Selective enforcement.
Another common practice that is detrimental to a community association's
success is selectively enforcing association rules. Selective enforcement can
occur because of favoritism towards owners or in more subtle ways, like not
consistently monitoring violations. In Jesse Dubuque's article, "Don't Blame
Governing Documents Blame Inconsistent Enforcement," he paints a very clear
picture of why this is a problem.
"Imagine that instead of consistent and fair enforcement, a community checks
for trash can violations only once a year, then sends out a bunch of violation
letters, and doesn't follow up until next year. Most homeowners upon receiving
the letter will comply and follow the rules. But, when they see their neighbor
across the street leave their trash cans out ALL YEAR and never receive a
second letter, they're going to think, 'Why do I have to follow the rules and
they don't?' It's easy to see how quickly a normally-satisfied homeowner could
become disenchanted with the community if this happens frequently. No one
enjoys citing violations, but remember, everyone who lives in the community
agreed to the rules when they joined, and consistent enforcement of those
rules is essential to keeping the community running harmoniously."
— Jesse Dubuque, CMCA®, Associa Minnesota
6 Biggest Mistakes Board Members Make
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