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Respected Contributor
Posts: 2,632
Registered: ‎04-03-2010

I live in a relatively small townhome community and of course we are governed by an HOA.  It is managed administratively by a professional HOA Real Estate Company but we do have an HOA Board here in the community.

 

It was arranged that all our homes would be powerwashed thru out the community.  After the homes were powerwashed, our sidewalks and driveways would thus be powerwashed as well.  As the concrete walks and driveways required a different chemical mixture for the cleaning, all the homes were to be washed first.

 

So the washers show up at my home as I see them hooking up their hoses to my outdoor water spigot.  I was surprised because they were earlier than xpected (by 2 days) and I asked them if they were ready to begin their work.  They said they were ahead of schedule and my building was the last to be done.  So I made sure my windows were closed and went back inside.  They proceeded to wash my neighbor's home using my water supply.  Problem - they NEVER WASHED my home. 

 

The next thing I know I see the hoses were disconnected out back and they were now in the front of my home spraying the mixture on my driveway.  The next morning my driveway looked like a patchwork quilt - all dark and charcoal like in large patches with lines and blocks of discoloration all over.  Normally it had been a cream colored cement.  I was so upset.  WTH?  Apparently they decided to test different treatments on my driveway to see which would work best and it mottled my entire driveway. 

 

I immediately complained to the HOA board member here in the community as well as the Real Estate office that handles our vendors and such.  The community fellow just replied via e-mail, he got my message.  That's it.  The Real Estate office asked me to send them pictures as they had trouble contacting the vendor who did the work.  So they send someone over to clean the driveway AGAIN and its a degree or 2 better, but still it looks like a dirty ashtray, whereas before it was a cream color, not gray.  And my home has still not been washed liked all the others in the community.

 

I'm so disgusted.  I have no one in my corner to help me confront all these strangers.  I regard it as property damage and considered filing a police report.  Because this is a townhome/patio home, I'm not sure I "own" the driveway.  I was told the vendor would be out again when they are "finished" with their work to address my issues.  My issues?  I sit quietly in my home bothering no one and these yahoos are the ones who don't know what they are doing.  Why would you test a chemical mixture on someone's entire driveway and not on a small section to see how it reacted?  Do I have any recourse other than waiting on these people?  They are blaming the issue on the concrete quality, but this only happened to my driveway when they used this particular mix of chemicals.  I don't get it and not sure what to do.  Any suggestions or knowledge on this?  Thank you.

Flowers are nature's way of laughing
Esteemed Contributor
Posts: 6,120
Registered: ‎03-29-2019

I guess you could try taking them to small claims court.

 

 

Thr power wash people, that is.

The Sky looks different when you have someone you love up there.
Trusted Contributor
Posts: 1,682
Registered: ‎11-12-2016

I'd be p****ssed.  If I were you, I'd keep calling HOA until you get your driveway back to it's original color.

 

And the workers using YOUR water to power wash the neighbor's house ?  Outrageous !!

 

Keep calling..............th.jpg

Honored Contributor
Posts: 17,517
Registered: ‎06-17-2015

I don't know where you live so I cannot address what the laws are in your area.

 

My suggestion:

 

Send registered letters to HOA Real Estate Company and to the Director of your community HOA Board.  Follow up again with emails once you receive the signature card back from your post office.

 

Be detailed and include pictures.

 

You will have to do some footwork here;  find out what your state has for rules/regulations for HOA's.

 

Good luck-the vendor was hired by your HOA and your HOA should be going after them.

If you have the full name of the vendor/address/phone number I would send a registered letter to them, too.

 

You can also leave a review on such sites as Home Advisor and Angie's List.

Better Business Bureau is worth a try, too.

 

Good luck.

"" Compassion is a verb."-Thich Nhat Hanh
Esteemed Contributor
Posts: 5,188
Registered: ‎03-11-2010

I have noticed that there are so many STUPID people out there!!!!! Whoever hired these dummies need a slap. Unprofessional.

Google the name of the company doing the work and see if there are complaints. You could also post ur story on YELP to get their attention.

Honored Contributor
Posts: 69,394
Registered: ‎03-10-2010

@jellyBEAN.  Small claims court would be my suggestion but if this is community owned property that might not fly.  You need to pressure your HOA to get it done right.  Remember,  the squeeky wheel gets the oil, and you need to squeek until you're borderline obnoxious.  Nag, nag, nag.

New Mexico☀️Land Of Enchantment
Valued Contributor
Posts: 828
Registered: ‎03-11-2010

@kivah that's a great idea about Yelp!  

 

 

Trusted Contributor
Posts: 1,927
Registered: ‎03-10-2010

The HOA hired the vendor:  it should be up to the HOA to make it right.

 

I would bombard them with letters, e-mails and photos. (Also take a look at the HOA rules for any procedures for grivences.)

Do the math.
Honored Contributor
Posts: 17,517
Registered: ‎06-17-2015

Also wanted to add that some sites like Angie's list will try to help resolve the issue for you.  I'm not sure if  Home Advisor does.

 

I think the Better Business Bureau used to intervene but I'm not 100% sure.

 

Yelp as somebody mentioned is also good as well as Google Reviews. 

Be careful how you word things, though.  Stick to basics.

"" Compassion is a verb."-Thich Nhat Hanh
Honored Contributor
Posts: 9,139
Registered: ‎04-16-2010

@jellyBEAN   Cakers made some excellent suggestions.

 

I'm the president of my community's HOA. One of the most important things you will need to do is find out what the laws are in YOUR state regarding HOA responsibility and litigation. You will also need to read your by-laws and declarations because it may state in there as to how you must proceed when going after your HOA if you believe they are responsible for property damage.

 

Laws are being passed almost monthly across the country regarding HOA's and condo associations as they are becoming more and more the norm as county government does not want the cost or responsibility of dealing with communities. Remember, when you sue your HOA, you are suing yourself as it's your own funds being used to pay for the community AKA HOA attorney.

 

If this situation had happened in my community, I know what I would do and how it would be handled; that doesn't help you in any way.  But that's because I know the laws where I live. Good luck to you and hope you are successful with having everything brought back to the way it was.