HOA Keeps Fining Homeowner For Giving Free Water To Neighbors On Hot Days
Did you obtain written permission to help your dehydrated neighbors?
Rainer Fuhrmann | Shutterstock The purpose of a homeowners association, or HOA, is supposedly so that neighbors can work collectively to take care of their neighborhood and, indirectly, each other. That's the point on paper, anyway. In practice, the seemingly never-ending HOA horror stories suggest it's more about scamming residents for as much money as possible.
A case in Arizona seems like a perfect example, where a resident is now hundreds of dollars in debt for a simple gesture of kindness towards his neighbors.
An HOA keeps fining a homeowner for giving free water to his neighbors on hot days.
Goodyear, Arizona, is a suburb of Phoenix, which sits in the Sonoran Desert. In case you haven't heard, it is very hot there, and being outside in the summer is like walking into a blast furnace. As someone whose family lives there, I can tell you it's truly a heat you can't comprehend until you experience it firsthand.
It's the kind of punishing heat where, say, being stranded by a flat tire can quite literally mean death, and having water always at hand is essential. So for four years running, resident David Martin has made it his business to make sure a cold bottle of water is never out of reach for delivery drivers and his neighbors as they walk their dogs or take their kids to the bus stop.
And for this gesture, Martin is now hundreds of dollars in debt to his HOA, which has begun fining him again and again for the supposed crime of taking care of his neighbors.
Martin has been fined hundreds of dollars by the HOA and refuses to pay.
The trouble began back in May of 2024, just before one of the deadliest summers in Phoenix's history began, and its hottest June on record saw 175 deaths in one month alone, an 84% increase over 2023.
Foster Bottenberg | Getty Images | Canva Pro
Martin had been leaving his cooler full of water in front of his house since 2020. It wasn't until 2022 that the Canyon Trails HOA had a problem with it, issuing him a warning letter. That letter was followed by an apology, and Martin thought that was the end of it.
That was until his first fine of $50 arrived in May 2024. Those fines escalated to $100 a month for months on end. With temperatures in the Phoenix area once again soaring into the 100s, the fines have resumed — $100 for each time he places his cooler in front of his house.
Martin is furious, but undeterred. “Here we are in July, the hottest day of the year, and we are still talking about a water cooler with free cold water,” Martin told local news outlet KPHO. “It’s ridiculous that they are adding violations to a total that’s not going to get paid, because I’m giving out free water.”
Martin's neighbors are firmly on his side. “I have no idea why they are coming down on him,” neighbor Rich Koustas told KPHO. “It doesn’t make any sense.” Another resident, Larry Marks, called the HOA's move "horrible and atrocious."
The homeowner has responded by leading a charge to oust people from the HOA's board.
The HOA certainly does not seem to have the support of many members of Martin's community, which isn't exactly surprising, given how utterly ludicrous this all is. So when the fines resumed this year, Martin decided to fight back beyond just refusing to pay the frivolous fines. He circulated a petition to have three HOA board members kicked out of their positions.
He quickly garnered enough signatures to trigger a special vote on July 10, 2025, and was joined by dozens of neighbors angry not just about his water debacle, but about the HOA's failures to perform repairs in a timely manner, which is, of course, precisely what homeowners pay HOA dues for. That kind of mishandling of HOA funds is one of the top reasons cited in a 2024 survey, which found that 57% of homeowners living under an HOA hate it.
In the end, 190 out of 210 ballots voted in favor of ousting the three board members. But those members and the HOA's parent company, FirstService Residential, have objected to the results, saying the way the vote was conducted was against HOA rules.
The HOA's lawyers also contend that the water isn't the point, but rather the fact that Martin "advertises" the water in front of his home. For his part, Martin says he is prepared to take legal action if the HOA continues harassing him. He told Phoenix's 12News, "It's not just about water, it's about the community as a whole."
John Sundholm is a writer, editor, and video personality with 20 years of experience in media and entertainment. He covers culture, mental health, and human interest topics.
