By: Marcia Jedd

Published: December 10, 2010

Check your condo rules before you put up that menorah or Santa decoration, or you might find yourself taking your holiday decorations down a lot sooner than you planned.

 

I want to flout condo rules and put up holiday decorations despite an HOA rule banning them. What’s going to happen to me?

• Option 1: Nothing may happen because the HOA rules aren’t enforced.

• Option 2: You might get a letter asking you to take down your decor.

• Option 3: You might get fined for breaking condo rules.

Constructive ways to balance your need to deck the halls with condo rules that ban decorations:

Talk to your neighbors. If it’s your first holiday in your new home, check with your neighbors to find out what's really allowed. Condos that ban lights and signage most of the year may ignore illegal decorations during the holiday season. "But do understand these rules and regulations are enforceable by boards of corporations that are created contractually," Poliakoff says.

Take your holiday case to the board. Call the president and ask if you can speak at the next meeting. Show up with a short written proposal to modify the HOA rules to allow specific kinds of decorations, like lights on balconies or door wreaths.

"Don't criticize or start calling anyone names. Suggest to your board they amend their rules to allow for holiday decorations within limits," Poliakoff says. Offer to write an email or letter outlining a holiday decorating exception that runs during a set period like Dec. 15 to Jan. 1.

Check state laws on condo rules. Got no satisfaction from your trip to the condo board? You might be able to appeal to a higher authority. Some states have a large body of home owners association laws that may override HOA rules in certain instances, while other states have few home owners association laws.

"There are laws in some states that do allow the display of items such as religious items or wreaths," Poliakoff says. 

If you can argue state law, sharing a copy of the law with the condo rule-makers may get them to change their minds about holiday decorations. If it doesn’t, you can consult a lawyer to find out about how much it will cost to sue your condo board to force it to follow state laws.

HouseLogic lists some of the craziest, creepiest, and grossest neighbor behavior, and provides some valuable advice for managing neighbor-on-neighbor disputes. The chicken coup It started Sept. 21, when a chicken-owner from Tyler, Texas, saw his neighbor’s dog carrying off one of his chickens—and it ended with gun shots, reported the local NBC affiliate KETK. According to investigators, the first bullet came from the chicken owner’s gun when he attempted to rescue his hen. But the dog’s owner returned fire, sparking a brief but scary shootout that brought the cops onto the scene. Thankfully, no one was hurt—though there’s no report on the fate of the stolen chicken. Neighborly Tip: While the chicken owner was technically operating within his rights, we wouldn’t advise using a gun to solve the problem. If you feel you, your pets, or your children are in danger from a loose neighborhood dog, try using dog pepper spray or ultrasonic dog repellent--a much more humane and much less dangerous defense. The neighbor who 'borrowed' the car Last November, a Jacksonville, Fla., woman found her neighbor dead in his home—and then found a way to profit from the situation, local news reported. The 33-year-old woman didn’t report the death to the authorities. Instead she chose to “borrow” a few things from her deceased neighbor: his checkbook, his credit cards, and his car. But the authorities caught up with her before long, and she was arrested and charged with fraud and burglary. Neighborly Tip: Most identity thieves don’t wait for such an “opportunity.” These steps, provided by the Federal Trade Commission, can help you protect yourself against identity theft. The dog-napper Neighbors in an Ohio suburb had been feuding for two years when one of them kidnapped the other's dog—and took it to a local shelter, says a local report. The culprit told kennel staff he had found the dog running around some railroad tracks. When the dog’s owners asked, the neighbor denied any involvement. But after finding their pup in a shelter, they contacted the police with their suspicions. It wasn’t long before the vengeful dog-napping plan was uncovered. The dog-napper was arrested, sentenced to a month in jail, and ordered not to have contact with his neighbors. Neighborly Tip: His frustration isn’t entirely unreasonable--a loose dog could be dangerous, or end up hurt if it runs in the path of a car. But a call to Animal Control would have been a better solution. Ohio (like most states) has a leash law, which states that a dog must be leashed and controlled by its owner or keeper at all times, except during recreational hunting. The 'unauthorized' neighbor For the former Alaskan Governor, Republican Sarah Palin, being in the spotlight is nothing new. But when writer Joe McGinniss, who happened to be researching his unauthorized biography about her, moved into her neighbor’s house in May--it was a little too close for comfort. Palin posted an acerbic message on Facebook condemning the move, and erected an 8-foot fence around her property to thwart any “peeping.” In early September, McGinniss moved back home to finish the book, but maintains that Palin herself was the inappropriate party, saying her reaction to his presence was out of line, bordering on harassment. Neighborly Tip: Whether you’re in Palin’s shoes or McGinniss’, neighborhood harassment laws do exist. They vary from state to state, and it’s important to make sure you know what constitutes harassment in yours. Reign of terror It sounds like the plot of a horror movie—but it’s true. In 2006, the residents of Bottomley, West Yorkshire, England, were the victims of a 16-month rampage by an angry neighbor, the BBC reported. The perpetrator played loud choral music about rape and pillage, damaged vehicles, set booby traps, and littered the road with dead animals, dog feces and nails. Eventually the judge slapped the accused with an anti-social behavior order (basically a restraining order here in the States). The woman filed for an appeal in 2008, but was denied and fined £200,000 for breaching the order on two occasions. Neighborly Tip: It’s unclear exactly what initially set her off, but before you go off the deep end and do something you’ll regret, take more reasonable, legal steps. You don’t have to take abuse, either. Get your HOA or the city involved if you feel you’re being threatened. The fence offense Even celebrities get a little nasty when it comes to their properties. But none took things quite as far as the infamous 2004 fence feud between actor Jim Belushi and former Catwoman Julie Newmar. It started simply enough: Belushi wanted to make the fence around his property higher for more privacy. But Newmar, who had spent decades caring for her prized rose garden, wasn’t having it. She argued the higher fence robbed her plants of sunlight. Years of both public and private griping followed. Belushi accused Newmar of tearing down his fence and egging his house. Newmar accused Belushi of being such a noisy neighbor she had to use air traffic controllers’ earmuffs. Belushi sued Newmar for $4 million for harassment, defamation, and vandalism. The two eventually reached a compromise through mediation, settling the lawsuit. Later Belushi had Newmar on his sitcom According to Jim, in which she played--you guessed it--his grumpy neighbor “Julie”. Neighborly Tip: Before letting things get so bad that you find yourself getting slapped with a lawsuit, try mediation first. HouseLogic’s guide to mediation gives you a step-by-step process of how to handle an issue with a neighbor before it gets out of hand.

Please help us spread the word about the importance of preserving, protecting and defending the Mortgage Interest Deduction. The Realtor Party needs everyone to participate in this Call for Action to preserve, protect and defend MID so please take action today.

Subject:	Please help me preserve, protect and defend MD
Message (optional):	I just took action to Preserve, Protect and Defend the Mortgage Interest Deduction. This issue is very important to keeping the dream of home ownership alive in America. Please write your Congressional Representative today and ask them stand resolute against eliminating or reducing MID as part of efforts to reform the tax code.

It's that time of year again, when we need to move our clocks back an hour!!

 

Individuals are permitted to deduct mortgage interest paid on mortgage debt of up to $1 million. The deduction is available for interest on mortgages for a principal residence and one additional residence. The $1 million limitation represents the combined allowable debt on two residences. Mortgage interest on up to $100,000 of debt on home equity loans or lines of credit also qualifies for the deduction.

As part of its FY 2011 budget, the Administration has proposed limiting the value of the MID for upper income taxpayers by, in effect, converting the deduction to a 28% tax credit for those individuals who are currently in the 33% or 35% tax brackets. Individuals with incomes below $250,000 would generally not be directly affected by this proposal.

The mortgage interest deduction (MID) is a remarkably effective tool that facilitates homeownership. While only about 30% of all taxpayers in any given year itemize their deductions, more than 3/4 of homeowners utilize the deduction over the period they own their home.

 
Currently, taxpayers in the 33% and 35% income brackets are able to reduce their taxes through deductions for mortgage interest payments, charitable contributions, local taxes and other expenses by 33 and 35 cents, respectively, on the dollar. Under the Administration's proposal, these individuals would only be able to reduce their tax bill by only 28 cents on the dollar. The Administration estimates that the change would raise $318 billion over the next 10 years.

Many national real estate trade groups believe the proposal is ill-timed and ill-advised and could have an adverse impact on housing values and the pace of economic recovery.

Most members of Congress have also opposed the budget proposal. To date, limits on itemized deductions have not been part of the legislative agenda. Note, however, that in August 2009, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) released its annual report identifying possible revenue sources. These included several new limitations on MID.

So, while the Mortgage Interest Deduction has become a perceived right by homeowners and buyers, there is no guarantee that the MID will continue to be one more reason for home ownership.

 

 

The restoration of the single-family rural housing program that would guarantee home loans for rural buyers was passed by the Senate and signed into law by President Obama. The Rural Housing Service (RHS) was created in 1994 as a result of the Department of Agriculture Reorganization Act to meet housing and community development needs of rural America. More rural families and individuals may be able to become homeowners with the help of the Rural Housing Service Programs. The USDA Rural Housing Service has various programs available to aid low- to moderate-income rural residents to purchase, construct, repair, or relocate a dwelling and related facilities. USDA rural housing loan programs allow qualified homebuyers to get loans with minimal closing costs and no downpayment.

"Many rural families would have been left out in the cold without these guaranteed loans. Increasing the commitment authority will help rural families, support local housing markets, create jobs and generate new tax revenues," said NAR President Vicki Cox Golder, owner of Vicki L. Cox & Associates in Tucson, Ariz.
"The rural housing program is a good example of the kind of program needed for responsible and qualified home buyers who bring common sense to the housing market," said Golder. The legislation increases the guarantee fee for borrowers, but allows the fee to be financed. "This change will make the program completely self-sufficient," she said.

The legislation was part of H.R. 4899, "The Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Act" that the Senate passed on July 28. The measure increases the Rural Housing Service commitment authority allowing guaranteed loans; previously, RHS has been providing conditional commitments. The RHS is expected to announce new guidelines shortly.

RHS programs are not limited to only rural areas.

http://www.rurdev.usda.gov/oh/housing.htm