Should We Laugh or Cry? Comedian John Oliver Skewers Homeowner Associations

We all remember John Oliver: he was the comedian sidekick of Jon Stewart on The Daily Show.

Now he’s on HBO skewering American culture, politics, and – this week – homeowner associations. 

The video isn’t a quick skit like he used to do for Jon Stewart.  Instead, for 25 minutes he takes aim at the unchecked power of associations across the nation that

• devise irrational rules for homeowners to obey
• spy on homeowners to find out who’s broken the rules
• levy outrageous fines and collection costs for breaking the rules – for example, a $1000 fine for “speeding” on association streets – and then the ultimate punishment:
• foreclosing on someone’s home and throwing them out the front door, because they can’t pay fines and assessments.

The video isn’t sensationalized.  Throughout, John Oliver uses facts, data, homeowner testimony, and news stories from respected sources across the country to lay out the misery that associations and their property managers –like Associa — inflict on ordinary people who only want peace, quiet, and a home where they can rest.
  
We urge you to forward this email and John Oliver’s video to everyone on your list – and to the lawmakers who speak for you in Sacramento and in Washington.  Lawmakers are the ones who permit homeowner association abuses to flourish. (Not sure who your lawmakers are?  Go here to find your  Sacramento lawmakers https://findyourrep.legislature.ca.gov/  and go here to find who speaks for you in Congress https://www.congress.gov/members/find-your-member

Here’s the video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qrizmAo17Os