August 9, 2022

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I’m going to continue with FAQ’s for this month’s newsletter and the question we hear often is: WHY DO WE NEED AN HOA?

There’s a nationally-famous Instagram account called “Middle Class Fancy”. A lot of their posts are about Applebee’s and Olive Garden, and recently they’ve started selling “Defund the HOA” shirts. It begs the questions: why do we need an HOA, and what’s the value of an HOA?

Well, the big answer is: this is the way the community was originally setup in the late 1990’s when the City of Rockwall required that all new subdivisions be in an HOA. It was a method used to offset the cost of maintaining a neighborhood to the people who owned homes in the neighborhood.

The Shores on Lake Ray Hubbard Owners Association manages miles of landscaping (mowing, sprinklers, and landscaping) along Shores Blvd, and at the entrances and along LakeShore and Dalton roads.

Other HOAs inside the Shores benefit from it (Promenade Harbor and the original Shores).
A main topic in board meetings consists of landscaping challenges such as repair and maintenance of the irrigation, replacing damaged landscaping, as well as updating landscaping around our community property. It’s a large area to manage that involves hundreds of irrigation lines and sprinkler heads, and working with our landscaping vendor.

HOA resources provide for amenities for the residents here. Board members organized a contract with the owners of The Rockwall Golf & Athletic Club (RGAC) to maintain and manage the wonderful amenities we have today. The HOA also constructed the Amenity Center where the fitness center is located that allowed an upgrade and expansion of our fitness facility. It also provides room rentals for parties and work conference capabilities. A huge undertaking for a volunteer group of neighbors!

A defunded HOA means that the job of managing that process falls to… well, I don’t know who, actually. Perhaps the City would take it over intermittently if the HOA went bankrupt, but they’d probably have to reassign back to the neighborhood as it is unlikely they have the personnel and resources for a task this size.

So the first reason the HOA is here is that: ultimately our community is really responsible for managing our community, and there’s no one else to do it but us.

The HOA is not for profit. The HOA uses a reserve study to set goals for saving money for replacement and maintenance of assets. A typical year is around $30,000 earmarked for savings. Like fiscally strong HOA’s, reserve studies are conducted to prepare for major capital projects. Right now the HOA is looking to make upcoming repairs to the entryway markers to the neighborhood. One of the markers, in particular, is sinking so it’s going to need some foundation repair. The HOA is responsible for those repairs and upkeep.

Those projects aren’t always visible to the community, of course. What is visible are the social activities, and the compliance enforcement - but again, that’s just part of what the HOA does to maintain the neighborhood.

Listen, it’s easy to go down a rabbit hole regarding a YouTube search of out of control HOA’s. There are always going to be examples of overreach and mismanagement. It’s horrible when an HOA isn’t flexible, or filled with a Board out to run a neighborhood like a police state. Fortunately, that isn’t this HOA.

That doesn’t mean there are no expectations. Belonging to the HOA is a commitment to maintain your home and follow rules put in place so that we can operate as a community that cares about the area looking nice, safety of residents, and being neighborly.

For those that don’t want to be in an HOA, there are options in Rockwall to live in areas with no HOA or with an HOA that doesn’t enforce restrictions.

Hopefully this explanation helped to show our HOA is needed in ways that vastly outsize what most people imagine.

Just know that if you come to one of the monthly board meetings in a “Defund the HOA” shirt you purchased from Middle Class Fancy’s Instagram page, that’s OK, but you’ll probably be asked: "Are you going to be the one to manage all this if the HOA for some reason suddenly disappears?".

Because, as homeowners here, we value our neighborhood and want it maintained.
Josh  Click here to email me

We have Beautiful Yards!
Click here to see the video of the June Beautiful Yards!
Do you see your house (or your neighbor's?)
Congrats to all!

Beautiful Yard nominations will be put on a hiatus because of the incredible drought we are experiencing. Look for news about it starting up again when we get rain!

Everyone loved the Master Gardner's newsletter last time, so here is the Summer addition! Click here!

Click here for valuable information on Drought and Trees!

Thanks to Sarah Lawson for all her hard work!

City/County News

💦 Homeowners in Rockwall are watering their lawns at record levels, and the City of Rockwall reminds residents about the water conservation plan ordinance still in effect. Already, usage levels are higher than normal for this time of year, when comparing the last few years. As the temperatures continue to rise, it is critical to conserve water.

 The Rockwall City Council enacted the ordinance in 2019, following years of severe drought in North Texas, as a measure to stave off future supply issues. The ordinance limits outdoor lawn and landscape irrigation to only two days a week. In addition, it strictly prohibits lawn watering during daytime hours between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m.

Find out about all the happenings in Rockwall - click here!

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♻ Trash/Recycle Update

Residents need to have their trash and recycling out by 6 a.m. on their designated pickup days.

This move will help protect Republic Services employees from the excessive heat later in the day. The previous time to have trash out was 7 a.m., and rolling back the time by one hour, allows crews to complete daily pickup and be off the road before temperatures rise into the triple digits. Heat exhaustion is a serious concern for workers on the garbage trucks during summer months, and this year we’ve already experienced hotter weather than in recent years. Some residents may consider putting trash out the night before to meet the 6 a.m. deadline.

The pickup time will return to 7 a.m. on October 1, when temperatures begin cooling down again.

We have a new texting service! 📱

Please text OPT IN to 469-214-6635 and fill out the form to start receiving texts. Many of us do not read our emails like we should, or sometimes we miss them altogether! With the texting service, you will stay on top of news, events, and when we have sent out an important email you need to read! We promised we will not blow up your phone. Only a few texts a month!

As we grow this service, you will be able to receive only the news you choose. Social activities, landscape tips, meeting times, and more!

Committees

Join a committee! We need you, the neighborhood needs you!
Join a committee! Get involved!

Is there a committee you would like that we do not have listed? Let us know!

Contact our Property Manager for more information.

🥳 Social

💐 Landscape

💻 Communications

🔔 Safety

📧 Welcome

🏡 Architectural Review

Know your websites and logins for HOA things

There seems to be a lot of confusion as to all the websites and logins associated with The Shores on Lake Ray Hubbard HOA. There is the HOA website, where you register and make sure you are getting the email blasts, see the calendar of events, when Board Meetings are, Reviewing the CC&Rs, and other important information (if you are receiving this, you are registered). These are 3 different entities associated with our HOA.

Let's break it down:

The HOA website is www.TheShoresHOA.com

The Guardian website is where you pay your assessment:
https://pay.allianceassociationbank.com/Home

The RGAC (the Club) is www.RGACTX.com