CALIFORNIA EASEMENTS EXPLAINED
UNDERSTANDING EASEMENTS IN CALIFORNIA: PROPERTY RIGHTS THAT CAN AFFECT THE USE OF YOUR HOME OVERVIEW An easement is a nonpossessory interest in the land of another that gives its holder the right to use that land for a specific purpose. That simple definition carries...
California HOA Crime and Safety: What Your HOA Must Do About Security
HOA RESPONSIBILITIES FOR CRIME AND SAFETY IN CALIFORNIA COMMUNITIES OVERVIEW When crimes occur in HOA-governed communities, they create fear, frustration, and confusion, especially when homeowners are told that their HOAs have “no responsibility” for what happens in...
HOA HELL: The Only California Homeowner’s Guide On How to Fight Back Against Your HOA and Win
HOA HELL | CALIFORNIA HOMEOWNERS’ DEFINITIVE GUIDE TO BEATING BAD HOAs OVERVIEW For far too many California homeowners, the idea of living in an HOA starts with promise and ends with frustration. What begins as an effort to preserve property values too often turns...
Service Animals and Emotional Support Animals in California HOAs: Your Rights
UNDERSTANDING HOA RULES FOR SERVICE ANIMALS AND EMOTIONAL SUPPORT ANIMALS IN CALIFORNIA OVERVIEW A lot of people who live in California HOAs have service animals or emotional support animals (ESAs). And while both federal and state law protect homeowners’ rights when...
Selective Enforcement in California HOAs: What It Is and How Homeowners Can Fight Back
HOW TO CHALLENGE SELECTIVE ENFORCEMENT BY YOUR CALIFORNIA HOA OVERVIEW Selective enforcement is one of the most common and infuriating problems homeowners face in California HOAs. It happens when the board applies the rules...
Top 5 HOA Disputes for 2026 in California: AB 130, Insurance, Special Assessments, ADUs, and Recalls
CALIFORNIA HOA FORECAST 2026: THE 5 DISPUTES THAT WILL DOMINATE (AB 130, INSURANCE, SPECIAL ASSESSMENTS, ADUS, RECALLS) OVERVIEW California HOAs are heading into 2026 with unresolved 2024–25 shifts colliding with rising homeowner expectations and limited board...
Can You Sue HOA Board Members in California? What Homeowners Need to Know
YOU CAN HOLD HOA BOARD MEMBERS PERSONALLY LIABLE IN SOME CASES OVERVIEW Few questions come up more often from frustrated homeowners than whether it’s possible to sue individual HOA board members in California. The short answer is that most of the time, California law...
HOA Discrimination, Retaliation, and Harassment in California: Homeowners’ Rights Under Federal and State Law
OVERVIEW California homeowners, including those who live in associations governed by homeowners’ associations (HOAs), are protected against discrimination, retaliation, and harassment by their HOAs under the federal Fair Housing Act (FHA) and California’s Fair...
California HOA Political Signs: What Civil Code 4710 Means for Homeowners
HOA POLITICAL SIGNS IN CALIFORNIA: FREE SPEECH RIGHTS VS. HOA AUTHORITY OVERVIEW Few issues spark more conflict in HOA communities than signs and banners containing political and social expression. A Trump campaign sign, a Pride flag, or a Black Lives Matter poster...
California’s AB 130: Why the $100 Fine Cap Is Already Causing Chaos
AB 130 IN CALIFORNIA: EARLY PREDICTIONS OF HOA CHAOS ARE ALREADY COMING TRUE OVERVIEW When California lawmakers passed AB 130 earlier this year, they sold it as a way to rein in excessive HOA fines. By capping fines at $100 per violation, the Legislature claimed it...
CC&Rs Explained: The Only Parts You Need to Read
READING CC&RS: A CALIFORNIA HOMEOWNER’S GUIDE OVERVIEW For California homeowners living in HOA-governed communities, the Covenants, Conditions, and Restrictions (commonly referred to as the CC&Rs) that govern their HOAs feel impenetrable. They are long, dense,...
Can I Recover My Attorney’s Fees If I Sue My HOA in California?
CAN I RECOVER MY LEGAL FEES IF I SUE MY HOA IN CALIFORNIA? OVERVIEW Under what's called the "American Rule," California's Davis-Stirling Act awards the winning party in most HOA-related lawsuits their reasonable attorney's fees and costs. This means that if you (or...
HOA Recalls in California: The Power to Remove Your HOA Board
CALIFORNIA HOA RECALL: HOW HOMEOWNERS CAN REMOVE THE BOARD OVERVIEW In California, few tools are as decisive, and as underused, as the HOA recall. When a homeowners association board stops following the law, ignores the membership, or simply refuses to act in the...
How to Deal with a Bad HOA Management Company in California: Your Legal Rights and Options
HOW TO DEAL WITH A BAD HOA MANAGEMENT COMPANY IN CALIFORNIA: YOUR LEGAL RIGHTS AND OPTIONS OVERVIEW Even though HOA boards are the only legal authority in an HOA, in a lot of associations in California, it doesn’t quite work that way. Too often, much of the day-to-day...
AB 130’s “Financial Commitment” Loophole: Why It’s a Problem
AB 130’S “FINANCIAL COMMITMENT” PROVISION IS A DISASTER OVERVIEW AB 130 added new language to Civil Code sections 5850, 5855, etc. that lets homeowners avoid a disciplinary hearing altogether by either curing the violation or by showing, at least seven days prior to...
What to Do If Your HOA Delays or Ignores Your ADU Application
WHAT SHOULD YOU DO IF YOUR HOA DELAYS YOUR ADU APPLICATION? OVERVIEW California law gives homeowners broad rights to build Accessory Dwelling Units (“ADUs”), but that doesn’t stop some HOAs from intentionally dragging their feet or putting up roadblocks to delay the...
Can My California HOA Legally Block an ADU?
CAN MY CALIFORNIA HOA STOP ME FROM BUILDING AN ADU ON MY PROPERTY? OVERVIEW As California pushes for more housing density through Accessory Dwelling Units (“ADUs”), many homeowners are hitting an unexpected wall: their HOA. Even though California law now guarantees...
Can a California HOA Deny Your Remodel? What the Law Actually Says About Architectural Approvals
HOA ARCHITECTURAL APPROVALS IN CALIFORNIA: WHAT THE LAW REQUIRES AND HOW TO FIGHT BACK OVERVIEW HOA architectural approvals are one of the most common and abused sources of conflict between California homeowners and their boards. Whether you’re replacing windows,...
HOA Reserve Studies in California: How Boards Manipulate the “Percent Funded” Number
UNDERSTANDING HOA RESERVE STUDIES AND THE “PERCENT FUNDED” NUMBER IN CALIFORNIA OVERVIEW Every HOA in California is legally required to prepare a reserve study every three years. This isn’t a budgeting suggestion or a best practice. It’s a legal obligation under the...
California HOA Restrictions on ADU Construction: What’s Legal and What’s Not
CALIFORNIA HOA RESTRICTIONS ON ADU CONSTRUCTION OVERVIEW Although most of the statutory protections have been in place for years, 2025 continues to reveal how boards resist compliance in subtle but persistent ways. Accessory Dwelling Units (“ADUs”), sometimes referred...
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