we had an oppressive hoa, but did a hostile takeover with the chill neighbors next door. first order of business, no more citations for unkempt lawns, no more loud noise citations, you get to treat your home like your property so long as you weren't piling up trash in the front yard. the old hoa board had a "legal" service run by an "attorney" downtown they contracted with to fine people for menial bullshit and we fired them. guess what? people started taking better care of their yards. kids are actually playing in the street (we have enough for a baseball team now). the neighborhood has never looked better.

Same, HOAs are a non-starter for me. That said the price is going to be high with or without and those buying $500,000USD homes are probably less likely to care about an extra $100 a month.