Homeowners Associations as Private Governments: What We Know, What We Don’t Know, and Why It Matters

Abstract

Homeowners associations (HOAs) are private governments that are reshaping urban governance and service delivery in large parts of the United States. Despite the fact that millions of Americans are HOA members, the fi eld of public aff airs has paid scant attention to these new governance entities. Th e essays in this symposium call attention to HOAs' potential eff ects on urban services and civic life in the hope of sparking interest among scholars and public managers to include HOAs in our understanding, research, and teaching of contemporary urban governance.

Collective actions for the management of multi-owned residential building: A case of Hong Kong

“…Her prediction has come true, with MOBs flourishing around the world and becoming important parts of cities. Nowadays, policymakers and researchers are concerned with how the development of MOBs could change municipal governance (McCabe, 2011), the social stratification of urban areas (Bagaeen & Uduku, 2010), and the management of the built environment (Yau, 2014). In addition, they want to know more about owners' collective management behaviours.…”

Does owner heterogeneity matter in the management of multi-owned housing?

“…In conclusion, the delineation of property rights is independent of owner heterogeneity. This was different from the situation of CPR management where rights delineation evolves with the variation of user composition (McCabe, 2011).…”

“…Some scholars argue that owner heterogeneity is not a significant issue in MOH management. This view rests on the assumption that when an MOH development is transacted, the market will automatically match buyers' preferences to its management style (McCabe, 2011). In other words, owners tend to be homogenous within a development under the price mechanism.…”

Institutional Analysis of Neighborhood Collective Action

“…Some evidence suggests that some homeowner associations suffer from state predator–type failings. Homeowner associations are often unscrutinized by members and the public at large, making abuses of authority easier to go undetected (Langbein and Spotswood‐Bright ; McCabe ). In addition, volunteer boards may have preferences for more services and regulation than the average resident (Langbein and Spotswood‐Bright ).…”