Covenants and HOAs

For whatever reason, one of the most contentious factors in residing in an organized neighborhood seems to be the covenants. Some covenants are strict. For example, some neighborhood covenants require you to have the same mailbox as everybody else.

Quail Run’s, on the other hand, mostly just wants you to take some pride in your surroundings and ask, for instance, that you not have junk cars on your property, not to own livestock as pets, and not to leave your RV in your driveway.

When we began developing “The Estates,” the City required us to create detention ponds for the new section. As a result, we also had to create a homeowners association whose money would go toward maintaining the ponds. This HOA was incorporated into the covenants of the new section of the neighborhood and therefore anyone who closes on a Duke Brothers home would get a copy of the covenants.

Any real estate agent and attorney worth their salt should ask about and discover this information before or during a transaction. The HOA fee should be paid at closing and the covenants should certainly be received before hand.

These days, one should presume, moving into an organized neighborhood (as opposed to a house that dwells on a busy road or out in the country) that there will indeed be an HOA.

If one of your requirements upon moving to a new home is that there is not an HOA, tell your REALTOR^® about this. If you are not represented by a REALTOR^® when buying new construction, ask the builder and, by all means, remind your attorney. Getting familiar with the covenants of a neighborhood BEFORE you move in makes it clear whether your lifestyle is compatible with that neighborhood.