Changing gears...NJ to SC (Florence, Myrtle Beach: HOA fees, new house, buyers)
Myrtle Beach - Conway areaHorry County
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I was totally fine living amongst the Northerners...
There's a solution to that, but my Southern manners prevent me from suggesting it.
Quote:
Someone please explain this phenomenon to me....
It's a Southern thang... It's known as enjoying life, not sweatin' the details, not losing sleep over how others live their lives. I think it's called personal freedom, which is outlawed under most HOA bylaws.
Location: Lakewood NJ/Murrells Inlet SC/ N. Naples FL/Swainton NJ
4,031 posts, read 6,553,134 times
Reputation: 3536
When I said that most of our neighbors were from the Northeast and therefore we have not had to adjust to the SC style of living much, I did not mean that this was a good thing or something we were looking for. It just seems that the area we are in attracts people from the Northeast. Like us.
In our sections the townhomes are connected in 5 units, A through E. We are from NJ. To our right is an older couple from West SC who usually only stay on the weekends. Next a couple from PA. Next NJ. E unit is a women from Florida. The only couple I am sure of in the next 5 to the right of us are from NJ. To our left (E to A), LA, VA, NY, not sure (new) and Maryland. Next OH, NY, PA and not sure...... An interesting collection IMHO.
There's a solution to that, but my Southern manners prevent me from suggesting it.
It's a Southern thang... It's known as enjoying life, not sweatin' the details, not losing sleep over how others live their lives. I think it's called personal freedom, which is outlawed under most HOA bylaws.
PD, so you're saying...it's ok to be a slob if you're from the South? Your neighbors be damned? No worries that all the junk you aquire and accumulate all over your backyard that other people can easily see, can and do, affect homes selling nearby?
So because you're a Southerner you don't have to be clean? You can just wallow in filth? Sorry, but I've seen some absolutely gorgeous Southern homes here, and I can't imagine they are all owned by Northerners. I don't care if you're a pig in your own house as long as the roaches, rodents, and bugs don't encroach my property due to your lifestyle. However, if I have to live next to Samford and Sons, I don't have to be happy with that!
I guess that means I can have 20 beagles and let them howl all night long, too. Oh, and not pick up their poop, cause gee whiz, it's my personal freedom to let them stink up my backyard, right?!
PD, I think you're normally right on stuff, but on this? No way! When your personal freedom makes people around you want to build The Great Wall, that's not a good thing!
When your personal freedom makes people around you want to build The Great Wall, that's not a good thing!
Was it a Southerner that said "one man's junk is another man's treasure"?
We can argue personal freedom all night long and never get anywhere. Certainly there are limits, but IMO, those limits cannot be defined by what each individual finds acceptable or unacceptable. You chose the term "slob". I'm sure that's your perception, but they may perceive you as a little uptight, nitpicking details that don't matter to them.
One of the kids in our neighborhood has a little gas-powered scooter. Sounds like a leaf blower on steroids. It annoys the %*&# out of me anytime I'm trying to waste time in the hammock. Does my personal desire for peace and quiet override his personal freedom to ride the scooter? Our HOA president (from NJ) freaks out everytime he sees a boat in somebody's driveway. Where I grew up, that boat is a badge of honor, because the dude worked hard to be able to afford it. Sorry, but the obsession with no boats visible will never make sense to me. Same thing with cars parked in the yard. What's the big deal, as long as it's my yard?
Quote:
I guess that means I can have 20 beagles and let them howl all night long, too. Oh, and not pick up their poop, cause gee whiz, it's my personal freedom to let them stink up my backyard, right?!
Yep, as long as your county does not have ordinances against it, that's your right. I guess your HOA could have rules prohibiting that, but I've found HOA's to be about as useful as mammary glands on a boar hog. You're right, you don't have to be happy about it, but we usually have to learn to live with it.
Personally, I HATE HOA's with a fiery passion, though every Northerner Ive ever met seems to adore them.
I dont like little neat cookie cutter houses, nor do I like the idea of someone telling me what I can and cant do with the house/yard *I* bought. You dont like my pink flamingo's in the front yard? Tough nuggets.
And heaven forbid people park their cars on their own property... that just wouldnt do at all...
-Gag-
Mind your own business.
Personally, I HATE HOA's with a fiery passion, though every Northerner Ive ever met seems to adore them.
I dont like little neat cookie cutter houses, nor do I like the idea of someone telling me what I can and cant do with the house/yard *I* bought. You dont like my pink flamingo's in the front yard? Tough nuggets.
And heaven forbid people park their cars on their own property... that just wouldnt do at all...
-Gag-
Mind your own business.
How about if said car was parked on the lawn next to your bedroom window? Would you still think it's none of your business? Has it encroached on YOUR privacy now?
Yes, I know, some of us Northerners tend to like neatness and order. I apologize. Pink flamingo's are cool. No problem with them here!
Funny thing is, I just found out this evening that there's a multitude of people that have complained about the very same thing.
Our HOA president (from NJ) freaks out everytime he sees a boat in somebody's driveway. Where I grew up, that boat is a badge of honor, because the dude worked hard to be able to afford it. Sorry, but the obsession with no boats visible will never make sense to me. Same thing with cars parked in the yard. What's the big deal, as long as it's my yard?
Yep, as long as your county does not have ordinances against it, that's your right. I guess your HOA could have rules prohibiting that, but I've found HOA's to be about as useful as mammary glands on a boar hog. You're right, you don't have to be happy about it, but we usually have to learn to live with it.
Well, PD, I agree w/you on the boats. They don't bother me at all. For some reason, cars do. I guess it's where and how I grew up. Most places don't let you have cars off the driveway because of asthetics. I can't blame the property managers for wanting a clean and neat place. After all, some people take pride in their homes, inside and out. When I see cars sitting elsewhere, I think ghetto...and I don't associate this area with ghetto....
Town homes and HOA that tell ya what ya can park on your own land?
Why would anyone ever want to live in a townhome?
You move from the north to live in a townhome with an association to tell ya what kind of grass to plant? Or what you are allowed to park in front of your little townhome?
LOL!
How can people live like that?
A person's home is their castle, period. That is all there is to it.
Buy a big piece of land, put alot of trees out front so your neighbors don't bother you and you don't bother them and enjoy life.
Get that grill all fired up, oh, I guess you may not be able to have one with a HOA, depends....
LOL. Life is short, enjoy and leave your neighbors alone.
That's South Carolina, and I love it!!!!
How about if said car was parked on the lawn next to your bedroom window? Would you still think it's none of your business? Has it encroached on YOUR privacy now?
Yes, I know, some of us Northerners tend to like neatness and order. I apologize. Pink flamingo's are cool. No problem with them here!
Funny thing is, I just found out this evening that there's a multitude of people that have complained about the very same thing.
Pfft...I wouldnt choose a house THAT close to my neighbor in the first place, nor one that didnt have a fenced in yard from the get-go. Thats solution one.
Solution two is to catch my neighbor in the yard, and say something along the lines of "Joe, Im sorry to bother you, but I wonder if you might do me a favor? Would you mind parking your truck somewhere else besides near that fence? You're awful close to my window and Ive been working some oddball hours lately, and when you leave in the morning its been wakin me up. If you could do that for me I sure would 'preciate it."
^This is likely to get you father than:
*Knock knock knock* (Neighbor opens the door to a person they've barely ever spoken to)
Can I help you?
Yeah, Im your next door neighbor. Can you move those cars of yours? They're right in front of my bedroom window.
Solution three is to plant some privacy bushes.
You like neatness and order, most of us like to do what we please. There are ways to get things done without having some stupid committee telling you what to do and where to put things. Things such as making friends with your neighbor to begin with so if something comes up, you can talk to them about it without coming across as rude or pushy. None of this crap of barely speaking unless something's wrong.
Thats the other thing about those cookie cutter neighborhoods. The houses are too close together.
Truth be told, you're talking about you having Southern neighbors (Watch out, Im about to say something you wont like). It may just be you being a Yankee that has something to do with your neighbors not responding to your requests.....You dont have to ID yourselves openly either. They can hear it in your voice, and often in your mannerisms.
Not everybody's that way, but you might have stumbled across some that are.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
that just wouldnt do at all... 
