True, some HOAs allow cars to be parked in the driveway (and some do not allow any cars in the driveway at all, however crazy that is), but most HOAs that I’m aware of do not allow cars that are not running to be parked in the driveway, and many will limit the number of cars and/or set limits for how many days a car can be parked without moving, etc. Some HOAs won’t allow visitors to park their cars in the driveway for more than a certain number of days, etc. Also, no inoperable cars in the driveway in most HOAs that I’m aware of (same is true in many cities, but not generally enforced if nobody complains).
The point is that HOAs restrict what you can do with your house and yard, and some people really, really like that because it keeps the “riff-raff” down. OTOH, some people feel strongly about private property rights and believe that they should be able to do what they want with their own houses and yards. In these non-HOA neighborhoods, you run the risk of having more people who will paint their houses bright turquoise or purple, or who will pave over the front yard and park 6 cars there, or who will let the house fall to pieces and the vegetation get overgrown, etc.
It’s just different strokes for different strokes. There are pros and cons to each, and people have to decide which is more important to them. The poster asked about two particular areas that I’m familiar with, and I’m just trying to give the general pros and cons of each. In these areas, the HOA in the newer community is not as restrictive as some others, and the riff-raff in the older (non-HOA) community is is pretty rare, relative to most non-HOA areas around SD County.
