I am the King (or Queen) of My Castle! ...or am I? By Nancy T. Polomis, Esq., Hellmuth & Johnson, PLLC
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ne of the reasons many people choose to live in a community association is the aesthetic appeal — home styles are complementary, with similar features, perhaps similar colors and/or layouts. In order to maintain that aesthetic uniformity, the association must be involved in any planned changes to a home’s exterior or to landscaping or yard areas. Occasionally, when I send a homeowner a letter advising him that a recent change made to his home was not approved by the association, I receive an angry retort, with the homeowner asserting, “It’s my home and I’ll do what I want! I am the king of my castle — you can’t tell me what to do!” I then point out that, indeed, the Association can tell him what he can and cannot do — and that such regulation is part of community living. While that should not come as a surprise to homeowners, it sometimes does.
Limitations on Changes to the Exterior of a Home Most, but not all, declarations of covenants include some provision requiring homeowners to obtain some level of approval for changes to the exterior of their home or a home’s landscaping or yard area. In many cases, that approval is granted by the Board of Directors. In some associations, the board establishes an Architectural Control Committee (or Architectural Review Committee, “ACC”), which is authorized by the board to review applications for approval of such proposed changes. Some homeowners, however, believe such approval processes apply only to “big”
changes like building an addition—not planting flowers or installing awnings, security lighting or storm doors. In most cases, the homeowner is simply wrong. In most cases, any change to the exterior of a home (and sometimes, changes to the interior that are visible from the exterior) requires approval by the Board or ACC. ACC/Board approval for changes to landscaping is also often required in townhome communities and sometimes in traditional single family home communities. A failure to obtain ACC approval in advance of making such changes may prove costly for the ill-advised homeowner. The homeowner may be fined and may be required to restore the property to its prior condition. While the homeowner has the bulk of the responsibility when the homeowner wants to make a change, the Board/ ACC bears some responsibility as well. The Board/ACC must employ the same evaluation for applications for similar improvements, and must be consistent in its approval/denial. Whether one homeowner is “easier to work with” than another is immaterial when the Board/ACC is considering each owner’s application for approval for installation of a fence, for example. The aesthetics and design are legitimate factors to consider, but personalities are not. It is also important for the association to address unapproved changes immediately upon noticing them. Many associations’ declarations provide that any alteration in place for a stated period of time (often 90-180 days) without objection is deemed approved, even if the owner never sought approval in the first place. If a homeowner makes an unapproved change, the association may, subject to the terms of its governing documents, Continued on page 14
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Minnesota Communit y Living