A rug on the back patio.
Cracked blinds.
A grease stain on the driveway.
These are some of the things that led the Master Homeowners Association for Green Valley Ranch to fine Terry and Dwayne Meeks, a couple who bought their home in the far northeast Denver subdivision in 2008.
The Meeks would fix the problem and pay the fine. Then they’d receive notice of another violation. It went on for years.
Then, in November, the Meeks learned the Master Homeowners Association put a lien on their home and was moving to foreclose.
The couple thought they owed about $2,000. Instead, the debt had ballooned to $17,000 because the HOA wanted them to pay attorneys’ fees associated with the lien.
“We’re expected to pay their lawyers to take our home from us,” Terry Meeks said. “Unbelievable. It’s organized crime.”
In March, a rash of foreclosures filed over the past 15 months by the Master Homeowners Association for Green Valley Ranch shocked residents and triggered swift condemnation from elected officials and Denver housing advocates. Those involved with Colorado’s housing industry say it’s the perfect storm: an aggressive association operating in a field with no regulation. And critics say the foreclosures are predatory in their targeting of Black, Latino and Asian residents.
— Full story via Noelle Phillips and Saja Hindi, The Denver Post
“Tip of the iceberg”: Green Valley Ranch foreclosures spotlight Colorado’s lack of HOA regulation
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