Ah, the joy of car ownership...

[cfabe]

Mike, in my inintial post I didn' realize that you lived in a condo or townhouse without a garage, so I was thinking that their rules banned you from making the repair inside your garage, I was surprised at that. Didn't mean to start a HOA bashing thread. Like most on here, I'd never buy a home under HOA control, but I recognize their purpose and the right of people to start them up.

[K Frame]

"What caused the seizure"

Age. The car's 8, and spent its first 4 years in Massachusetts. All that road salt was probably one of the major culprits.

[Brad Johnson]

This is why I ride a motorcycle. If something breaks I just pop the earplugs in (to muffle the screaming of my outraged wife) and wheel it into the living room. Cats like valve shims and fasteners though which can be a pain. Tupperware is useful in this regard.

Tupperware? Boy you must be rolling in dough. Us "peasants" have to make do with the cheap close-out Rubbermaid knock-offs from the dollar store.

Brad

[charby]

Mike

I deal with siezed calipers from time to time, salt is bad here on the roads during Iowa winters too. The good thing about winter is the snow and ice fills in the potholes. I drive older cars also, mostly because I am a cheap ass and don't want to make a large carpayment each month.

Charby

[Paddy]

Mike, I just want to know that you're back at work today.  I'm planning on collecting social security benefits in a few short years, and want everybody working and paying into the system.

Thanks.

[SteveS]

So yeah, I stand behind what I said.  Given an option to live there or not, I'd choose the latter and tell an HOA to go suck eggs (I'd actually use more colorful language, but this is a family forum). I don't want to be that frog in a pot of rapidly warming water. It's no different than when I left the People's Republik of Kalifornia when they wanted me to register a good chunk of my gun collection with the state.  I haven't lost a wink of sleep over that decision.

It is different in that a HOA is essentially a group of citizens binding themselves through a contract to abide by certain rules.  In the case of CA, it is the state imposing its will.  You can opt out of a HOA, by not living there in the first place, but not the state (short of moving to another state).

I live in an HOA and don't always like it, but I can't really complain because the rules were in place when I moved there.

[Guest]

(OT: Steve, just realized the other day I still have your coolers. Let me know when/where I can get them back to you. Thank you for the use. You missed the caribou jambalya but we were thinking of you!)

You may now resume your regularly scheduled HOA bashing thread. Sorry to disturb you.

[Kharn]

ahh, good old HOAs.
I moved into a 40yo neighborhood without one for that reason.

And, I just changed my water pump in my driveway yesterday.

Kharn

[mtnbkr]

ahh, good old HOAs.
And, I just changed my water pump in my driveway yesterday.
Kharn

Had Mike's home been equiped with a driveway, he could've done these things himself at his own home.  Because he has to use community parking, he can't.

My HOA has similar covenants, but I have a driveway and a garage, so they don't really apply to me.  They're for the folks, like Mike, who have only have community parking.

Chris