Bill Conrad's Blog - Posts Tagged "hoa"
AI-Generated HOA Stories
Three weeks ago, I had a home owners association (HOA) issue. They did not like my gate color and sent me a nasty letter. Oh, the humanity! Of course, being a good neighbor, I have kept the gate and its paint in good condition. And it was the same color as when I moved in. How do I know? The previous owner left cans of paint with writing on the sides, such as “inside wall” and “outside gate,” which I have used to maintain the gate. Additionally, I have digital photos of the house for insurance purposes, which confirm that I have not changed the color. Side note: My neighbor has a gate five feet away with the same color, and the HOA did not send them a nasty letter. Typical…
The problem is that the HOA changed the official fence color. (Yes, somehow, they classified my gate as a fence…) So, I rode around the neighborhood and saw that half the gates or fences were the new color and the rest were the old color. (Why on earth would anybody care about gate colors???) And one was bright green…
Rather than make a fuss, I painted my gate the approved color. The entire episode irritated me, and in the process of searching for “HOA gate color rules,” I found many other people’s HOA frustrations.
There are not one, but three YouTube channels dedicated to HOA nightmares. Sign me up! I began watching the many outlandish HOA horror stories. Wow, their audacity! Quite entertaining.
The creators of these channels all followed the same pattern. They had an AI animated scene showing arguing people, a narrator explaining what the HOA did, and how the homeowners responded. Here is one such YouTube channel:
https://www.youtube.com/@HoaStories-k8
Last Thursday, I had a few minutes and clicked on a video. The HOA began charging a local rancher to drive through their neighborhood even though he had an easement granting access. The nerve! Well, the video named names and locations, so I searched the internet to learn more about the dreadful incident.
And what did I find? Umm, nothing. I then broadened my search to “HOA charges a rancher fees.” There were a few hits, but nothing matched. So, I watched the video again to gather more details, and that’s when I noticed it.
All the AI patterns: long-winded descriptions, precise focus, re-emphasizing the same topic, repetitive language, heightened drama, subtle mistakes, unusual English, and a lack of authenticity. It was all there.
When I looked at the comments, many people stated that it was AI-generated. The incident angered me more than my original HOA issue, and I blocked all the YouTube HOA story channels.
Why was I so upset? It was not real. I clicked on those links to learn more about what HOAs were doing and how homeowners addressed their HOA problems. Instead, I viewed AI-generated nonsense. What is so wrong with this type of entertainment? It is dishonest, like a machine is tricking me.
Now hold on. I have allowed myself to be tricked by a machine—for example, the Pirates of the Caribbean ride at Disneyland. I am not a pirate, and the ride was not in the Caribbean. Still, I enjoyed the experience because I knew it was fake in advance. Is this not the same thing?
The difference is that the HOA video did not have a disclaimer. And there was an insidious aspect of this video; it was pulling at my heartstrings. I felt like I was being duped by an online scam or a con artist. Not cool! But I have more bad news. This is just the beginning. Hyper-focused AI-generated stories are on the rise, and they are getting better. Is there any good news?
In past articles, I have claimed that readers/viewers are becoming increasingly adept at identifying AI-generated content. Like me, they are not happy about it. I now see more reviews like, “This looks like AI wrote it.” I assert that a major AI-generated backlash is forming in our society, and here is some proof:
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/techno...
Yet, there is an added insidious element. When I was in college, I had a good friend who was also an electrical engineer. We attended classes and had a lot of fun off campus. So, it was only natural that we took Basic Electronics 102 together. I learned a great deal about the topic, and we gained a lot from each other’s prior electronic experience.
Fast forward to my second job, and I was working on a circuit. I couldn’t figure out what was going wrong, and my coworker was confused by my approach. So, we went to a whiteboard, and I explained how transistors worked. “No, you have that all wrong,” he said. I was adamant, and he pulled out a textbook. Dang, I was woefully incorrect.
I reflected on where I obtained my incorrect information and realized that my knowledge originated from the 102 class, where my friend explained how transistors worked. The thing is, he applied great effort to explain the topic; it made perfect sense. He answered all my questions and was confident in his knowledge. How did he get so confused? I had no idea.
Fast forward five years. My roommate got married, and I attended the wedding. During the reception, I asked why my friend was not at the wedding. Well… There had been a major falling out between him and our group. It turns out that he is a pathological liar. The light bulb went off. In college, he intentionally misled me. Evil!
The problem is that transistors are a fundamental part of electronics, and my foundation had a huge void. It took a lot of effort to rewire my brain (an electrical engineering pun) to think with correct knowledge.
Now, I have the same bad HOA information locked in my bonkers mind. In other words, my mental foundation has flaws, and I could mistakenly use this information. Society refers to this as “fake news.” Why is this a problem? I do not want to mislead anybody or think incorrectly. Yet… Here I am, loaded with AI junk.
What could happen? Let’s say I am in an HOA discussion and I mention the time “they blocked that rancher from using the road.” This sounds like a good example of an out-of-control HOA. The problem is that it is pure fiction, which means that the premise for my discussion is incorrect.
What if I wrote an article all about HOA problems and cited the incidents in the video? That would further spread fake information, causing all kinds of issues with the people who used my “information.”
Would my readers be upset? You bet! And would they direct their anger toward YouTube? No, they would be upset with me, even though my misrepresentation is not my fault. There would be no choice for me but to accept all blame and deal with the consequences and guilt of misleading my readers. Not cool!
And I am not alone. AI-generated junk is everywhere,* and here is an article discussing it:
https://www.thetimes.com/uk/technolog...
* “AI-generated junk is everywhere” sounds like the line from a song. Funny how life imitates art.
This HOA story incident was a wake-up call for me. From this point forward, I must apply great effort to identify this type of “entertainment” and avoid it at all costs.
You’re the best -Bill
July 16, 2025
The problem is that the HOA changed the official fence color. (Yes, somehow, they classified my gate as a fence…) So, I rode around the neighborhood and saw that half the gates or fences were the new color and the rest were the old color. (Why on earth would anybody care about gate colors???) And one was bright green…
Rather than make a fuss, I painted my gate the approved color. The entire episode irritated me, and in the process of searching for “HOA gate color rules,” I found many other people’s HOA frustrations.
There are not one, but three YouTube channels dedicated to HOA nightmares. Sign me up! I began watching the many outlandish HOA horror stories. Wow, their audacity! Quite entertaining.
The creators of these channels all followed the same pattern. They had an AI animated scene showing arguing people, a narrator explaining what the HOA did, and how the homeowners responded. Here is one such YouTube channel:
https://www.youtube.com/@HoaStories-k8
Last Thursday, I had a few minutes and clicked on a video. The HOA began charging a local rancher to drive through their neighborhood even though he had an easement granting access. The nerve! Well, the video named names and locations, so I searched the internet to learn more about the dreadful incident.
And what did I find? Umm, nothing. I then broadened my search to “HOA charges a rancher fees.” There were a few hits, but nothing matched. So, I watched the video again to gather more details, and that’s when I noticed it.
All the AI patterns: long-winded descriptions, precise focus, re-emphasizing the same topic, repetitive language, heightened drama, subtle mistakes, unusual English, and a lack of authenticity. It was all there.
When I looked at the comments, many people stated that it was AI-generated. The incident angered me more than my original HOA issue, and I blocked all the YouTube HOA story channels.
Why was I so upset? It was not real. I clicked on those links to learn more about what HOAs were doing and how homeowners addressed their HOA problems. Instead, I viewed AI-generated nonsense. What is so wrong with this type of entertainment? It is dishonest, like a machine is tricking me.
Now hold on. I have allowed myself to be tricked by a machine—for example, the Pirates of the Caribbean ride at Disneyland. I am not a pirate, and the ride was not in the Caribbean. Still, I enjoyed the experience because I knew it was fake in advance. Is this not the same thing?
The difference is that the HOA video did not have a disclaimer. And there was an insidious aspect of this video; it was pulling at my heartstrings. I felt like I was being duped by an online scam or a con artist. Not cool! But I have more bad news. This is just the beginning. Hyper-focused AI-generated stories are on the rise, and they are getting better. Is there any good news?
In past articles, I have claimed that readers/viewers are becoming increasingly adept at identifying AI-generated content. Like me, they are not happy about it. I now see more reviews like, “This looks like AI wrote it.” I assert that a major AI-generated backlash is forming in our society, and here is some proof:
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/techno...
Yet, there is an added insidious element. When I was in college, I had a good friend who was also an electrical engineer. We attended classes and had a lot of fun off campus. So, it was only natural that we took Basic Electronics 102 together. I learned a great deal about the topic, and we gained a lot from each other’s prior electronic experience.
Fast forward to my second job, and I was working on a circuit. I couldn’t figure out what was going wrong, and my coworker was confused by my approach. So, we went to a whiteboard, and I explained how transistors worked. “No, you have that all wrong,” he said. I was adamant, and he pulled out a textbook. Dang, I was woefully incorrect.
I reflected on where I obtained my incorrect information and realized that my knowledge originated from the 102 class, where my friend explained how transistors worked. The thing is, he applied great effort to explain the topic; it made perfect sense. He answered all my questions and was confident in his knowledge. How did he get so confused? I had no idea.
Fast forward five years. My roommate got married, and I attended the wedding. During the reception, I asked why my friend was not at the wedding. Well… There had been a major falling out between him and our group. It turns out that he is a pathological liar. The light bulb went off. In college, he intentionally misled me. Evil!
The problem is that transistors are a fundamental part of electronics, and my foundation had a huge void. It took a lot of effort to rewire my brain (an electrical engineering pun) to think with correct knowledge.
Now, I have the same bad HOA information locked in my bonkers mind. In other words, my mental foundation has flaws, and I could mistakenly use this information. Society refers to this as “fake news.” Why is this a problem? I do not want to mislead anybody or think incorrectly. Yet… Here I am, loaded with AI junk.
What could happen? Let’s say I am in an HOA discussion and I mention the time “they blocked that rancher from using the road.” This sounds like a good example of an out-of-control HOA. The problem is that it is pure fiction, which means that the premise for my discussion is incorrect.
What if I wrote an article all about HOA problems and cited the incidents in the video? That would further spread fake information, causing all kinds of issues with the people who used my “information.”
Would my readers be upset? You bet! And would they direct their anger toward YouTube? No, they would be upset with me, even though my misrepresentation is not my fault. There would be no choice for me but to accept all blame and deal with the consequences and guilt of misleading my readers. Not cool!
And I am not alone. AI-generated junk is everywhere,* and here is an article discussing it:
https://www.thetimes.com/uk/technolog...
* “AI-generated junk is everywhere” sounds like the line from a song. Funny how life imitates art.
This HOA story incident was a wake-up call for me. From this point forward, I must apply great effort to identify this type of “entertainment” and avoid it at all costs.
You’re the best -Bill
July 16, 2025
