Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: Secrecy vs Right to Privacy? Sharing vs Hiding?

[Rud Merriam (rudmerriam]

Locally in Texas the sale price is not publicly available. The appraised 
value is public record. The Realtor website lists a range for the 
selling price.

Zillow is a general source for price information, also.

Generally, everyone knows the purchase price when the community started. 
Why shouldn't everyone know resale prices? That's part of being in the 
community.

<Making a note that our by-laws / HOA rules will include this as a 
requirement.>


-73 -
*Rud Merriam K5RUD*
Silverwood Commons, TX (in formation)

On 8/27/22 19:49, David Heimann wrote:
> Hello All,
>
>     A quick note ... at least in Boston, and I believe generally, the 
> sale of a condo unit or any other housing and the price of that sale 
> as well as the appraised value of the unit, is public information.
>
> Regards,
> David
>
>
> > Date: Fri, 29 Jul 2022 13:28:03 -0500
> > From: Kathleen Lowry <kathleenlowrylpcclmft [at] gmail.com>
> > To: cohousing-l [at] cohousing.org
> > Subject: Re: [C-L]_ Secrecy vs Right to Privacy? Sharing vs Hiding?
> > Message-ID: <77F66CF6-92D7-4598-9862-8C80EBA71D21 [at] gmail.com>
> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8
> >
> > Very good question. As a family therapist we say individuals, and 
> > possibly families ?are as sick as they are secret.? Secrecy and trust 
> > are antithetical. Kathleen
> >
> > > On Jul 29, 2022, at 1:13 PM, Sharon Villines via Cohousing-L 
> > > <cohousing-l [at] cohousing.org> wrote:
> > >
> > > ?I have been flummoxed recently by one or two stoutly stated claims 
> > > that information about sales and new residents does not have to be 
> > > shared with anyone except the Board because it is a violation of the 
> > > right to privacy. Sharing the asking price of a unit is unacceptable 
> > > and no one?s business unless they are making an offer. New resident 
> > > information is made available after the unit is sold, even after 
> > > closing. It is confidential.
> > >
> > > When we recently discussed the policy on architectural review and 
> > > worked on clarity about what needed review and what didn?t and how 
> > > to record this, right to privacy was raised. Who could see this 
> > > information? What right did people have to ask?
> > >
> > > The legal question here is easier to answer ? by law the condominium 
> > > has to sign a document swearing that no changes to the unit have 
> > > been done that violate any of the condominium rules so it should 
> > > have some protection against liability. And if you start rearranging 
> > > the plumbing it affects this whole wing of the building. But where 
> > > does this idea come from that people want to keep everything secret 
> > > and it has nothing to do with living in a community?
> > >
> > > Legally a condominium owner can sell to whomever they please within 
> > > the zoning codes, etc., but does that mean they 
> > > should/could/can/might keep a sale secret until someone notices they 
> > > are moving out and someone else seems to be moving in? Or no one is 
> > > moving in and the unit seems empty?
> > >
> > > But we have an exclusive rights in our bylaws so that the 
> > > Association can always purchase a unit rather than having it go up 
> > > for auction. How do we exercise this right if the sale is none of 
> > > our business?
> > >
> > > Certainly the community spirit of "we all in this together," "what 
> > > you do affects all of us," and "we can only do this if everyone is 
> > > on board? develops more strongly in the development phase when 
> > > things are touch and go. When units are selling for half a million 
> > > dollars and there is a bidding war, ?its my money? is a stronger 
> > > argument than when everything is at risk. But is it inevitable that 
> > > selling units will be just like selling houses on the open market?
> > >
> > > Why would I want to live in cohousing if I wanted to do whatever I 
> > > pleased, no questions asked, and no information shared? And why 
> > > would I even live in a condominium ? a shared ownership scheme.
> > >
> > > Is this sentiment increasing in other communities?
> > >
> > > Sharon
> > > ----
> > > Sharon Villines
> > > Takoma Village Cohousing, Washington DC
> > > http://www.takomavillage.org
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