"Homeowner's Association" Basically what happens is some dude's wife gets elected to drive around snooping at everyone's property, noting "violations." These "violations" can range from grass too tall, neglecting the paint or siding on your house, building a shed in your backyard, owning a boat and keeping it in your driveway... the list goes on and on. In order to move into a particular neighborhood that has an HOA, you have to sign and agree to this bullshit. Or don't move there. Those people are super serious about their HOA rules. Because you signed the HOA, if you violate and don't fix or pay fees... you lose your house. It's in the agreement. Oh, there was a $500 annual fee for my parent's HOA agreement. Total scam.