Florida Homeowners Association Terror

When I moved into my new house, Florida’s minimum wage was $7.25 per hour. Of course if I had been making that, I would never have been able to rent or buy a home in Hillsborough County. I would have had to live in Polk, Hernando, or the Dominican Republic—all of which I did consider at some point!

I was making okay money when I closed on my home. The HOA fees were about $50 per month. That included lawn service provided that you did not fence in your yard (per the rules “back then”). And during the time that I have been here, I went from a decent salary to pretty good one as I was making more than the median average household in my area. (I did it, Mom and Dad!) But since many people, myself included, are merely one illness/firing/accident away from poverty, a good salary is not enough of a buffer. I managed to have illnessES, firingS, and accidentS…sometimes all in the same year. You need a great salary and great savings to make it in these suburban streets.

Florida’s minimum wage is now $14 per hour and will increase to $15 in the fall. My HOA fees increased to $103 effective this month (January 2026). It has been creeping each year. We did get an increase in services when security was added in 2020 to combat car thievery. I guess that was nice [for the people who prefer to leave their car doors unlocked at night]. But something about a 100% increase in a decade does not sit right with me. And what happened to that nature trail around the lakes?