191–200 of 275 posts
Not if the SF Board of Supervisors has anything to say about it. They’ve actively blocked the transformation of parking lots into dense house as recently as this year. SF is anti housing somehow wrapped in a veneer of progressivism.
Thinking about codes and permits, I think the idea of self-reinforcing change is interesting here. As more people rent or frequently buy/sell, it makes more and more sense to have strict safety codes and permitting rules because the people building and making money off the structure don't bear the safety risks of bad construction. But as this raises costs and places barriers, it makes renting more common, etc.
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Unsure is the emphasis on "freely" is sarcasm but people absolutely don't have freedom when it comes to accepting HOA terms. If the house you can get has a shitty HOA then you're stuck with it. It took us dozens of offers (all well over asking price) before we finally had one that got through and there's no way we'd be able to be picky about HOA.
You are conflating "free choice" with options that perfectly align with your preferences. I made no such claim. You are absolutely free to not buy a house. And, I promise you, you can find a home to purchase that is non-HOA. It just might not be in the area that meets all of your other preferences. But this is your choice. This is not evidence of a lack of freedom. You are not coerced into buying any house.
> Growing vegetables on what should be a lawn is verboten in many locations, if not by the government than by private association bylaws. I'm aware that some HOAs limit (sometimes to what seems like an extreme) what can be done with the yard and lawn, but I wasn't aware of any governments that ban growing vegetables. Is that more common in water-restricted municipalities? (I live in midwestern US, where backyard gard…
I remember this topic being a big news item several years ago: Dear Modern Farmer: Can I Legally Grow Food in My Front Yard? https://modernfarmer.com/2013/06/dear-modern-farmer-can-i-le... oak park hates veggies- trying to make sense of oak park's war on vegetables: https://oakparkhatesveggies.wordpress.com/about/ Homeowners Across the Country Face Citations for Illegal Gardening: https://www.motherearthnews.com/orga…
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I really don’t se why this is a thing for front yards either. Growing vegetables are just as pretty as a lawn, and even if you don’t think so, surely productive use of the land ought to take priority. I find it so strange that such restrictions only seem to exist in the US, where there is normally so much emphasis on individual freedom.
There seem to be a lot of people who like the idea of willfully entering an HOA agreement that limits freedoms that they wouldn’t want their neighbors exercising. I can see both sides but it’s not really for me.
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I've often wondered how much overlap there is on people who live in an HOA and people who are opposed to government regulation. I realize government regulation isn't quite the same as HOA regulations, but it's amusing to me how extreme some HOAs are (grass a certain length, no service vehicles, etc) and how the people that live in them are often politically conservative.
Why is that amusing? Government vs private is the distinction. You willfully associate with an HOA. If you don’t like the HOA you buy a house a mile away.
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There seem to be a lot of people who like the idea of willfully entering an HOA agreement that limits freedoms that they wouldn’t want their neighbors exercising. I can see both sides but it’s not really for me.
There is something to be said for being able to restrict negative activities. Someone piling up junk on their front yard for example. I own in a Strata title apartment building which comes with a lot of very similar restrictions but its all pretty reasonable imo. You are free to paint the inside of your apartment however you want but painting the balcony or the hallway side of your front door is not allowed as it com…
Not necessarily true. Some HOAs will prohibit you from building the shed in the first place and some even go so far as to regulate the contents of your garage.
> Growing vegetables on what should be a lawn is verboten in many locations, if not by the government than by private association bylaws. I'm aware that some HOAs limit (sometimes to what seems like an extreme) what can be done with the yard and lawn, but I wasn't aware of any governments that ban growing vegetables. Is that more common in water-restricted municipalities? (I live in midwestern US, where backyard gard…
Where I live, watering outdoor plants is only allowed 3 days a week, and only before 9AM or after 6PM on those three days. That doesnt mean growing vegetables is specifically illegal, but it does mean starting seedlings requires breaking the law during the warmer months.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
There seem to be a lot of people who like the idea of willfully entering an HOA agreement that limits freedoms that they wouldn’t want their neighbors exercising. I can see both sides but it’s not really for me.
There is something to be said for being able to restrict negative activities. Someone piling up junk on their front yard for example. I own in a Strata title apartment building which comes with a lot of very similar restrictions but its all pretty reasonable imo. You are free to paint the inside of your apartment however you want but painting the balcony or the hallway side of your front door is not allowed as it com…
When you can afford Air Conditioning, or have too many babies you build under.
So our pattern is build high first, fill in later. The one here is "build basement first, digging under the ground with a house on it, is a pain"
(also raised because termites: gumtree hard stumps treated with CCA can survive them, siding and framing wood less so. Modern build tends to be either a slab of concrete and single storey, or a mcMansion, or units)