Monday, November 4, 2013

I have been receiving complaints about homeowners associations and specifically management companies abusing homeowners in subdivisions. I have looked into some of these and am concerned about what I am seeing and hearing. I am aware of fines being levied for things like the lawn care company put a 4 inch by 4 inch sign in the lawn after they fertilized, or shingles were blown off in a storm and not repaired until the weekend, or the heat caused yellowing in well watered and fertilized lawns. There are some management companies that do not return phone calls or answer letters. The management companies threaten to lien people's property, and the fines are levied without any review by anyone outside the management company and the homeowner cannot challenge the arbitrary fines. I would like to know if the complaints I am hearing are isolated incidents relating to only a couple of management companies or homeowners associations or if this problem is becoming widespread. Please let me know your thoughts and experiences.
http://chumly.com/n/204c77c

Wednesday, October 30, 2013

I attended a meeting of the Idaho Justice Reinvestment Interim Committee this morning. I just thought you would like to know that the crime rate in Idaho declined 13% from 2007 to 2011. The rate is based on crimes reported per 1,000 people. The total number of crimes also decreased by 8%. This is in spite of an increase in population. Just another of the things that make Idaho a great place to raise a family.
http://chumly.com/n/20317ec