PROJECT UPLIFT 2016: BLACK COMMUNITY WISHLIST FOR JOBS & SELF-SUFFICIENCY

New Politics Podcasts with Black Political Buzz on BlogTalkRadio

#ProjectUplift2016

PROJECT UPLIFT 2016: THE BLACK AMERICAN COMMUNITY WISHLIST:

21st Century BLACK American Communities need to offer BLACK Citizens more than just CHURCHES, CHICKEN JOINTS, CLUBS, & LIQUOR Stores.

BLACK Citizens are paying TAXES yet Our Communities often LACK Basic Programs.......Places.......and Resources necessary for everyday Survival.

We Need JOBS......EDUCATION......& SMALL BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES!

Welcome to PROJECT UPLIFT 2016!!

Since the BLACK Community remains the most Disadvantaged Community in America, here are 13 Programs & Places I would I like to see in every 21st Century BLACK American Community prior to the 2014 & 2016 General Elections.

FYI:
I have Currently Observed most of these SAME 13 Programs in WHITE Communities. Including many Low Income WHITE Communities!

These 13 Programs will UPLIFT BLACK American Communities by Encouraging a Mentality & Spirit of SELF-SUFFICIENCY, and by creating EMPLOYMENT Opportunities for BLACK Citizens:

13 PROJECT UPLIFT 2016 PROGRAMS:

*1) ACADEMIC After School Programs with a Focus on reaching HOMELESS Students & Underachieving; At-Risk Students..

There will be Quality Tutoring in these areas:
LITERACY..........MATH.........SCIENCE.........ART........WRITING.......... SOFTWARE CODING.......and FINANCIAL LITERACY.

(SOFTWARE CODING is a very lucrative Career which does not require a College Degree.)

I would also like to see these ACADEMIC After School Programs offer BOYS-ONLY MENTORING Programs with Classes on getting into College.

And................

Offer GIRLS-ONLY MENTORING Programs with Classes on getting into College.


* 2) Community Health Centers with a Focus on PREVENTIVE CARE instead of ABORTION Clinics posing as Community Health Centers.

* 3) Real PARKS and Real Walking Nature Trails for SAFE Exercise Options.

* 4) "OBAMACARE One-Stop Shop Education & Enrollment Centers" with Licensed Health Care Insurance Agents on-site.

In fact these "OBAMACARE One-Stop Shop Education & Enrollment Centers" could also offer Training Classes for Eligible Citizens to become Licensed Health Care Insurance Agents,

and...........Offer Training Classes for Eligible Citizens to become Certified Nursing Assistants.

* 5) Non-Partisan VOTING Centers with a Focus on VOTER REGISTRATION & VOTER EDUCATION.

* 6) SMALL BUSINESS Resource Centers with Classes on GRANT Writing & Cloud Funding,

and...........Affordable SMALL BUSINESS Hubs for New local START-UPS.

* 7) A Farmer's Market with Classes on Urban Farming & Healthy Cooking to Prevent DIABETES & High Blood Pressure.

* At least One NATURAL HAIR CARE Salon with a Focus on Growing & Retaining Healthy, Naturally Long BLACK Hair.

These Salons must also SELL NATURAL HAIR CARE Products.

And........Local Salons in BLACK Communities which offer COSMETOLOGY Training with a Focus on NATURAL HAIR CARE such as the AVEDA Institute.

The AVEDA Institute is #2 after PAUL MITCHELL.

* 9) LEGAL AID Program Centers with a Classes on Eviction.......Illegal Foreclosures.......Harassment from HOAs......Employment Discrimination......Hospital Double-Billing.

I would also like to see these LEGAL AID Program Centers offer Opportunities & Scholarships for Eligible Students who want to Attend LAW SCHOOL.

* 10) EMPLOYMENT Centers with a Focus on helping Unemployed Citizens to become Re-employed and receive JOB Training SKILLS.

* 11) Real LIBRARIES with Up-to-date Technology Labs for Citizens who lack Computers or the Internet in their Residences.

* 12) POLICE Precincts with a Focus on local POLICE forming Partnerships with BLACK American Citizens instead of Fighting against BLACK Citizens.

Eliminate "Stop & Frisk"!

Eliminate "Stand Your Ground!"

Eliminate "Walking while BLACK!"

Eliminate "Driving While BLACK!"

* 13) AFFORDABLE HOUSING…….Affordable Housing = CONSTRUCTION JOBS for Unemployed People!

Affordable Housing also = Community Revitalization!!


Source: Blog Talk Radio

North Carolina HOAs Gone Rogue! Lawmakers Refuse To Act! (Developer Political Donations)

HOA forecloses on family; neighbors lose, attorneys profit

Not all the foreclosures emptying homes across the Carolinas originate from banks and lenders. Increasingly, the institution doing the foreclosing is made up of neighbors who run the homeowners association–known as the HOA.

Consider one family’s story:

Michelle Roberts’ parents helped her and her husband buy their first home in Gaston County in 2003. Even though she and her husband Darin paid the mortgage, her mom and dad signed the note. Their names are on the deed. That means her parents are on the hook now that the home is in foreclosure and the courts have ordered her family to pack up and leave this week.

“We're going to have to move back in with mom and dad for a while,” Michelle said, sitting among boxes in her living room. “We have no choice.”

This is not one more bank foreclosure–one more mortgage gone bad. No, the Roberts are losing their home to their neighbors–their HOA.

“We just wanted them to work with us,” said Michelle. “We didn't neglect paying them on purpose. They neglected to notify us.”

The Mountain View Community Association off of Spencer Mountain Road near Ranlo, North Carolina and its management company, Hawthorne Management of Charlotte, did not send a bill to the Roberts for years.

“Not one word for six years,” said Michelle, “Not one word.”

The HOA lost track of the Roberts lot and two others when the builder transferred the property to their family. Then in May of 2009 the HOA sent Michelle’s parents a statement asking for almost six years worth of dues at once–$945.

“I don’t know how we would pay that, and I don’t think it’s fair,” said Michelle’s husband Darin Roberts.

At first the Roberts say they called a neighbor who served on the board of the HOA.

“She said, ‘Don’t worry about it. We’ll work it out. It’s not that big of a deal,’” said Darin.

That was before the lien notices and threatening letters began arriving from the HOA’s law firm.

“We were blindsided,” said Michelle.

So the Roberts tried repeatedly to work out a payment plan.

“They wanted a $444-a-month payment and refused to accept anything less than that,” said Michelle.

“I had my daughter selling brownies on the weekend,” Darin said. “I borrowed from my sister. I did overtime. I’m a middle class family dude that tries to pay his bills and feed his family.”

The Roberts made payments totaling $888 last May–which sounds like they’d paid off the bulk of their original HOA debt.

“You would think wouldn’t you?” said Michelle. “You would think.”

But no.

By that point, the HOA’s attorneys were involved. And they charged far more than the original debt in fees and court costs to try to collect it all. Court records show the Roberts whole payment went to legal fees–not to the HOA.

In fact, the paralegal working for the law firm e-mailed the Roberts that, “Your account will be charged $45 for every payment plan request” even if the lawyers refused to accept the terms.

“It’s just burying us deeper and deeper,” said Michelle. “Trying to fix the problem is just making it worse. Every time they touch it, every time they pick up the phone, we’re getting billed again.”

The Roberts gave up. The HOA and its law firm foreclosed.

“Now it just seems like the HOA’s can do whatever they want anytime they want,” Darin said.

And that original bill of less than a thousand dollars? T he attorneys added almost $6,000 in court costs and legal fees.

“The people that are benefiting are the attorneys,” said Michelle. “They’re getting five times what the original bill was.”

The people who are not benefit ting from this HOA foreclosure? The neighbors. Because the foreclosure means the HOA–the neighbors–now own the Roberts home.

“I don't know what good that is,” said Michelle. “People can't sell their homes who legitimately want to sell their homes now.”

Foreclosures can drive down property values for the neighbors since would-be buyers look to comparable nearby properties – known as “comps” – to gage the price they should pay. And foreclosed homes often sell at fire-sale prices, dragging down the neighborhood average.

“The HOA will get their $975,” said Michelle. “But they’ll also have an empty house along with the others they’ve done this to.”

The I-Team searched through Gaston County Register of Deeds records and found six more foreclosures in the last year and a half in the same Mountain View neighborhood from the same Hawthorne Management company and the same law firm: Sellers, Hinshaw. (Click here to read an e-mail from Sellers, Hinshaw)

“We try to work with people,” attorney Tim Sellers told the I-Team in an earlier interview.

Sellers refused to speak on camera about Mountain View and the Roberts.

“The vast majority of the ones we deal with if they’re not in compliance we work to get ‘em in compliance,” he said.

Sellers sent the I-Team a five page time line (click here to read) detailing two years of back-and-forth with the Roberts concluding, “Collection action was authorized only when the Association received no response from the owners or after the owners defaulted on the written agreement for installment payments.”

The Roberts say they made a good faith effort to try to pay an old debt during trying times and lost their home in the process.

Sitting on her couch before loading it on the truck, Michelle summed it up: “We’re like every other family. We’re struggling. We’ve had to take three pay cuts in the banking industry just to keep a job. My business was cut in half. My father has a rare and aggressive cancer.”

Michelle’s father, Dennis Hiatt, said he may go bankrupt. Between breaths from an oxygen tank he says: “It may be legal what they’re doing but it’s just not right.”




NASCAR driver loses four year legal fight with HOA


Todd Bodine is accustomed to the sound of winning.

The NASCAR driver has won the sport’s truck series twice, most recently last year. But earlier this month, if you were to pass by the Bodines’ well-kept home in the Harris Village neighborhood of Mooresville, you would have heard the sound of Todd Bodine losing, as he and a crew of helpers tore down his prize pool house and tiki hut board by board and piece by piece, the result of an epic four-year battle with his homeowners association, or HOA.

A select committee of North Carolina lawmakers considering reforms of the HOA statutes heard that 53% of owner-occupied homes in the state are governed by HOA’s. But few of those homeowners sue their HOA and appeal all the way to the state Supreme Court, only to lose and have to tear down a structure, plus pay opposing attorneys’ fees and fines in the hundreds of thousands of dollars. The Bodines did.

“I think I’ve been done wrong,” Bodine said, sitting in shorts by his pool, the remnants of his poolside bar covered with a tarp. “And it’s incredible how unjust it is.”

The disagreement started in July of 2007 when the HOA board president who the Bodines had entertained over beers as they built their pool abruptly told them the pool house was not approved. “The president never said ‘it's OK for you to start building,’” said Keith Black, the Greensboro attorney who represented the Harris Village HOA.

Todd Bodine insists the HOA president had told him verbally to go ahead and build. “Everything was always, fine, OK, looks good,” said Bodine.

The issue came to a head at an emergency meeting in the Bodines’ driveway. Bodine was upset. “It was on then. I got in his face,” Bodine said. He and his wife went inside their home while the board members talked things over. The board members signed a “Request for Architectural Approval” checked “approved” pending the approval of the Town of Mooresville Codes Department, which the Bodines quickly secured.

But the dispute continued. The board’s attorney contends that the document was conditional on the Bodines submitting final drawings with dimensions and that the board never realized how large the structure would be. The HOA had issued interpretations of the covenants limiting the size of “accessory buildings” including tool sheds and utility buildings to 320 square feet. But the document was never recorded as part of the covenants.”They ignored the phone calls, the e-mail and built the thing,” said Black.

So when the Bodines returned home after several weeks on the road racing, they faced threatening letters and the prospect of fines from the HOA. “They were fining us $100 a day which is absurd,” said Bodine. The Bodines filed suit.

Bodine insists the HOA targeted him, knowing he could afford the fines. “I was gouged pretty hard because of who I am,” Bodine said. “I believe a lot of it was because of my celebrity as a NASCAR driver.”

But Black, the HOA’s attorney, says the lawsuit had nothing to do with Bodine’s status, further saying the HOA tried to settle. “They said, ‘No. We're not gonna do it. You're wrong. Kiss our rear end. We'll see you in court,’” said Black.

If it’s true that you can’t fight city hall, Todd and Janet Bodine found you really can’t fight the HOA. They lost at every level. It started when the trial judge gave a directed verdict to the HOA so the jurors who sat through days of testimony never even got to deliberate. “We were all dumbfounded,” said Bodine. Then the Bodines lost on appeal. And finally the state Supreme Court refused to even hear the case.

In the whole four years no one said the Bodines’ pool house hurt Harris Village. “Hell it was nice looking,” said Black. “That wasn't the issue. Nobody said it's ugly and you have to take it down.”

Instead the HOA stood on principle and said if they let the Bodines build a pool house without the permission of the HOA board – then what next? “They open the door for anybody and everybody else to say, ‘Well I want to paint my house purple and have pink toilet seats all over the front yard,’” said Black.

The Bodines say other Harris Village homeowners have broken the architectural guidelines of the HOA, so they believe the fight got personal. “I think it was a small group of people out for vengeance,” said Bodine. “They saw their cash cow and they were going for it.”

So now the Bodines are on the hook for their own attorney’s fees, the HOA’s attorneys’ fees and almost $40,000 in accrued fines. The HOA put a lien on their home for the unpaid fines. Bodine was fed up. “I told ‘em, ‘Take it. Take the house,” he said.

Having exhausted their appeals in the courts, the Bodines would like the state legislature to consider reigning in the powers of HOA’s, a group of almost 18,000 neighborhood governments in North Carolina run by neighbors. “A lot of time their power is just way too strong,” said Bodine.

Black and other attorneys representing the HOA’s say that neighbors have legal remedies built into the law and if they don’t like the way the HOA is run they can always throw out the board by electing someone else. “Anytime somebody loses all of a sudden they want it to be changed,” said Black.

But the Bodines are hardly the only homeowners to run afoul of a group of neighbors bent on tearing down their property. And the state legislature is considering several bills to reform HOA’s. None of them will help the Bodines who this month tore their pool house to the ground.


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Sources: McClatchy Newspapers, WCNC, Google Maps

Charlotte Trumps Newark In Crime, Murder Rate Up

Its Official folks!

Charlotte, N.C. is now the new "Dirty South".

Charlotte city officials are trying to pretend Crime is decreasing, however area residents can't be fooled.

We know that Crime within the Charlotte-Mecklenburg region is actually getting worse!

Now here's some positive news from Urban America:

Thanks to Bold, Outstanding Leadership and a United Community effort (all ethnic & socio-economic groups working together) Newark, NJ's Murder rate is down.

In fact Newark was completely Murder-Free (March 2010) for the first time in 44 years!

Kudos to Mayor Corey Booker!

On the other hand Charlotte, NC’s Crime and Murder rates continues to rise.

Let’s see Newark is located in the heavily Diverse yet densely populated Northeastern United States, while Charlotte rests in the South with a population of less than 1 million people and is much less Diverse.

Could it be Mayor Booker actually knows what he's doing and actually cares about ALL his Constituents not just Wealthy, Caucasian citizens?

Could it be Mayor Booker, his Chief of Police and the County D.A.'s Office all realize it takes more than just locking up all Blacks & Hispanics to help resolve a citywide Crime crisis?

Or....

Could it be due to Mayor Booker investing useful, Academic type resources into the lives of his city's Minority Youth?

For example: After School programs, College Prep programs, Mentors, Summer Camps, Summer Jobs, etc.,

Perhaps all three efforts have contributed to Newark's recent dramatic drop in Crime.

Take a hint Charlotte!

Obviously our local "Leaders" don't know what the heck they are doing or they may need to just dump their Pride and communicate more with Mayors like Corey Booker for advice on how to fix Charlotte-Mecklenburg's growing Crime problem.

Hey I’m just saying, please don't hate the messenger.

Instead of becoming offended (Charlotte's local "leaders") over the contents of this revealing post, why not channel those energies into lowering the Crime rate in a Constructive, Unified manner?

Check out the videos, articles and survey results below than reach your own conclusions about Charlotte's Crime statistics.





Newark, NJ Records First Homicide-Free Month In More Than 40 Years


For the first time in more than 40 years, an entire calendar month has come and gone without a homicide in the state’s largest city.

It's been 32 days since a homicide took place in Newark, marking the first time there has been a slay-free calendar month in the city since 1966.

Police Director Garry McCarthy said he hopes to best a 43-day period from March to April of 2008, the longest span of time without a slaying in the city since 1961. Ten homicides have occurred in Newark since Jan. 1, and none have taken place in the South Ward, long believed to be Newark's most dangerous section.

The first-quarter homicide total is the same as last year's, and the second-lowest in Newark since 1941. There were only eight reported shootings in Newark in March, and aggravated assaults, robberies, carjackings and other major crime rates are all down for the first-quarter of 2010 compared to their 2009 totals.

The statistical quarter, which spans the first thirteen weeks of the year, officially ended on March 28th.





Forbes.com Ranks Charlotte, N.C. 14th Most Dangerous City


(Charlotte-Gastonia-Concord, N.C.-S.C. metropolitan statistical area)

Population: 1,635,133

Violent Crimes per 100,000: 721

To determine our list, we used violent crime statistics from the FBI's latest uniform crime report, issued in 2008.

The violent crime category is composed of four offenses: murder and non-negligent manslaughter, forcible rape, robbery and aggravated assault.

We evaluated U.S. Metropolitan statistical areas--geographic entities defined by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget for use by Federal agencies in collecting, tabulating and publishing federal statistics--with more than 500,000 residents.






Survey Reveals Charlotte's Crime Problem Is Not Improving


Respondents to a survey organized by a Charlotte community organization disagree with Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police statistics showing a dropping crime rate in the city.

About 80 percent of the approximately 500 people who participated in the survey said the crime problem in Charlotte is either unchanged or has gotten worse over the past two years.

The study was conducted in recent weeks by Neighbors For A Safer Charlotte, a grassroots organization founded in April 2008.

Their study results contrast with a steady stream of monthly crime statistics from Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police, showing -- for the most part -- that the crime rate has been dropping over the past 12 to 18 months. Earlier this week, CMPD statistics through March showed the overall crime rate is down 15 percent since the same time a year ago.

The survey results show that if CMPD statistics are correct, the perception among residents is that crime remains a big problem.

Respondents did not fall into the "lock-them-up-and-throw-away-the-key" category, as most of them said they support more mental health and substance abuse programs -- and said they believe only violent offenders should be put in jail.

Here are results from some of the organization's questions:

How much of a problem do you feel crime is in the Charlotte area?

75% rated it "serious" or "very serious"

In the past two years, has crime in Charlotte increased, stayed the same, or decreased?

42% said it is worse. Another 38% said it has remained the same.

Do you own a gun for protection?

31% said they owned a gun. Another 18 percent said they are considering buying one.

Which factors tend to increase the crime problem locally?

91% said gang and drug activity.

83% said the absence of a responsible parent or role model tends to increase crime activity among juveniles.

75% said lenient sentencing equals more crime.

50% said racial tensions were not likely to contribute to crime.

Not rated as significant factors were unemployment and poverty, and the lack of a police presence.

Have the City of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County done enough to deal with the crime problem?

79% said more needs to be done.

Are the courts too lenient or too tough?

78% said they are too lenient.

Do you plan to vote in the District Attorney race in November?

91% said they plan to vote in that contest.

What would help solve the crime problem?

96% said tougher sentencing.

88% said more programs for juveniles outside regular school hours.

85% said more mental health and substance abuse programs.

70% said only violent offenders should be incarcerated.


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Sources: Charmeck.org, Forbes.com, Fox News, McClatchy Newspapers, Neighbors For a Safer Charlotte, NJ.com, Rachel Maddow Show, The Grio, USA Today, WCNC, Facebook, Youtube, Google Maps

Pres. Obama Regulation Of All Homeowner Associations & Developers Is A Must! Please Keep Your Promise

A Letter To President Obama To Please Protect America's Homeowners

January 20, 2009

Please Honor Your Promises to Us

By American Homeowners Resource Center

Today, you took the oath of office as President of the United States, and swore to uphold its Constitution.

We, the Homeowners of America, endorsed and voted for you in overwhelming numbers because you promised to take care of the people, you promised to end the war, you promised to make the U.S. a country of principle in foreign affairs, and you promised that it would not be politics as usual in Washington.

We recognize that being a candidate for the presidency and being President are not the same thing. We saw that change in you on election night on November 4, 2008. You were no longer asking us to give you the power. You now had the power. It was a sobering moment for you and us.

Over the past 10 weeks since your election, we have seen you change from being the fiery speaker, to the circumspect politician who appointed his cabinet. Most of the appointees were from the politics-as-usual school. We have seen you back down from your campaign pledge to end the tax-breaks for the rich because you did not want to ruffle the feathers of the Republicans. Apparently, that means more to you than the plight of millions of Americans who are without jobs and homes.

We have heard you say that George Bush is a good man. Yet he has caused the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people in Iraq, lost over 4000 U.S. troops,and produced tens of thousands of cripples among U.S. service personnel. How can that be a good man? You are now committing the nation to a deeper war in Afghanistan. Will that be another Vietnam? How many more billions will we pay on wars that - in your words - are "dumb"?

Hundreds of millions are being spent on your inauguration. If you were hungry and homeless and without health insurance, what would you think about that?

The hopes which you raised in your campaign can evaporate as quickly. When your nominess for Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, stated that your administration would marry principle with pragmatism, it sent a warning shot across the bow of many homeowners. Is every principle subject to being bent to the whims of pragmatism? Does that mean that you would sometimes torture? There are some principles that are above pragmatism. We hope that you remember this.

We must all look to the future, but looking to the past can provide a lot of insight for the future. He who does not know history, is condemned to relive its mistakes. Corruption is rampant among lawyers and judges in this country. Will you have the Justice Department crack down on that? Corruption is rampant in every nook and cranny of Wall Street and corporate America. Will you have the Justice Department crack down on that? If we only look to the future, we are prisoners of the past.

We also hope that you will help the millions of homeowners who are struggling with falling home prices and trying to pay their mortgages in the midst of unemployment and recession. Giving money to banks has clearly not worked. Why not try helping homeowners? They are the ones who are drowning.

The homeowners of America, especially the 55 milliion who live in homeowner associations, have suffered many abuses in preceding years.They have been targets of foresclosure scams by lawyers, aided by judges who do not practice justice and politicians who live off the lawyers' largesse.

We recognize that you face daunting challenges ahead, and we wish you well. We hope that you will honor your pledges in your campaign, so that more pain is not inflicted on the people of America.


Homeowner Associations start foreclosures to collect dues

IRVING, Texas — Thousands of Americans who have generally kept up with their mortgages are still in danger of losing their homes because they made a fateful trade-off in this shaky economy: They let their homeowner association dues slide.

Many homeowners are learning to their surprise that condo and neighborhood associations that oversee security patrols, mow lawns, plant flowers and clean the community swimming pool might have the right to foreclose when dues aren't paid. That right is often written into the purchase agreement signed by the homeowner.

"We have compassion for those folks," says Andrew Schlegel, executive vice president for Merit Property Management, which manages more than 140,000 California homes in community associations. "At the same time, we feel for the rest of the homeowners who are paying their dues."

Most people end up saving their homes. HOA boards often work with down-on-their-luck neighbors to come up with some sort of compromise. That's what happened with Lacey Pilat, who lost her job catering lavish corporate parties and nearly lost her two-story house in this Dallas suburb.

The management company for the Beacon Hill homeowner association sent Pilat a foreclosure notice in April after several attempts to collect her $450 annual dues, which paid for the mowing of front lawns. The amount she owed snowballed to $1,800 after penalties and fees. The company eventually agreed to let Pilat and her husband, Steve, pay the debt over time.

Gauging the number of foreclosures nationwide by HOAs is difficult. But in Texas, foreclosure attempts initiated by HOAs in 19 counties are up 30% from two years ago, according to Dallas-based Foreclosure Listing Services. In the San Antonio area alone, foreclosure actions by HOAs jumped to 170 in April from 21 in April 2008, RexReport.com says.

In Florida, attorney Bob Tankel, who represents hundreds of homeowner and condo associations, says he has increased his staff from three to 16 in the past 18 months to handle a mounting caseload of 3,500 open collections. About one-fifth of those cases have reached foreclosure, he says.

In California, Schlegel says more than 6% of the homes that his company manages are in some stage of delinquency on membership dues, up from around 1% in previous years.

More than 59 million people live in more than 300,000 association-governed communities nationwide, according to the Community Associations Institute, the nation's largest group for homeowners and condo boards.

If the house is foreclosed on, it is sold, and the HOA takes what it is owed from the proceeds. Proceeds also go to the bank to pay off the mortgage.



Homeowner Associations forcing homeowners into Foreclosures

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Homeowners associations' reserve the right by law to forcible foreclose on property if residents fall behind on their dues.

Associations in Texas, Florida and California are beginning to exercise the foreclosures. Not one case of a homeowners' association forced foreclosure is on-record in Nashville.

No homeowner NewsChannel5 spoke with was aware of the loophole.

"First of all, that's news to me," said Bellevue homeowner Rob Crosby. "It's very unfair - if it's true that homeowners' associations can foreclose on someone being late, or getting behind on monthly, regime fees. That's crazy."

Forcible foreclosure is a last resort, and Nashville attorney Lee Corbett called the act an extreme solution.

"It's extremely unusual," said Corbett. "No matter how far behind they are, the amount is relatively small compared to the value of the property the homeowner owns."

Corbett said there are other ways an association can recover its dues by filing a lawsuit.

Three things are necessary for a property management company to force foreclosure: a written policy, approval from the association's board of directors and the pursuit must be fiscally worthy of the association's efforts.

The sale of the property, in other words, should allow the property management to recoup its past-due fees plus the money spent on such a large endeavor.

59 million Americans are said to be living in neighborhoods governed by some type of association.


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Sources: Stop HOA Foreclosures, American Homeowners Resource Centers, Whitehouse.gov, USA Today, Newschannel.15, Flickr , Google Maps