Keeping You Informed

Likely the most asked question, and the answer is pretty simple. If you are making any changes to the exterior of your home or property this requires a permit. 

So the question is Why......

Have you ever heard the saying that beauty is in the eye of the beholder?  What one of your neighbors thinks is a great idea might have a negative effect on others so we as a community need a chance to review it and insure it fits the community standards.

So whats covered. Anything that is on the exterior. Paint, replacing your fence, adding an antenna, new roof vents, landscaping changes of any type, anything that changes water flow.

This is not the whole list its anything outside your home. 

If you submit the application and include a drawing of your lot and where you plan to put the changes, a drawing if its something new like a deck, including materials and any colors review only takes about 5 working days (although the HOA has 30 days) and many times its faster than that. We are excited that you want to make improvements and want to help.

We would love for grass to grow slower but lets face it this is Texas. Your grass need to be mowed anytime its over 4 inches which is generally every 2 weeks. 

Beds need to be weeded regularly and yes we all understand that rain can get in the way. 

Together we can make the community beautiful.

The simple answer is You and the rest of the membership with help from the developer for the first 5 years. 

During this 5 year period your community will establish a board of directors, an Architectural Control committee and learn the business of governing the community so that it is fair and equitable to everyone. 

The elections are annually for Board positions generally in May by mail, email, and in some communities online voting. The first election will be in the first May that occurs 1 year after the first homes are sold. Each lot has one vote so if you own 2 lots you get 2 votes. 

We hope that you will consider running for the Board or serving on one of the committees. 

The HOA uses the fees to pay for maintaining the common areas like the front entry, signage, and the amenities. together with hundreds of owners paying a small fee we can accomplish a lot. 

Your community has public roads which means the city or county maintain them not the HOA. 

Your HOA is made up of volunteers who are owners just like you. They have jobs, family, and their own lives. The HOA takes in your questions and requests in writing and forwards them on to the board or appropriate committee. 

These folks review your request and then provide an answer which we forward back to you. 

Call the Police.

Do not take matter into your own hands. If you can grab a quick photo safely that always helps. We would appreciate it if you would send the HOA an email with the report number and any photos as well as if you know who it is that's doing the damage. 

Vandalism costs all of us money. 

There is a section on this with all the answers, applications and rules. Its crucial that we maintain the quality of the community and protect our neighbors, children and pets so our required screening is extensive and non negotiable. 

There is no doubt your dog is an exception to the rules and sweet as can be. We know your dog   would not hurt a flea. But its against Texas law to treat one person differently than another so exceptions cannot be made.  

For this reason in order to protect folks from that less than friendly dog we determined breeds  which are inherently dangerous and they are not permitted.

There is no appeal to this, its a hard and fast rule that was in place before you purchased in the community. 

Again its not because of you, but there is always that one person who has the eternal project in the driveway that's an eyesore and possibly even dangerous. So we have to say no to everyone. You can work in your garage as long  as the doors can be closed. 

We all have seen that neighbor with cars, trucks or trailers parked in front of their home day after day, month after month that blocks the roads. Our roads are not parking lots they are roads. 

Its also a safety issue with kids running out from between cars being dangerous, or emergency vehicles having to slow down and weave in between cars. You have exclusive use of your driveway for parking there is no additional assigned parking in the community. So yes your neighbors friends coming over for dinner can park in front of your home, however we hope they will use the driveway. 

Your dues for the first year were collected at closing so you are all taken care of. Starting the next year you will receive an invoice in January and your maintenance fees are due by the 31st of January. The bill will let you know where to send your payment to and in many cases this can be set up as a auto draft on your credit card if you want. Late fees are 10% of the annual Maintenance Fee and are posted on 2/1.

While most projects are quickly approved there are some that don't meet the standards. No none likes to be told no but we have to look out for the entire community. You can appeal to the Board however its unlikely they can do anything about it as the rules were established before the community was even built based on many years and hundreds of communities.

Good folks sometimes make mistakes, and sometimes they don't realize that they are even breaking the rules. So the first time this occurs we send out a Courtesy Notice letting you know what the issue is and asking for your help to correct it and that avoid this in the future.  

There is no fee for this and its often an email.

Common examples of these are for grass mowing, trash, stuff stored outside or parking. 

Sometimes folks disregard the "Courtesy Notice" and Texas Property Code says we must send you a certified letter which triggers a $25.00 mail fee which provides formal notice of your violation.

In this formal letter there will be, a demand to correct the violation, how you correct it, and notice that you are subject to fines if you don't correct the issues. 

None of us like fines but they are a necessary part of enforcing the Restrictions for some folks. 

Please don't make your own neighbors impose fines and liens on your property, these end up creating issues with your lender and none of us want that. 

Lets all follow the rules. 

Fantastic News, nominations open up in March of each year all you need to do is send in your candidate application, insure you are current on your fees and fines, and you will be put on the ballot. 

If you are elected we would love to have your help in running the association. 

Fantastic, that's a great idea and we would love to help you distribute your news letter. Just drop us a line and we will send you a news kit with all the details. 

Wonderful having community work parties are the best form of volunteerism (and save money) and we are happy to support you drop us a line and we will get the word out. 

You might try talking to them sometimes folks don't realize they are breaking the rules. Or you can snap a photo and send it into the association at Support@wdhoa.com and let us know about it. An inspection will be done and if the rules are in fact being broken a courtesy letter will be sent. The HOA will never identify who sent in the complaint to protect your privacy. 

We also cannot respond to you with updates on their situation for the same reasons. 

We run a calendar year ending on 12/31