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03/22/11
Wouldn't buy in "The Ranch" again if I could do it over
by Stevevas29 at Citysearch
I have owned a house and lived in "The Ranch" for 4 years and to be honest I absolutely HATE it. In regards to the locations, the area is beautiful, but that has more to do with the socioeconomical level of the area. It has little to do with the supervision and tactics of "The Ranch" HOA as there are neighboring areas that do not have an HOA that are every bit as nice without the harassment. This HOA has little to do with service of the community and its members, but rather it uses its status and your agreement to be part of the HOA as a means to constantly harass and fine you for every little thing. There is rarely a week that goes by that I am not getting a ticket for some small detail with a $25 fine attached to it. When all is said and done, if you are a Ranch "member" you better budget for a minimum of $100 of fines per month because that seems to be the average. They are completely unapproachable, as if you go to them to tell them that you disagree with a citation, their response is, "Sorry, you need to follow the rules like everyone else and if you want to contest it it has to go in front of our administration board." And if you lose that contestment they charge you an additional $100 administration review fee! I have talked at length about this issue with all of the neighbors on my block as I was wondering if perhaps I had done something to make them mad resulting in them targetting my home for citations. I came to find out that they do this to everyone on my block that I talked with and they felt powerless to change it because the Association is unapproachable. So they simply do as I do and budget for $100 fines a month on top of our $100 HOA fee...yes boys and girls...that is $200 a month to be harassed over parking ont he street (even if it is not your car), a spot on the sidewalk, your grass having a brown spot and even the wrong type of flag hanging outside your home! All fines...cha-ching. "The Ranch" is simply a money making racket that rules with an iron fist and has no tolerence to any of its members questioning its decision to issue a citation. They have you by the short ones and they know it...and use it as a means of picking $25 at a time out of your pocket. If I could travel back in time 4 years I would avoid buying in "The Ranch". There are other areas in East Highland that are every bit as nice, are every bit as maintained, and are not part of "The Ranch" HOA that I would rather live in. I would gladly give up my access to the HOA softball field, which I never used, as a means of avoiding all of the harassment and fines. If you want my advice, yes purchase in East Highland....it is a beautiful area, but purchase in an area above to the East of Chruch and to the North of Water...these are areas outside of the The Ranch that allow you to enjoy East Highland without the constant harassment of the Nazi HOA.
09/14/10
HORRIBLE HOA - WORST I'VE SEEN
by Cheryl Marsh at Citysearch
I bought in EHR 10 years ago when the HOA wasn't too bad. Now, dealing with their attitude and desire to make money off of the residence is unbelievable. It's so bad that I would have not bought in EHR if I knew how it was managed.
Yes, the grounds are lovely most of the time. However, because they are so profit driven (millions is reserve) they will accept low bids for maintenance, landscaping, etc. leaving the neighbordhood to suffer. There have been a number of occasions where I have found beer cans/bottles thrown in bushes, trash thrown on the street. playland in disarray and left that way for weeks. The EHR will ticket you for ANY reason they can all to make money. Trash cans out to the curb to early in the day, your own car parked in front of your house, brown fronds in palm trees, etc. Tickets are $35 - $50. Appeal process is that you pay the ticket ontime and wait for the committe to review your appeal. They have never approved an appeal for myself or anyone I know. ANY change to your property must be approved by the Association and the permit process can take months. I was told that I would have to remove the new vinyl fence I had installed because it was off-white not white as was approved by the permit committee! The attitude of the staff is unbearable as if you are simply a low life nuisance that they shouldn't have to deal with. Who pays their salary anyway? Residence have become so frustrated that they've tried to get on the board only to be strong armed by the existing committee. I would strongly advise against moving into EHR because it's simply not worth the pain and suffering that goes with dealing with this Home Owners Association. If you would like to speak to be directly please call 925-689-2514 as I'm beginning to rant.
03/01/10
We Need A New Manager!
by HELPUSALL at Citysearch
We have lived here since 2004. It is the nicest place for miles around to live. The CSO’s (Community Service Officers) are only doing what they are told by management to do.
You get a ticket if you park in front of your own house or leave your trash cans out more than 24hrs. Not to mention oil stains weeds ect. However in all fairness that is what we signed up for and the place looks great!
What we did not sign up for is the ATTITUDE of the staff and George the manager. He acts like her owns the place. He is a 2 faced liar and come from the good old boy clan.
Kids: they don’t like them. All the playgrounds are hard to access and incontinent.
Waste: they waste $$ on all kinds of stuff and are now tiring to justify more fees. Lawn care, staff vehicles. We got a nice lawn care with a property management co but it is 8 guys who are here 3 days a week tops that cost us like a Million Dollars! Staff is breading like Rabbits with new office space to boot! And the get new vehicle every couple of years because “the maintince is too high” Hey I got a idea for you, let them walk arrond the place , ride a bike or use electrick vehicles! .
What we need here is we need a HOA revolution here!
- Pros: Nice
- Cons: Mis Management
11/08/09
Need your comments based on your experience
by immanuel at Citysearch
I am considering buying a house in the East Highlands Ranch. How has the fee changed a last couple of years? I would like to know the trends in fee changes. In addition, I read on their web site that they are going to start a new construction (a club house) soon. Would this significantly impact the fee increase?
I am planning to remove one tree in the backyard that is too close to the house. Does this some need a permission the East Highlands Ranch Assn?
Thank you!
08/16/09
Strong HOA is a good thing
by scparks at Citysearch
The HOA fee is a bargain having been in others and one of the reasons it is a super nice area and well maintained is the HOA. People complain BUT they had trouble getting a quorum on a mail-in vote. We vote for the by-laws and the directors....participate if it matters to you. We LOVE being here and it is great value for the money.
It is a healthy place with something for everyone.
- Pros: HOA amenities, the walking, the view, the lake
- Cons: far from downtown LA and USC Football Games & such
