'Check your by-laws': Internet backs woman who exposed HOA member for his petty act
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA: A woman’s story has attracted a lot of suggestions and advice after she went public on Reddit. The person, identified only as 'u/YourInfidelityInMe', started sharing her post by writing, “TIFU by fooling around with a neighbor who’s on the HOA board.”
She then continued, “I had fooled around with a neighbor who happens to sit on the board of our building’s HOA. It hadn’t been an issue until recently when I declined to fool around with him. I learned that he had been dating some girl, and as far as I can tell, she does not know that he has an (ex)-FWB in the building. Feeling uncomfortable about the FWB arrangement, I told him very politely what my reasons were for saying NO to a request for a ‘quick beej’.”
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‘I am pretty certain that he is an influential voice’
The woman also noted that she tried to make him understand things “very calmly and rationally” but it did not seem to work out. She stated, “I think he’s angry. In short, he sits on the HOA board, and I am pretty certain that he is an influential voice on the architectural improvement committee. This is the committee that residents have to submit unit alteration applications to for approval.”
“One of the items that need pre-approval is outdoor furniture. I imagined it was pretty pro-forma: fill out the application, make sure it is heavy enough that it won’t fly off the balcony and hurt someone on the street, and bam - approved. When I saw this set that I liked for an outdoor refresh, I placed the order because I thought it would be approved without problems. It was a limited sale and a very good deal,” the woman explained.
But u/YourInfidelityInMe was shocked when she found out that her application was rejected. She said, “To make matters worse, the furniture had already been delivered because it took the HOA forever to review the application. The reason the committee provided was that the color of the sunbrella cushions was not ‘consistent with the aesthetic of the common spaces’.”
‘I can’t prove it without getting an attorney’
The woman revealed that she “immediately replied with a question: why did unit X get approved for their teal cushions and mine got denied? Their reply was that it was an oversight, moving forward they would not allow unapproved colors anymore. I just KNOW it was him. I can’t prove it without getting an attorney and alleging inconsistent application of HOA rules, depose them, and find out.”
She added, “I can get new cushions that are neutral, but I can’t return my fun cushions and I’m out several hundred dollars because of it. This sucks so much. TL;DR: My balcony furniture got rejected by the HOA and I highly suspect it is because my ex-FWB is being a petty beeyotch. I’m also out hundreds of dollars because the cushions that were rejected are non-refundable. Maybe I should have agreed to his request until after my outdoor furniture was approved.”
‘Check your by-laws’
Several people commented below the woman’s post, with one user saying, “Check your by-laws. There might be a time requirement for their approval/rejection. If they took too long, it might be automatic approval.” Another user wrote, “This. Truth is powerful. Say the quiet stuff out loud and publicly.”
The third user commented, “If you want to resolve your HOA approval issue quickly, send an email to the official email account asking if your recent refusal of approval was related to you refusing to give a BJ to a sitting member of the HOA board and CC a local attorney.”
“TELL THE HOA. Write them a letter explaining your relationship with him and end with ‘I can't help wondering how much of this decision comes out of his disappointment in my refusal to continue a sexual relationship with him. I'd like to request that the HOA reconsider my application, but now with NAME recused from the discussion and decisionmaking. And I'd like to request that, from now on, with any decision that involves me, he recuse himself.’ You can mention your lawyer as well,” the fourth one added.
This article contains remarks made on the internet by individual people and organizations. MEAWW cannot confirm them independently and does not support claims or opinions being made online.