HOA member constantly pushes back against her own entitled board to help her fellow neighbors, gives HOA the choice to sue or change: ‘[It] has them steaming.'

Author image for Elna McHilderson
Elna McHilderson • Managing Editor
Jan 14, 2026 1:00 PM EST

It just takes one community member to make the neighborhood a better place. This neighbor even went as far as to joining the HOA just to fight against it. 

Not every Homeowner's Association (HOA) is entitled and greedy. Some actually do good for their community and want the best for their neighbors. Unfortunately, one search of "HOAs" online and you instead find a plethora of homeowners in HOA controlled areas with horror stories. 

This neighbor is one stood that shows how community members can actually stand up against their corrupt HOA boards. The first step? Join the HOA. Sounds counter intuitive, but it's the only way to make a change. 

In the case of this woman, the HOA kept fining her neighbors for tedious reasons and denying their request to better their homes. So, she joined the HOA to push back against all of that entitled behavior. She was the voice for her community and most of the time it worked. She got many fines knocked off, she got pointless "tow away" signs removed, and she even helped one homeowner get the approval to build a shed in her own backyard. 

This last one was a big one because the board was stuck on a rule they made in the '70s that had confusing verbiage. The board believed it meant no shed, but the woman/hoa board member was able to read it more thoroughly and found out it simply meant you cannot camp out on your property during remodeling. 

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  • Woman standing in front of a newly built shed looking satisfied and accomplished
    via Unsplash+ (and Martial L)

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.
    Woman image via Unsplash+ (and A.C.)

  • You see the big difference in understandings there? This became a huge back and forth with her and the board until finally they gave in and approved the shed. The neighbor and the rest of the community was very grateful, because now sheds were back on the menu. 

    Now, this woman has put in her own request to build a shed and she predicts her own colleagues plan to reject her just to be petty. So she has her own contingency plan in place in case they do. Now, she has them in the position to either approve or take her to court. She is ready to win in either scenario. 

    We love a community reminding their HOA who's actually in charge of their own property! 

  • "Almost as good as the Middle finger!"

    I will say I am very, very involved in the HOA. I'm one of the good ones though!!
    via Prestigious-Trash324
  • I got involved to fight the bad ones. Anyway, I helped a homeowner with an issue the Board was attacking her over... they were trying to get her shed torn down and even reported her to the City!
    via Prestigious-Trash324
  • The Board reported her shed being built without ARC approval. This went on for months. I'm on the ARC and was the only one approving her request while the other two, despite having sheds of their own, continued to deny it.
    via Prestigious-Trash324
  • She finally got her approval after I advocated for her and everyone on the Board and ARC attacked me for not agreeing with them..
    via Prestigious-Trash324
  • and now... guess who requested to build a shed they were so dead set against?? Me!
    via Prestigious-Trash324
  • They have no choice but to: 1) deny and I'll sue, or, 2) approve it as that's the new precedent... Happy new year I hope everyone in the neighborhood builds sheds now... So will they approve or deny?
    via Prestigious-Trash324
  • I'll let yall know. I'm thinking they'll deny it ☺☺☺ even though they know damn well they need to approve, think they'll be petty and deny it.
    via Prestigious-Trash324
  • I'm sure the request alone has them steaming. TLDR- Board reported a shed, ARC denied it, I advocated for her and her shed ultimately got approved!
    via Prestigious-Trash324
  • MaxwellSmart07 I love it when an owner has the board dead to rights.
    via MaxwellSmart07
  • OP Prestigious-Trash324 I love it too! They were threatening to tow vehicles and I let them know they were acting illegally.. here in TX, HOAS can't tow unless you have proper signage and a signed contract with a tow company. They had to retract the violations and cover up the threatening towing signs M
    via Prestigious-Trash324
  • two woman standing in front of a brick building discussing paperwork
    via Unsplash+ (and Hatice Baran)

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • MaxwellSmart07 Hooray for incompetent boards! My wife and I nailed our board for allowing smoking (by their friends of course) in an area that qualified as a NO SMOKING area under the Florida Clean Air Act. Got the State Health Department to contact the president who then capitulated. In another HOA I got a prohibition for parking on both sides of our very narrow street which was too narrow to allow cars going in opposite directions to pass one another. Alerted the Town Fire Department who order
    via MaxwellSmart07
  • OP Prestigious-Trash324 This is where HOAs can be good. We have the same issue of narrow roads and if anyone parks on certain roads (near the entrance to make it worse), ambulances and fire trucks - even a regular car actually- can't get through!
    via Prestigious-Trash324
  • Best_Market4204 Start giving people they want & run for president
    via Best_Market4204
  • OP Prestigious-Trash324 I'm the president of my other neighborhood but this one is just like my other one- a complete sh*tshow. I don't have the energy for that now it truly takes an entire upheaval for things to change and it is not easy!
    via Prestigious-Trash324
  • Reasonable-Job-8193 There is inherently nothing "good" about anything to do with HOA's. Move to the country. I can pee off my front porch in the middle of the day while shooting a shotgun if I wanted to. My closest neighbor is a female cow named Dandelion and her baby named Penny. Best neighbors I've ever had. My dog Ripley and them are best friends. If your neighbor can be hit with a drive from a golf ball, they are too close.
    via Reasonable-Job-8193
  • OP Prestigious-Trash324 Yeah I'm definitely not pro HOA..! I would live in the country if my husband agreed!
    via Prestigious-Trash324
  • Maverick8917 The only policies they have is 10'x 10' painted the same brown as the condos, brown shingles, no windows and no lofts. That's it. They wanted to argue that the easement is so the hoa can maintain the sheds if need be since they don't know who is supposed to. They also threw a fit when my duplex neighbor tried to replace theirs (that's falling apart) by saying they don't know where utilities are buried.
    via Maverick8917
  • OP Prestigious-Trash324 Hmm. Our documents specifically state what the hoa maintains so if it's not in the documents, they aren't responsible for maintaining it (is the rule of thumb we go by in one of my HOAs). In my first hoa, we maintain common areas and front yards only... common areas would include empty lots that are empty due to city restrictions, mailbox area, pool area, roads, curbs and sidewalks, and any tree that covers a common area. In my other hoa, they maintain common areas but no
    via Prestigious-Trash324
  • MaxwellSmart07 The HOA fought it. I got the town and the Fire Department involved. I wasn't about to sit quietly after spending all that money on a home and not be able to drive unhindered to my garage.
    via MaxwellSmart07
  • OP Prestigious-Trash324 I'm glad you came out on top of that one. After seeing your post this morning I actually called the city too and reported the emergency situation in our neighborhood . I've been stuck many times behind people who just park in the road.. in a true emergency it is a problem!! I even drove the wrong way the other day because I couldn't get out of the neighborhood!
    via Prestigious-Trash324
  • small white shed in the yard of a happy home
    via Unsplash+ (and Ric Matkowski)

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • hey_blue_13 Keep in mind that not all sheds are the same. There's a difference between a 64 sq ft shed with a 6' height, and a 300 sq ft shed with a 22' height. Just because they approve 1 shed does not mean they have to approve the other. My CC&Rs as well as our county's limits the size of sheds allowed, and our CC&R also state they must match the aesthetics of the house (same color scheme).
    via hey_blue_13
  • OP Prestigious-Trash324 I 100% agree. You should have those restrictions in writing though, which I'm sure will be my next fight. I'm not requesting a hot pink 3 level shed or anything, but I'm sure they're going to try to enforce rules that don't exist. If they want to do that, they need to hire an attorney, vote on restrictions and get it filed. I preemptively told them I'll match my home because I personally think that's how it should be, but opinions don't mean squat. They need formal writte
    via Prestigious-Trash324
  • mruglyjoe Our first board tried this. The community banded together and pushed back. That board dissolved. The new board set a policy for abandoned vehicles only. This only required one large sign at the entrance of the community. Towing cars for other reasons required large signs that are visible from the spot that the vehicle is parked. The community did not want those large signs everywhere. Especially in front of their homes.
    via mruglyjoe
  • OP Prestigious-Trash324 That's great! Unfortunately we have those large signs everywhere but now it's covered up so the signs are just... there. ridiculous
    via Prestigious-Trash324
  • Mysterious-Hat-5662 I mean I don't know what your CCRs say, but it doesn't make sense what you are saying. For example in my HOA, the shed must beet certain requirements. Location, size, color, roof type and color. Just because one person gets it approved doesn't mean they have to approve them all. If the request meets the requirements they have no reason not to approve. If it doesn't, you can't just sue for no reason.
    via Mysterious-Hate-5562
  • OP Prestigious-Trash324 I'll add that our attorney also advised them once they set the precedent, they do actually have to approve future sheds.
    via Prestigious-Trash324
  • hey_blue_13 You may also want to check to see what the requirement is to create or change rules. Some municipalities require a super majority (66%) of homes to agree to modifications of covenants and restrictions.
    via hey_blue_13
  • OP Prestigious-Trash324 I'll have to check for this neighborhood, good idea.. our old neighborhood actually requires 80%!
    via Prestigious-Trash324

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