HOA HELL
HOA Hell with Michael Kushner is your inside guide to surviving—and winning—against California’s most abusive and overreaching HOAs. Leveraging almost 30 years of experience fighting for HOA members, Michael Kushner gives California homeowners real tools to fight back against abusive boards, outrageous rules, and everyday HOA nonsense. If your HOA is making your life a living Hell, then this podcast is for you.
Episodes
129 episodes
KFI’s Bill Handel Endorses HOA Attorney Michael Kushner
Is your HOA targeting you, imposing illegal fines, or abusing its power? Nationally syndicated radio host Bill Handel (KFI AM 640, “Handel on the Law”) has a direct message for California homeowners: YOU DON’T HAVE TO FIGHT ALONE. I...
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0:31
AB 130 & California HOA Fines: What’s Happened Since the $100 Fine Law Took Effect
California capped HOA fines at $100 under AB 130. But what’s actually happening now that the law has been in effect for nine months? In this episode, California’s leading homeowner-side HOA attorney, Michael Kushner, explains what h...
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51:43
Can an HOA Avoid Liability After Rerouting Plumbing Pipes Through Your Ceiling?
In this HOA Q&A, HOA attorney Michael Kushner, the pioneer in homeowner-side HOA law in California, addresses a situation where an HOA installs new repipe plumbing that now runs through a homeowner’s ceiling and then claims it will not be r...
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1:54
California HOA Special Assessments: Why Your Dues Keep Rising and a Huge Bill May Be Coming
HOA assessments are rising across California, and for many homeowners the financial pressure is getting worse. In this episode, California’s foremost expert and homeowner-side HOA attorney, Michael Kushner, explains why regular dues are steadil...
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45:42
Can an HOA Use Facial Recognition Cameras to Track Residents?
In this HOA Q&A, HOA attorney, Michael Kushner, the pioneer in homeowner-side HOA law in California, explains why an HOA’s use of facial recognition technology to identify and track residents and guests in common areas raises serious privac...
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2:00
Can My California HOA Interfere with My Rebuilding After a Fire or Other Disaster?
In this episode of HOA HELL, attorney Michael Kushner explains how California’s new SB 625, which into effect on January 1, 2026, dramatically shifts the balance of power in favor of homeowners whose homes were destroyed in a declared disaster....
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36:41
California HOA Recalls: The “Chaos” Argument Is a Myth
When homeowners start talking about recalling their HOA board, someone from the HOA’s “side” always predicts chaos. Sometimes they claim that management will quit ands leave the HOA in chaos, while others go even further and predict the HOA’s c...
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2:02
Who Decides HOA Architectural Requests: The Board or the Architectural Committee?
Architectural committees are common in California HOAs, but not every HOA has one. When an HOA does use an Architectural Review Committee, Architectural Control Committee, or Design Review Committee (these are all different names for the same c...
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55:30
Can You Bring a Lawyer to an IDR Meeting in a California HOA?
In this HOA Q&A, California’s leading homeowner-side HOA attorney, Michael Kushner, explains your statutory right to have your attorney present during an Internal Dispute Resolution meeting with your HOA and why giving advance notice, altho...
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1:42
How Bad HOAs Use the Business Judgment Rule to Block Homeowners
HOA boards often throw around the Business Judgment Rule to shut conversations down and scare homeowners away from pushing back. In this Tip, California’s leading HOA lawyer, Michael Kushner, explains how Bad HOAs use that tactic and what the B...
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1:47
Bill Handel on HOA HELL: Law, Radio, and California HOAs
Bill Handel does not need an introduction in Southern California. In this episode of HOA HELL, attorney Michael Kushner sits down with Bill Handel, the voice behind Handel on the Law and the most listened to morning talk show in the country hos...
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39:56
Can Your Neighbor Pepper Spray Your Dog Based on Fear Alone?
In this Q&A, HOA attorney Michael Kushner addresses whether a neighbor was legally justified in pepper spraying a dog that was behind a wall on its owner’s property in a California HOA community. 🎯 What You’ll Learn in This HOA ...
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2:17
Electronic Voting in California HOAs
Most California HOAs still have not rolled out electronic voting, even though the law has allowed it since January 1, 2025. That is because the law is not automatic, and HOAs have to do real homework before electronic voting is legal in their s...
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39:51
Can an HOA Board Remove a Director by Censuring Them?
When an HOA board votes to “censure” one of its own directors, it often sounds like discipline. It sounds serious. It sounds like removal. But in California HOAs, censure is something much narrower, and it is frequently misunderstood or misused...
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2:26
Are HOA Boards Required to Keep Member Complaints Confidential?
While HOA boards do not have to keep every homeowner complaint confidential just because someone asks, there are situations where an HOA must keep member communications confidential. This episode covers two scenarios that come up constantly in ...
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41:45
California HOAs: When the Business Judgment Rule Does Not Apply
Bad HOA boards in California love to cite the Business Judgment Rule as if it ends the conversation. It doesn’t. In California, the Business Judgment Rule does not protect boards that act in bad faith, ignore their duties, or refuse to act at a...
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1:39
Your Right to Equal Access in HOA Elections
If your HOA lets sitting board members use the newsletter, email list, website, or clubhouse during an election, it cannot pick favorites. The Davis-Stirling Act requires equal access once HOA resources enter the campaign arena. When incu...
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1:22
Water Intrusion in California HOAs (Part 2)
Water intrusion disputes in HOAs don’t turn into major disputes for just one reason. Some are disasters from the moment water enters a unit. Others spiral because of what follows, such as disputes regarding insurance, deductibles, remediation, ...
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54:39
Who Gets to Pick the Location for an IDR in California HOAs?
In this Q&A, attorney Michael Kushner explains who controls the location of an Internal Dispute Resolution meeting in California HOAs and why neither the homeowner nor the board gets to dictate it under the Davis-Stirling Act. 🎯...
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1:37
Water Intrusion in California HOAs (Part 1)
When water leaks into your home, most homeowners are told one of two things: the HOA has to pay for everything, or go through your own insurance. Both answers are often wrong. In Part 1 of this two-part HOA HELL episode, attorney Michael Kushne...
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1:01:45
Does Serving Alcohol at an HOA Event Create Legal Liability?
In this HOA Q&A, attorney Michael Kushner explains when an HOA can face liability (for resulting injuries or deaths) for serving alcohol at an HOA-sponsored event, and why most HOA-sponsored gatherings remain protected under Civil Code § 17...
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2:02
Avoiding the Bad HOA Lawyer
In this special extended episode of HOA HELL, attorney Michael Kushner addresses a growing problem in California HOA disputes, where slick marketing and SEO visibility increasingly replace real legal experience, accuracy, and performance....
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1:20:29
Incumbents Cannot Use HOA Resources to Campaign*
* UNLESS they give equal access to all candidates.If you’re running against sitting HOA board members, California law strictly limits how they can campaign. Directors cannot use HOA-funded resources to influence an election unless...
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1:32
Can My HOA Give a Homeowner Temporary Exclusive Use of the Clubhouse Without a Member Vote?
In this HOA Q&A, HOA HELL host Michael Kushner explains why short-term use of the clubhouse by an HOA member for a private event, like a wedding reception or birthday party, does not constitute a transfer of common area to a member for that...
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1:41
Are HOA Director Term Limits Enforceable in California?
HOA director term limits create confusion for homeowners and boards alike. Some people insist they’re invalid under California law. Others rely on them to force board turnover. Both sides often speak with confidence, but not accuracy. ...
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1:33