Via personal experience, I found that whether the market is good or bad, homes in areas with strong homeowners' associations tend to maintain their value. This is something to think about when making a home purchase. I would highly recommend asking HOA management about the likelihood of the HOA disbanding within a few years, because I didn't, and the beautiful, extremely well-built home that I kept well-maintained (and in good times was valued at $275,000) turned out to be the best home in a neighborhood filled up with rentals(80 percent) owned by people who cared nothing about the neighborhood. I had a lot of neighbors who, despite being "upside down" on their mortgages, adamantly opposed forming a Block Watch, an HOA, a coffee klatch or any type of group that might bring the value of their homes back up, yet they consistently complained the value of their homes was decreasing ever faster. The city does nothing because it doesn't have enough employees, doesn't care about the neighborhoods and behaves as though neighborhoods without HOAs should be "penalized". So my old neighborhood became crime-ridden, the walls covered with graffiti, etc. I realize a lot of people dislike HOAs, but the alternative could be a lot worse. Bullets coming through the walls of my home is not my idea of "freedom".

Disappointing that there is NO information on this site related to short sales or options homeowners caught in the housing inflation crisis can pursue. Seems like you guys would be at the forefront, given the reliability of your information.