It only cost one tree for this man to destroy his entire online presence—personal and professionally.

Imagine buying a home that you think is HOA-free until the lazy former board members decided to resurrect the organization and now, you have to be punished because of it. One would think this timeline is proof that this kind of thing should not be allowed, and yet, it's clearly happening to this Redditor . This guy spent half a million dollars on a new home for his family and was surprised at first to learn that there was no HOA. He thought it was too good to be true, and it turned out that he…

HOAs (Homeowners Associations) are a uniquely frustrating part of American life. They’re supposed to maintain order in the neighborhood, but sometimes, they feel more like power-hungry authorities than helpful organizations. From dictating the exact shade of paint you can use on your front door (is it really that serious?) to charging absurd fees for basic community upkeep, they’re notorious for overstepping boundaries. And don’t even get us started on the ridiculous fines. $50 for leaving...

When dealing with landlords, make sure you get everything in writing!

Bah-humbug! This HOA member is getting coal in her stocking after spending an inordinate amount of time bothering someone who isn't even in her HOA. Up next, have a laugh at some of these bakery mistakes and messed-up cakes, like one person who shared what happened when “the bakery department tossed seven different types of unproofed dough into the composting bin overnight.”

Sounds like a power-hungry money grab.

We all answer to a higher power, but the more that we can pretend we don't and have some control and agency over our own lives, the happier we tend to be. Whether it's the plain old government authority boss, coach, parents, or that pesky HOA having or at least feeling like you have some control over your own life, the better you're going to feel about it.

HOAs can be a real pain, especially when you're not even part of them, and they're STILL hounding you. That's what happened to one homeowner who kept getting complaints from a neighboring HOA that he didn't even belong to. The HOA kept pestering him to trim back his tree, but he refused. So, in true HOA fashion, they took matters into their own hands and came over without permission to cut back the limbs. But instead of just taking it, this guy decided to stick it to the HOA in the best way pos…

Ew, no one wants to go swimming in a green pool . It happens to every pool owner at some point: you go a few days without adding chlorine, and one morning you awaken to a pool full of bright green algae. The good news is that it's often an easy fix: you just need to shock the pool with some chlorine, or find a pool maintenance person to do it for you. But this person, u/Otherwise_Hunt7296, realized that their green pool problem might take a bit longer to solve than they'd planned. It's all due…

"Every once in a while, I move the hoop to the center of my driveway, just before the President of the HOA gets home from work. . ."

"This ended up with another lawsuit against the HOA president personally by the original homeowners, who also filed to dissolve the HOA completely."

Shoutout to the HOA that thinks kids playing with chalk is vandalism

Why are HOAs so fixated on house color? Let people live!

When you snooze, you lose, HOA.

When the HOA goes low, you go lower.

When you're facing up against power and authority, it's easy to feel helpless and like you don't have any options, feeling like the only thing you can do is try to mitigate the fallout they're causing by trying to keep peace with them. The thing is, they're counting on you thinking and feeling that way; a lot of times, petty authority and controlling behavior rely completely and wholly upon silence. It's difficult to do, but if you ask around enough, you're likely to find there are others with…