HOA isn’t helping tenants amid rise in crime in northeast Harris County near Woodforest Condominiums, residents say

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — It’s been a terrifying couple days for a northeast Harris County woman. She told ABC13 she was sitting in her condo when a man broke into a bedroom by tearing through the wall.

This is just the latest incident that has left several tenants at the Woodforest Condominiums on edge. They told Eyewitness News that the homeowner’s association isn’t doing enough to help.

“I thought I was about to die. I was just shocked,” Esther Huffman said.

A gaping hole in the bedroom of Huffman’s unit at the Woodforest Condominiums is the damage left over from a moment she desperately wants to move on.

“I’m traumatized,” she said.

Huffman said she was in her living room in the middle of Wednesday when she found a man smashing down her bedroom wall.

“He had a full black mask on. I could see about this much of him,” Huffman said, adding that she’s still shaken even after he took off. “I couldn’t even walk back into my own unit, because I was afraid they were going to come back.”

The bedroom is connected to a maintenance room for the pool. Huffman believes he somehow broke in and started to tear down her wall at a time when other residents say crime in the area is on the rise.

“I guess it was a painter who lived here. They broke all of the windows out of his car. The neighbor in the back. They broke in her car,” Dominque Cobon said.

Cobon says this gate has been broken for weeks, and that’s part of what’s causing the problems. After talking to the HOA about their concerns, both he and Huffman feel there is no support from them.

“We are paying over $400 a month to the HOA, and nothing is being changed or done,” Huffman said.

ABC13 received a statement from an attorney for the HOA, which is part of the Prestige Association Management Group.

“The Condominiums have reached out to the police on several occasions and have been informed that there is not enough manpower to drive through the complex,” a part of the statement said.

It goes on to say that as far as safety and security go, “the Condominiums do not ensure safety or security; such action is beyond the scope of the Condominiums’ duties and obligations.”

This area is under the jurisdiction of the Harris County Sheriff’s Office.

ABC13 spoke to HCSO about the tenants’ concerns, and a spokesperson said they are implementing a strategy in and around the area.

For updates, follow Mo Haider on Facebook, X and Instagram.