u/Myamah

Debated on whether I should keep this private but due to the shear stubbornness of the other party, I’m posting this to vent. Let’s give the statement above some context. I (F26) purchased my townhome November of 2025. Since it was the first time I ever got to live by myself, I didn’t think much about personal protective measures (home security system, cameras, black out blinds, etc). All was well until one beautiful night in February this year. At 2am, I was woken up by some noises made around the house, someone trying to open my patio door (and succeeding), and them scoping around my house. I was completely defenseless, and my pet cat was already hiding under the bed. Calling the cops only for them to say it could’ve been some pipes making noises, but that was the start of my venture into outdoor cameras. Mind you, I discovered a set of footprints facing my living room patio when it snowed around 3-4 weeks prior. Odd, but I never connected the event until the police left. My dad, in fact, ordered me a wired camera that also acts as a porch light. The light is indeed quite bright, enough to startle anyone unsuspecting and those looking to snoop around. The camera is motion-activated, and once on, it records for the next 2 minutes.

All was well until now, which is exactly 2 days ago. My HOA manager, let’s call her Deeb, emailed me that I needed to replace the current porch light as it doesn’t match the rest of the townhomes in the cluster (color, model). Valid. The only problem? I’m out of the country the next morning and will not be back to uninstall this baby until I’m back in the country. I asked if it was ok and she agreed so. However, things starts to go downhill from here.

The afternoon of June 21, I received a notification from my camera. In the clip, a random kid was seen opening my storm door, attempting to open my front door, and trying to look inside my house not once but twice. This might sound silly to most of you, but with my previous break-in experience, seeing a random kid appear at my front door didn’t feel pleasant.
At the same time, Deeb sent me a series of emails that I was unable to reply to as I was on a flight, asking if I could give her the permission to have someone disconnect my porch light/camera. Apparently, my camera/light has been turning on and off throughout the night, disturbing a lot of people. Checking my camera memories, I could see that the porch light turned on only once the night of June 20, at 9:17pm. A group of teens walked by, flicked the camera off, and walked away. I was puzzled because my light didn’t turn on multiple times throughout the night, so I emailed Deeb back and asked exactly that.
I also tried to turn off the light remotely but couldn’t do so without turning the entire camera off. Because of the random kid snooping around my house, I don’t feel comfortable turning the camera off for 3 weeks until I’m back. I asked Deeb to please not touch my porch light and to tell the neighbors if worst comes to worst, to please wait until I get back. I am 3 days in my vacation. Deeb remains stubborn, with her last email detailing how the HOA wanted me to turn the light off right now and to keep it off until I return. Her response unleashed a total of 8 passive aggressive emails, reiterating what I can’t do about the light remotely and how I’m still trying to find someone to help resolve this. I’m currently awaiting her reply and will give an update.

I understand that the light can be a nuisance, but again, the only time it was recorded to be on after I left my home is June 20. It only activates at night and my camera has not been triggered since June 21 (the kid snooping around). The camera has been on for 4 months with no complaints from anyone, and suddenly now it’s such a big deal and such a disgrace that it needs to be turned off asap. I just don’t understand why they’re making such a huge deal over a porch light.
I was thinking that the kid caught on tape June 20 was my new neighbors’ kid, who bought a house in the same cluster this month. I never knew anyone bought the home until now, let alone meeting them. The fact that nobody had a problem with my light until now lines up with the new neighbors’ move-in. It can just all be speculation but doesn’t make sense for a random kid to show up out of nowhere and to specifically go to my house to snoop around.
My friends were shown the clips, told the story, and are suggesting me report the snooping to the cops to have it in the record, though most likely they won’t be doing anything.

First time getting involved with an HOA. Never again.