|
San Juan Capistrano, California -
Hundreds of Americans from across the country
registered and voted on the following poll
conducted by AHRC News Services:
1: Should homeowner associations have the
power to foreclose on homes?
Yes: 14% No: 85%
2: If an association attorney uses his/her
position to create confusion and conflict and
line his pockets with homeowner funds, he should
be:
Fired: 6%
Fired and brought up on ethics charges:
93%
Rewarded with a bonus:
1%
3: If a director knowingly commits a breach
of the association's governing documents, should
he be:
Removed from the board: 21%
Removed from the board and provide restitution
to the association: 77%
Re-elected for a longer term: 1%
4: When the homeowner association board
violates local or federal laws, should they be
prosecuted by local or federal authority?
Yes: 96% No: 3%
5: If the board is found to be "fixing" an
annual election in order to keep the Status Quo,
they should be:
Prosecuted to the full extent of the law: 79%
Recalled 20%
Complimented on making the effort to "Save The
Community": 0%
Click here to view and vote on all these polls
CREDITS: Questions by Johnnie Johnson -Texas,
George Staropoli- Arizona , and AHRC News
Services Staff . Graphics by Starman Publishing
- Arizona
Understanding Homeowners'
Associations and CC&Rs
When you buy a house
in a new subdivision or planned unit
development, you may be subject to a host of
rules and regulations.
When you buy a home in a new subdivision,
common interest development (CID), planned unit
development (PUD), or co-op, chances are good
that you also automatically become a member of
an exclusive club -- the homeowners'
association. The club's members include all the
people who own homes in the same development.
The homeowners' association will probably
exercise a lot of control over how you use your
property.
CC&Rs
The transfer deeds to houses in new
developments almost always include limitations
on how the property can be used. Usually these
limitations -- called covenants, conditions, and
restrictions (CC&Rs) -- put decision-making
rights into the hands of the homeowners'
association.
Some associations enforce every rule with the
enthusiasm of a military drill sergeant; others
are run in a more relaxed way. Most associations
try to make decisions that will enhance the
value of the houses.
Make sure the CC&Rs are compatible with your
lifestyle. CC&Rs commonly limit the color or
colors you can paint your house (often brown or
gray), the color of the curtains or blinds
visible from the street (usually white), and
even the type of front yard landscaping you can
do.
Some CC&Rs go on to require that garages
facing the street be kept neat, insist that
laundry be dried indoors rather than hung on a
line, prohibit basketball hoops in the driveway
or front yard, and prohibit parking RVs or boats
in the driveway. See the list below for more
examples of the excruciating detail with which
many homeowners' associations regulate members'
everyday lives.
Read the CC&Rs carefully before you buy, and if
you don't understand something, ask for more
information, and seek legal advice if necessary.
Once you've moved in, getting relief from
overly restrictive CC&Rs isn't easy. You'll
likely have to submit an application (with fee)
for a variance, get your neighbors' permission,
and possibly go through a formal hearing. And if
you want to make a structural change to your
house, such as building a fence or adding a
room, you'll likely need formal permission from
the association (on top of having to comply with
city zoning rules).
Are noisy
neighbors breaking the law?
You bet. Almost every community prohibits
excessive, unnecessary, and unreasonable noise,
and police enforce these laws. To find your
municipality's noise rules, look up the local
ordinances.
|
How to Find Local Ordinances
and State Laws |
| You can
probably find your local
ordinances online. Most cities’
and counties’ website addresses
follow these formats:
Your state website also may
have links to cities and
counties.
If your city’s website does
not include the text of local
ordinances, you may be able to
find local laws on one of these
sites:
If you don’t have success
with the Internet, your local
laws may be available at your
local public library or the city
or county law library (usually
located near the courthouse).
Your local public library or
office of the city attorney,
mayor, or city manager can
provide information on local
ordinances that cover noise,
fences, trees, views and other
common neighbor issues.
You also can search your
state laws for noise
regulations. You can find your
state’s laws at Nolo's
Legal Research Center or at
FindLaw. |
|
Most local noise ordinances designate certain
"quiet hours" -- for example, from 10 p.m. to 7
a.m. on weekdays and until 8 or 9 a.m. on
weekends. So running a power mower may be
perfectly acceptable at 10 a.m. on Saturday, but
not at 7 a.m. Some universally disturbing sounds
are commonly banned or restricted. For instance,
most cities prohibit honking car horns unless
there is danger. This means that the daily early
morning tooting across the street for the
carpool is a violation. Dogs and motorcycles may
also be singled out.
Many towns also prohibit sustained noise that
exceeds a certain decibel level. The decibel
limits are set according to the time of day and
the neighborhood zoning. When a neighbor
complains, police place decibel level monitoring
equipment on an estimated property line and take
a reading.
|
