CC&R's, HOA - What does this mean?

I am now on my HOA board, I live in a single family residence without any common areas that we are upkeeping, so why an HOA you might ask? The city I live in requires that the developers sell the properties with CC&R's. We finally moved the HOA from the developer to the community and many people are asking why have an HOA?
There are pros and cons to having an HOA. The most common misunderstanding is that without the HOA the CC&R's will also be gone. That is not the case. CC&R's run with the land and as long as that piece of land is there, the CC&R's will be there. The HOA's duties are to make sure the community is following the CC&R's to there understanding, yes it does unfortunately go to there interpretation of the CC&R's. As we know you neighbor might interpret it differently then you or I. That is where the HOA comes in to play with an odd number on the board they can vote and see what the majority determines the meanings of any certain section is. By having an HOA board you are trying to eliminate the whole neighbor suing neighbor. Or the having one person in the neighborhood not keep his yard up (or put in in on new builds) and devaluing the community. It is important for the HOA to encourage residence to ask questions on updating there home making it nicer. A better looking house next door raises the value of your house to!