During a block party in the spring of 1992, the Neighborhood Property Owners’ Association (NPOA) became an Arizona Nonprofit Corporation dedicated to preserving the beauty of local neighborhoods.

Since its founding by its former President, Jerry Miles, the focus of the NPOA has maintained that initial goal.

“It’s neighbors helping neighbors keep their property values without any annual fees or monthly dues,” Executive Director Kim Robertson says. “If we could all have car insurance without a monthly fee, we’d do it. So [the NPOA] is aesthetic protection with no fees.”

Because the NPOA is not a homeowner association (HOA) or a planned community, it collects no regular dues or assessments from its member property owners. As an Arizona Nonprofit Corporation, however, the NPOA has the authority to enforce deed restrictions.

“It’s just a little bit of an insurance policy that you buy when you purchase your house that something crazy isn’t going to happen next door,” current NPOA President Jeff Esposito said.

The only payment that the NPOA receives is a transfer fee made whenever a property changes ownership. According to Esposito, those changings of hand hit an all-time high during the frothy housing market in 2021.

In 2019, there were 213 transfer fees within the NPOA jurisdiction. In 2020, there were 277. In 2021, transfer fees skyrocketed to 411 as homebuyers rushed into town, paying cash for new homes, short-term rentals and investment properties.

“It really changed the dynamics of the town because a lot of [the new homebuyers] were investment companies,” Esposito said.

It’s important to note that 411 home transfers represent only a fraction of the homes sold in 2021 since NPOA jurisdiction encompasses roughly a third of the homes in Fountain Hills, equating to approximately 4,500 homes.

“When you’ve got that many people under one umbrella of an aesthetic oversight, that is significant,” Esposito said. “We’re really an unusual entity, I don’t think there’s anything like it in the metro area.”

Esposito is in his fourth year as a member of the NPOA, three of which he has served as president. His presidential term ends this upcoming March. Robertson has been working for the Association since 2008 and is the only salaried NPOA employee. Judi Choate and Joan Thompson round out the staff at NPOA, whose board of directors is made up of volunteers, elected by delegates representing each plat in the association.

For residents whose properties fall within the NPOA jurisdiction, their properties are subject to the architectural and aesthetic guidelines listed in the NPOA development guide and enforced by the Neighborhood Committee of Architecture (NCOA), who meet weekly and maintain architectural control of member plats.

Members of the NPOA board and the NCOA are all volunteers and homeowners within the NPOA jurisdiction which encourages neighborly conduct, a fundamental value of the NPOA.

With a goal of preserving the beauty of Fountain Hills and upholding the guidelines originally put in place by McCulloch Properties, the master developer of the town, the committee faces a perennial struggle between upholding time-tested, steadfast guidelines and an ever-changing palette of style and colorway. In the end, this is the reason why the NPOA exists; to create harmony amongst property owners while maintaining property value.

“When you don’t have rules, things can slowly decline,” Robertson said. “If you drive through a development and it looks awful, it didn’t start that way, there were just no rules or anybody to enforce them.”

Looking to the future, Esposito said increasing the awareness of the NPOA throughout the community is a continued priority for the years ahead.

“If people don’t know that they’re part of the organization, they’re not going to come in and get their permits,” Esposito said, who last year commissioned a communications committee to spread the word about the NPOA which included strategic advertising and sponsoring in-person presentations throughout Fountain Hills.

“We’re continuing that communications committee again next year,” Esposito said.

The NPOA has also been working closely with the Town of Fountain Hills, asking the Town for help and opinion and, in the same way, the Town looks to the NPOA for guidance in return.

“It’s mutual support, as we both have the same desire to maintain our great and beautiful town,” Esposito said.

Every year, a new flow of soon-to-be residents bring their Midwest, East Coast and West Coast vibes into town, and for 30 years, the NPOA has met their requests with aesthetic guidelines and architectural expertise.

“We’re here to figure it out so that everybody lives in harmony,” Esposito said. “Everybody has their rights. We’re just here to protect people’s property values.”

For more information or to see if a plat is within the NPOA jurisdiction, visit their website npoafh.org.