Following her father’s death, Bethany Michel inherited his house. Unfortunately, it happens to be in a 55-and-over community, and now the HOA is trying to force her out of the Arbor Mill retirement community in Jacksonville, Fla. Not only are they trying to boot Michel, they expect the 155 residents on fixed incomes to ante up a mandatory $1,000 assessment. Only five residents voted to approve the special assessment that will charge residents to amass a war chest for the legal fight. Residents who don’t hand over the assessment fee will be charged $100 over the next 10 months. “I have to pay them to help sue me,” said Michel. She has been living in the retirement community since moving to the Sunshine State in 2020 to care for her terminally ill father. When he died in 2023, Michel stayed in the home because her father left it to her in his will. Many of the residents aren’t happy about the 28-year-old living there, with Michel first receiving a note three months after her father’s death, telling her that she didn’t meet the community guidelines. She has since been denied access to community amenities as she faces the lawsuit. The HOA covenants require each home to have at least one occupant who is 55 or older. Michel remains optimistic and defiant against the HOA after her dad made sure she would be “grandfathered in” before his death.
