Imagine buying a home in a new development that ends up becoming part of an HOA, and you’re told that any changes you want to make to your home will be grandfathered in and allowed by the HOA.

What would you do if your neighbor complained to the HOA about a change you made and forced you to change it?

Would you comply, or would you find a way to make sure you were able to keep this modification to your home?

In this story, one man is in this situation, and he is really annoyed at his neighbor.

He complies at first, but then he comes up with a plan.

Let’s see how the story plays out.

No security light allowed? No problem.

Years ago when my wife and I had purchased a home, the builder had told us it might be part of an HOA depending on how many homes they ultimately constructed.

We were among the first 5 buyers so we pretty much had free reign to change what we wanted via permissions from the builders that those changes would be added to what was turned over to the HOA and for as long as we lived there, the changes could stay.

They wanted one change, but the neighbor didn’t like it.

The one change we did was add a motion security light on the back of our fence cause my neighbors kid would smoke there and I didn’t want to smell it sitting on my patio or when I had the windows open on nice evenings.

Well that went up my neighbors side ways for whatever reason, and she refused to believe her kid would be doing that, even though it didn’t point towards any other home, just the grass between my fence and the woods.

It kept the kids from smoking there without calling the cops on something so foolish and petty.

But since it was cleared from the builder she couldn’t do anything.

The annoying neighbor got her way.

Well 6 mo later we end out with an HOA, and she makes it priority 1 to get the lights (several other neighbors followed what I did whose homes faced the wooded area) removed.

The requirement to get it changed since they were builder approved was 80% of the community, so the only votes to keep came from those of us on the back of the property.

So we have to remove them being “permenant” changes.

Not even 3 days later, her kid is again back there smoking.

He didn’t want to call the police.

The HOA counter to why I had it was to call the police non emergency number, but thats absolutely stupid to risk messing some kids life up cause he wanted to smoke, when that’s an issue his parents (who remember don’t believe he does it) deal with.

So now I’m pretty livid, this north American land whale cried to the point I had to remove a cheap and non disruptive fix, she refused to be a parent and keep her kid from impeding on us, so it’s time for me to be petty.

The next day after her kid first went back there, I go out buy a 12′ section of 4×4, wire, concrete, a large planter and 3 6,000 lumen floodlights and build essentially a mini “portable” stadium light set up, rigged to the motion sensor so whenever anyone passed by my fence instead of being a small area immediately behind my house lit up, the sun came out to the woods with one light giving her home an x-ray.

He got proof.

The first time her kid went back there it was glorious, I got a picture of him with his bong in hand before he skirted off so I could show her proof, and it sent her through the roof getting those free x-rays.

I showed her the picture and she still didn’t care, saying if it goes off again I’ll call the police, and I was fine with it, cause I told her they’d see the same picture I’d just shown her.

In reality they wouldn’t but Martha the Manatee didn’t know that and I didn’t expect her to try to call my bluff, which she never did. Just complained to the HOA….ALOT

In the morning time I’d lay the contraption down so it couldn’t be seen, and raise it up after it got dark.

The HOA wants to know more.

About a week after this I get a summons to the HOA meeting that’s happening that week, and since it was “disciplinary” for my contraption, their lawyer was there and they want to hear the case.

So I lay everything out from builder to, pictures showing how the original light didn’t shine any brighter than the one on her porch and couldn’t be seen from inside the homes, her vendetta to change the HOA rules to suit what she wanted.

3 of the 5 other neighbors who had to remove their security lights were also there to argue for getting them back when I went.

The lawyer made his decision.

After about 40min the lawyer comes back and pretty much said “well Mr. And Mrs. Jefe_Brutus you are right, this isn’t a permanent structure so it technically is allowed, but you can’t have a light facing her property any longer, in addition by the first of next month you will all be allowed to reinstall your smaller lights as they did provide a measure of security that benefits the property as a whole”

So Martha the Manatee was blessed with another week of the sun on a pole and being mad mad about it, those of us who lived facing the woods got our lights back, and after reselling the lights I made most of my money back i spent on supplies making that monstrosity.

It was absolutely worth spending the few hundred dollars to out petty a bad parent and insufferable neighbor.

It would be so annoying to live next to that neighbor.

Let’s see how Reddit reacted to this story.

There are other things that are motion activated!

This is a good tip.

It wasn’t the kid’s fault, but it kind of was actually.

This is why a LOT of people would never live in an HOA.

That neighbor never should’ve complained.

If you liked that story, check out this post about a group of employees who got together and why working from home was a good financial decision.