An Ohio homeowner says his long-running feud with a condominium association ended with thousands of dollars in fines, immense stress on his family, and the forced sale of his property.
Bryan Mansfield, 56, a property management contractor and former on-site condo manager, claimed that his homeowners association repeatedly penalized him for alleged rule violations, piling on fees that eventually surpassed $15,000.
Mansfield had lived at the Meadowlawn Condominiums in Mentor since purchasing his unit for $85,000 in 2009. What began as small disagreements years later escalated into consistent fines and a permanent clash with board members. “I was getting a letter almost every week – over $15,000 in fines,” he said. “We had enough. So we decided to sell. I had enough. And I could see it was taking a toll on my elderly mother.”
According to Mansfield, the disputes began around 2019 but intensified after a new board president assumed office in 2021. At that point, the penalties grew into daily charges for things he said were either exaggerated or not prohibited at all.
“I was fined $50 per day for several alleged violations, including setting up an HOA Facebook page for the community, alleged harassment of the HOA board, and the use of a doorbell camera,” he explained, as per The Sun.
Mansfield believed the strategy was deliberate. “They were getting nowhere with fining me – they had to do something more drastic. I would have had to file a lawsuit, which would have taken two years. I never would have gotten out of there. It was eating at my mother, and we had to leave.”
The conflict became most visible during a confrontation over cameras Mansfield had installed on his property. He argued there were no written rules preventing them, and even the association’s president previously admitted in a police report that dozens of other residents used similar devices.
Yet in 2022, one of his cameras suddenly went missing. “Ring camera footage captured an HOA board member removing a camera from his back door during a board meeting. The HOA president told a board member to remove it in the process of the meeting,” Mansfield recalled.
Mansfield said he reported the incident to the police, who returned the device but also informed him that cameras were supposedly not allowed. “I called the police. They retrieved the camera, but said cameras weren’t allowed. The fence is mine. There’s no rule against cameras. The HOA president admitted in a previous police report that over 20 residents have them,” Mansfield said.
He later positioned additional security cameras around his home. “This woman from the board was walking by six or seven times a day. Once she realized she was on camera, she stopped,” he added.
The financial strain grew worse in 2022 when Mansfield attempted to sell his condo. On the very day the transaction was scheduled to close, he learned that the HOA had placed a lien against his property.
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“They timed it perfectly to sabotage the sale,” he said. “My attorney was livid.” To complete the sale, he had no choice but to pay the lien using funds from his closing. For Mansfield, the outcome was frustrating but offered no alternative exit from the situation.
He claimed that his experience was not unique. “We watched from afar over the next few years as over two-thirds of the owners would sell and move out after being victimized,” he said. Mansfield suggested that a pattern of aggressive fines and enforcement had driven many longtime residents to leave the community altogether.
As tensions between residents and the HOA leadership continued, questions began to circulate about the association’s financial management. A police report from May 30 documented how board members themselves flagged concerns about irregularities in the accounting, pointing to mismatched check numbers and unexplained cash deposits. Investigators advised the board to gather complete financial information and work with legal counsel. To date, no criminal charges have been filed.
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In response, Meadowlawn Condominiums confirmed that an independent review is underway. The board stated: “At this preliminary stage of alleged allegations, an external review is being conducted by independent professionals. The board is adhering to legal counsel’s advice to verify the legitimacy of these claims, ensuring that owners are informed of the facts. At this juncture, we cannot comment on speculations. Our course of action is to allow the facts to emerge and await the conclusions drawn from those facts.”
For Mansfield, the ordeal left lasting frustration. Even though the sale of his condo allowed him and his mother to move forward, the emotional and financial strain weighed heavily. “It was eating at my mother, and we had to leave,” he said, reflecting on the years-long battle with the association.
