Real estate
BY BRITTANY ANDERSON
Bastrop is home to dozens of Homeowners Associations, which Austin-area HOA management expert Peggi Brannon said play a role in a homeowner’s personal investment by helping their property appreciate. “The benet is that you’ve got a baseline contract with all of your neighbors that we’re all going to maintain the same standard of care, so we can all keep our property values growing and our net worth growing,” Brannon said. “It’s equity.” HOAs often regulate things such as trash can visibility, landscaping and exterior house maintenance, Brannon said. However, most rules are in line with city ordinances. Local expert oers insight into area HOAs
Diving in deeper
for hundreds of millions of dollars.” HOA management companies also don’t hold any decision-making power, Brannon said. Instead, associations are governed by resident-elected board members, and decisions— including violations—are usually made by a majority vote. Board members are also required to follow state law and act in the community’s best inter- est just as any other commercial board would, Brannon said. “What homeowners fail to understand is that once [an HOA is] incorporated into a business, it is a commercial business and you have to operate o of commercial codes and compliance in accordance with the state of Texas,” Brannon said. “Yes, it’s your backyard, but we’re still responsible.”
Several factors that go into determining HOA fees, Brannon said, including what land the neighborhood is built on and the association’s “cost of doing business,” such as pool or land- scaping costs, legal fees for violations, and maintaining infrastructure such as roads within the community. “You’re part of an incorporated business, and because of that, you’re responsible to the insur- ance for the liability and the commercial replace- ment of all the property,” Brannon said. “The reason why the association gets to say what they can and cannot do on a property owner’s prop- erty is because everybody’s property is aected by the way that everybody else’s property looks. If they install something that’s a liability that’s going to cause future damages down the road to other properties, it stops them from being sued
In other news
HOA legislative changes
HOA certicates in nearby counties
Expands protections for the installation of solar energy devices, including solar roof tiles Prohibits nes related to lawn maintenance during water restrictions or drought periods, and for 60 days after Requires electronic ballots, absentee ballots or voting by proxy to be allowed at membership meetings A few HOA governance changes were made during the 2025 Texas Legislative session.
When the Texas Legislature meets every two years, people submit various bill changes and new laws about what HOAs can or cannot do, Brannon said. Some changes in recent years have included lessening restrictions on homeowners’ religious displays, and implementing a policy that prevents HOA board members and Architectural Control Committee members from being married to one another or living in the same household in order to “even out the governance of power.”
According to the Texas Real Estate Commission, information about HOAs, including the names and where homeowners can nd rules, is required to be recorded with the county.
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Bastrop Caldwell
Hays
Travis Williamson
SOURCE: TEXAS HOA LAWCOMMUNITY IMPACT
SOURCE: TEXAS REAL ESTATE COMMISSIONCOMMUNITY IMPACT
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