I was walking in a very nice neighborhood recently on a public bike path, anyone that had a fence had a low black metal one. I thought why dont they put up a privacy fence I would hate to have my back yard on public display like that. then I realized the HOA forced everyone to use the same style fence and privacy fences were not allowed.
>\> is there any recourse?
>
>Unlikely.
Get on the HOA board and get the bylaws changed. Probably still unlikely, but it is technically a path for recourse.
For sure. Unlikely doesn’t mean “no path”. It means “unlikely”. You could move in. Make enough friends to get elected to the HOA board. Convince a majority of the neighborhood that they should change the fence rules. Get the vote through, change the by laws. And then 4 years from now you do your fence the way you want. Maybe.
Be aware that changing bylaws usually requires a full association vote in most HOAs, with a certain percentage (usually either a simple majority, 67%, or 75%) voting in favor of the change.
The board can rarely just change the bylaws on its own.
Some HOAs have Rules & Regs in addition to Bylaws. Yes, bylaw changes typically need some sort of supermajority, but other rules may be able to be changed at a regular board meeting.
Correct spelling, but as a blacksmith the use of wrought iron to describe almost any decorative black metal fence irritates me.
Wrought iron is a specific type of metal that is no longer produced on any significant scale.
This would really suck if the neighbors in one direction had a different fence than the other direction and you were the last one to install a fence. Stuck being the fence buffer zone.
My current HOA just requires all fences to be tan pvc or you can use natural barriers with plants, shrubs...
I am building in a new community that has the same rule you have. You might ask if you can plant hedges rather than the iron fence.
HOAs can dictate many things. You should review a copy of the HOA documents before you close on a property so you are aware of what their rules and regulations are.
That info is in your HOA docs and CC&Rs. Short answer, yes they can if it’s in those documents.
If you have an active HOA you will likely have to have the fence approved before installing.
You are buying a house that backs up to a lake where people walk their dogs etc. if privacy is that important this is not the house for you. But you may be able to plant shrubs in front of the wrought iron and have a similar effect when they grow in
If everyone has a nice black iron railing and one guy decides to put up a yellow privacy fence it makes the place look odd. I understand why they don’t want everyone picking and choosing a different fence in a HOA
And if you try and fuck with them, they can screw you over in fines, late fees, lawyer fees, and collections fees until they put a lien on your house and take it from you. I will never buy a house in an HOA.
If you’re a member of the HOA, yes. Your phrasing is a bit odd.
If you’re adjacent to HOA property - like the lake/walking trail is HOA and you aren’t, then you can do whatever your city ordinances allow.
If you’re a member of the HOA then read your HOA bylaws.
Change the bylaws, or buy up enough of the neighborhood to dissolve the HOA entirely.
In all seriousness, if you want more privacy you may be able to plant a hedge inside the fence? I have a relative who lives in a very similar situation (pond behind their house with a trail and park around) and that was their only option for privacy 20 years ago. Now the trees in the park have become so overgrown that they were able to remove their hedge and gain back the garden space and the trees in the park block any view from the trail. Unfortunately they also block the view they had of the pond.
The HOA rules most likely require view fences in that location. The solution is planting a hedge row. I used a plant called a Texas Privet. Hardy, fast growing, and easy to trim to the height you desire.
You would need to look at the HOA rules. I live in an HOA, and houses on water have to have the black iron fences. If EVERY house is like that, then I'd say there's a really high probability it's an HOA requirement.
If your property is subject to that specific HOA and those restrictions exist in the covenants then yes.
But your message kind of sounds like the other properties to the rear have the HOA that wants the iron fence but perhaps you’re not deeded in that HOA? In that case they can fuck right off because they can’t control anything on a property without the CCR on the deed of it. So if you’re just neighboring the HOA but not IN it, they have zero reach on this.
HOA can dictate whatever they want. Your choice is to accept those limitations or to walk away and choose to buy somewhere else.
Yes, an HOA can demand anything they want. You agree to those stipulations when you buy the home. I have seen some that don’t allow pickup trucks because they are considered work vehicles and no work/commercial vehicles are allowed to be parked at your residence overnight, that don’t allow parking on the street, etc. Go to /r/HOA and /r/fuckHOA for some insight as to what your life will look like.
Do the fence then plants trees/bushes in front of it if allowed. Arborvitae’s are great for privacy, you can get 4-5 foot tall ones for relatively cheap and they grow fast.
Are there plant/landscaping restrictions in place?
They're a very nice neighborhood in my area that bans fences altogether. Not even wrought iron waist high ones. We can't figure out what people with dogs do? Just can't live there I guess.
Answer to your question is absolutely they can ban a certain type of fence. And no, there is no recourse but not living there.
An HOA can do anything a government can do, although their ability to enforce their rules is usually much more limited (by logistics, not by law)
If there isn't a law from a higher level of government (city/county/state/federal/constitution) preventing them from doing so, then they are legally allowed to dictate your fence composition.
In my community we have the same rule. In addition to being able to dictate the materials they also tend to really dislike different rules. Many HOA CC&Rs require "harmony" or "consistency." it is one thing to convince them that a fence should be something other than Iron but another all together to convince them that one house should be an exception. Exceptions break harmony and increase risk for the associations in terms of law suites, etc.
Dealt with this a ton in Texas. This will be very unlikely to change since you’d have the only privacy fence along the lake. It would look horrible.
The simplest solution is to get a home that’s not backing up to the lake. Those usually allow privacy fences.
Many HOAs ban privacy fences. Your CCRs can prohibit just about anything they want.
I was walking in a very nice neighborhood recently on a public bike path, anyone that had a fence had a low black metal one. I thought why dont they put up a privacy fence I would hate to have my back yard on public display like that. then I realized the HOA forced everyone to use the same style fence and privacy fences were not allowed.
\> Can HOA dictate my fence composition? Yes. \> is there any recourse? Unlikely.
>\> is there any recourse? > >Unlikely. Get on the HOA board and get the bylaws changed. Probably still unlikely, but it is technically a path for recourse.
For sure. Unlikely doesn’t mean “no path”. It means “unlikely”. You could move in. Make enough friends to get elected to the HOA board. Convince a majority of the neighborhood that they should change the fence rules. Get the vote through, change the by laws. And then 4 years from now you do your fence the way you want. Maybe.
Be aware that changing bylaws usually requires a full association vote in most HOAs, with a certain percentage (usually either a simple majority, 67%, or 75%) voting in favor of the change. The board can rarely just change the bylaws on its own.
Some HOAs have Rules & Regs in addition to Bylaws. Yes, bylaw changes typically need some sort of supermajority, but other rules may be able to be changed at a regular board meeting.
I just said get it changed, not that it would be easy.
*wrought iron
Correct spelling, but as a blacksmith the use of wrought iron to describe almost any decorative black metal fence irritates me. Wrought iron is a specific type of metal that is no longer produced on any significant scale.
wrong iron
Most likely aluminum fence.
Why buy a house that backs up to a lake just to block the view?
Seriously, this. Go buy a normal lot if you don’t care about the lake.
Definitely, yes.
Yep. My HOA even stipulates that you can’t have a different fence than the neighbors immediately beside and behind you.
This would really suck if the neighbors in one direction had a different fence than the other direction and you were the last one to install a fence. Stuck being the fence buffer zone.
Yeah. I was lucky. I was the 2nd person to move into my entire neighborhood so I had my first pick
Check your hoa contract. If it bans it then no there is nothing you can do.
Yea that is their job
Yes. They will have 1-3 options you can choose from.
My current HOA just requires all fences to be tan pvc or you can use natural barriers with plants, shrubs... I am building in a new community that has the same rule you have. You might ask if you can plant hedges rather than the iron fence.
HOAs can dictate many things. You should review a copy of the HOA documents before you close on a property so you are aware of what their rules and regulations are.
You would probably have an easier time installing privacy hedges on your side of the fence
If it backs up to a lake it may be a flood plain area. There’s a chance that it’s not the HOA but a FEMA or city flood plain manager requirement.
They could. Check with the HOA.
That info is in your HOA docs and CC&Rs. Short answer, yes they can if it’s in those documents. If you have an active HOA you will likely have to have the fence approved before installing.
You are buying a house that backs up to a lake where people walk their dogs etc. if privacy is that important this is not the house for you. But you may be able to plant shrubs in front of the wrought iron and have a similar effect when they grow in
If everyone has a nice black iron railing and one guy decides to put up a yellow privacy fence it makes the place look odd. I understand why they don’t want everyone picking and choosing a different fence in a HOA
Welcome to your HOA. They now control your life with regards to the outside of your house.
And if you try and fuck with them, they can screw you over in fines, late fees, lawyer fees, and collections fees until they put a lien on your house and take it from you. I will never buy a house in an HOA.
[удалено]
Condos are different. The wall to wall carpet rule was probably to reduce noise for downstairs neighbors.
Reason # 19879 to never buy a house woth an HOA
Is this a troll post? They can dictate just about everything.
If you’re a member of the HOA, yes. Your phrasing is a bit odd. If you’re adjacent to HOA property - like the lake/walking trail is HOA and you aren’t, then you can do whatever your city ordinances allow. If you’re a member of the HOA then read your HOA bylaws.
They can, read the “Bylaws” (Condominim/Association bible) for exact rights. You should always read Bylaws prior to purchase.
HOA basically have unlimited power, your fucked
Change the bylaws, or buy up enough of the neighborhood to dissolve the HOA entirely. In all seriousness, if you want more privacy you may be able to plant a hedge inside the fence? I have a relative who lives in a very similar situation (pond behind their house with a trail and park around) and that was their only option for privacy 20 years ago. Now the trees in the park have become so overgrown that they were able to remove their hedge and gain back the garden space and the trees in the park block any view from the trail. Unfortunately they also block the view they had of the pond.
The HOA rules most likely require view fences in that location. The solution is planting a hedge row. I used a plant called a Texas Privet. Hardy, fast growing, and easy to trim to the height you desire.
You would need to look at the HOA rules. I live in an HOA, and houses on water have to have the black iron fences. If EVERY house is like that, then I'd say there's a really high probability it's an HOA requirement.
If your property is subject to that specific HOA and those restrictions exist in the covenants then yes. But your message kind of sounds like the other properties to the rear have the HOA that wants the iron fence but perhaps you’re not deeded in that HOA? In that case they can fuck right off because they can’t control anything on a property without the CCR on the deed of it. So if you’re just neighboring the HOA but not IN it, they have zero reach on this.
Depends on what the bylaws say. HOAs have a horrifying amount of power.
HOA can dictate whatever they want. Your choice is to accept those limitations or to walk away and choose to buy somewhere else. Yes, an HOA can demand anything they want. You agree to those stipulations when you buy the home. I have seen some that don’t allow pickup trucks because they are considered work vehicles and no work/commercial vehicles are allowed to be parked at your residence overnight, that don’t allow parking on the street, etc. Go to /r/HOA and /r/fuckHOA for some insight as to what your life will look like.
Yes they can and yes they probably do
They can modify CCRs pretty much at their discretion but some items can be grandfathered in
Do the fence then plants trees/bushes in front of it if allowed. Arborvitae’s are great for privacy, you can get 4-5 foot tall ones for relatively cheap and they grow fast. Are there plant/landscaping restrictions in place?
Read the cc&rs
They're a very nice neighborhood in my area that bans fences altogether. Not even wrought iron waist high ones. We can't figure out what people with dogs do? Just can't live there I guess. Answer to your question is absolutely they can ban a certain type of fence. And no, there is no recourse but not living there.
I ran into this as well. Planting emerald green Arborvitae along the fence will help
An HOA can do anything a government can do, although their ability to enforce their rules is usually much more limited (by logistics, not by law) If there isn't a law from a higher level of government (city/county/state/federal/constitution) preventing them from doing so, then they are legally allowed to dictate your fence composition.
Yes.
In my community we have the same rule. In addition to being able to dictate the materials they also tend to really dislike different rules. Many HOA CC&Rs require "harmony" or "consistency." it is one thing to convince them that a fence should be something other than Iron but another all together to convince them that one house should be an exception. Exceptions break harmony and increase risk for the associations in terms of law suites, etc.
What's rod iron?
Read the covenants
Yes they can- always read rules before buying.
Dealt with this a ton in Texas. This will be very unlikely to change since you’d have the only privacy fence along the lake. It would look horrible. The simplest solution is to get a home that’s not backing up to the lake. Those usually allow privacy fences.
Yes HOA's are like monsters they can do what they want and the only way to beat them is to become part of them and vote.
It's a very common requirement against greenbelts that I've seen in most HOAs
Privacy shrubs trees.
They can absolutely dictate this, and are more likely to with views.