An infuriating story has emerged this week in Arizona that raises questions about the usefulness and potential for corruption within homeowners’ associations.
As The New York Post reported, Mesa resident Toby Newton lost a home he purchased for roughly $450,000 in 2022 over a seemingly small but manageable debt after encountering some personal struggles.
The Mesa Tribune notes that Newton came down with diabetes and lost his job in 2024. After a period of payments, he eventually fell behind on his quarterly HOA assessments, which were around $170.
All told, he ended up owing $977.
“I bought the house, and then I got sick,” Newton told The Mesa Tribune. “I got diabetes, and I was out of work.”
The Mesa Triune reveals that Newton’s live-in girlfriend, Sherri Patten, was diagnosed in early 2025 with breast cancer and underwent a double mastectomy. This caused her to stop working.
She was finally approved to receive long-term disability of less than $2,000 a month beginning last January.
“It was the type of cancer that is fast-moving,” Newton explained to the outlet.
Despite their misfortune, Newton tried desperately to work out a payment plan with the Superstition Springs Community Master Association.
But the HOA had no interest in negotiating.
More from The New York Post:
He initially offered to pay $50 per month toward his debt while keeping up with his regular assessments. After that was rejected, he increased his proposed payments — eventually offering $200 a month — but said the HOA rejected those offers as well.
By November 2024, the association had initiated foreclosure proceedings.
The Post notes that Newton’s HOA debt skyrocketed from $977 from November 2024 to $6,579 in October 2025. This was due to a combination of missed assessments, late charges, and plaintiff’s and attorney fees.
Newton’s home was eventually sold at public auction in October 2025 to the Superstition Springs Community Master Association for a measly $8,172. That’s it.
A home like his surely could have fetched a six-figure amount in a true open-bidding process.
The development gets even more suspicious when one considers that a sleazy attorney is at the center of it all: Augustus Shaw IV.
The Mesa Tribune reports that Shaw initiated foreclosure proceedings in court. He also has quite a sordid reputation.
Former residents of Superstition Springs took to X to reveal their awful dealings with Shaw.
The HOA & their Attorney Augustus Shaw IV (Google Him) is WHY I moved from Superstition Springs after 20 years.
He is a parasite, charges LARGE sums of money, takes homeowners to court, goes to the HOA meetings & hires Mesa Police to remove residents who ask ?’s.
PLEASE SHARE! https://t.co/ZWhi4Ji0if— 🇺🇲🌵ArizonaKayte (@ArizonaKayte) September 15, 2026
I’m a member of the community – and Augustus Shaw – the HOA attorney has tried this with multiple people in the community. He basically runs the meetings and is the driving force behind the litigation. The HOA is made up of 3 business seats and 2 homeowner seats.
— Gerald Ferguson (@jerryferguson) September 15, 2026
Other X users were livid over the whole ordeal.
This is absolutely criminal. 🤬
“An Arizona man lost the home he bought for nearly half a million dollars after falling just $977 behind on homeowners association fees — with the property ultimately selling back to the HOA for a mere $8,172.”https://t.co/lIUYIbNBBS
— MAGA – American Pitbull 🇺🇸 (@MelissaRNMBA) September 15, 2026
This made me FURIOUS…
> In August 2022, Toby Newton, 53, bought a 4-bedroom home in Mesa’s Superstition Springs community for about $449,000.
> He intended to retire there.
> In early 2024, he lost his job and was diagnosed with diabetes.
> Quarterly HOA assessments were… https://t.co/k0Rm2tCXqG pic.twitter.com/Z1ya5qdFQi— SMB Attorney (@SMB_Attorney) September 15, 2026
How the fuck does the HOA have this power?
— Yodan Masterize (@sjretar) September 15, 2026
HOA should be disbanded nation wide. All of them. Everywhere. Every Single One.
— GH HILL (@GHHILL1911) September 15, 2026
When one considers Shaw and the price at which Newton’s home was sold, a state investigation is certainly warranted. This all screams blatant corruption.
