An indignant Reddit user took to the platform to commiserate after discovering a Facebook post showing an HOA representative ordering their residents to contribute items to the community's luxury garage sale.
Normally, selling your used belongings and buying secondhand items are two extremely positive moves for your wallet and the planet. Selling items secondhand can net you a pretty penny for your unwanted good, all while saving money for buyers who would otherwise need to buy items new. Sometimes, shoppers can even find hidden gems worth much more than the asking price.
At the same time, thrift stores and garage sales keep usable products out of landfills and can also reduce pollution from the manufacturing process since fewer new products need to be made and shipped.
However, one HOA seemed to have other goals in mind that defeated the purpose of a garage sale. A Reddit user who stumbled on a Facebook post listing details of the Avalon Village community garage sale shared it to a subreddit dedicated to overstepping HOAs.
"You will be required to have a garage sale or find a neighbor to team up with to sell your stuff," said the post.
It went on to explain that sellers must use Stripe at their own expense to allow the HOA representative to track their profits, 10% of which will be claimed by the HOA.
The post also demanded that residents offer luxury goods such as art and designer clothing.
"This isn't about making money, this is about showing the world how Avalon Village residents live," it said, followed by a warning that the HOA representative will be pestering neighbors with fliers until they see everyone participating.
Commenters on Reddit seem unimpressed with these incredible demands.
"I would be transgressive as f with my garage sale. Raw meat, wet clothes, bags of haircut hair. You can get your 10% and the world can see how we do it at Avalon," one Redditor said.
Another commenter expanded on the idea, writing, "A completed sudoku from the local newspaper. $847. A dozen empty soda bottles hot glued together. $9,602. Latex glove full of cement. $23,500. A single used toothbrush. $47,000. It's 'art.' That's what she asked for."
"I don't understand how the HOA can impose that they collect a fee for the garage sale," said a third user. Another answered, "They can't. You cannot force someone to sell their personal belongings unless you have taken them to court and have been given a favorable judgment."
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