these Christmas decoration wars each year.
Let
there be peace on Earth – and enjoy the holidays – without
starting a fight with your neighbors about how many decorations
are allowed for Christmas! Let there be peace!
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