Homeowners groups are in a fix

Homeowners groups are in a fix

John Rankin remembers the day the owner at 2214 Sonoma Drive skipped town.

“He packed up his truck one day, and drove away,” said Rankin, president of the Mission Estates homeowners association in Venice. “Then he just never came back.”

That was nearly a year ago.

As weeks and then months went by, the property fell into disrepair — with the pool turning green and grass growing wildly. Rankin said the homeowners association eventually took matters into its own hands, as its residents took pride in their neighborhood and did not want one house out of 93 negatively affecting the image, and property values, of the larger community.