The availability of homes for rent is on the rise. Currently, 36.6 percent of households rent their homes. This means you’re likely to find at least one home for rent in most neighborhoods.
As a renter, you also become part of that community. You’ll get access to neighborhood amenities, such as a pool, playground, clubhouse or tennis court. You’ll also become a member of the Home Owner’s Association if there is one. This membership comes with a set of rules and regulations revolving around the common interest areas if the neighborhood.
Many people have a love-hate relationship with their HOA. This usually stems from how strict the rules are and how often neighbors report infractions. Complaints often vary by age, but the most common include loud music, pet waste left in yards and the appearance of the lawn.
HOAs and renters
When you sign the lease on your home, ask your landlord for access to the HOA guidelines. There’s usually a formal document. Get clarifications on which regulations you must follow. The rest are for the property owner to maintain.
Don’t worry about the part of the document that talks about HOA fees. Those remain the responsibility of the property owner. You should also ask for contact information for the HOA board, just in case.
Covenants, conditions and restrictions
HOAs write up covenants, conditions and restrictions, also known as CC&Rs. These cover resident behavior, architecture and common responsibilities. Most likely, the CC&Rs you’ll need to worry about as a renter fall under the common responsibilities section. These can consist of a few, basic items that help keep the neighborhood looking nice, or can get extremely specific.
At times, CC&Rs limit the number of trees allowed in the front yard or contact you when grass hangs too far over the curb. The following list covers an assortment of CC&Rs you might see from an HOA.
1. Community Pool
- General pool rules for anyone at the pool
- Guest policy limitations or any cost to invite guests to the pool. Procedures for hosting special events poolside.
- Restrictions on what items you can bring into the pool area, such as glass containers
- Hours the pool is open
- Requirements for underage pool visitors. These can include what age they can come unsupervised or young children needing a swim diaper.
2. Pets
- Leash requirements for when a pet is outside of the enclosed yard
- Requirements to pick up pet waste
- Policies against roaming pets that come and go out of the home unsupervised
- Noise restrictions for loud barking or meowing
- Preventing certain breeds from being in the neighborhood at all
3. Landscaping
- Maintaining curb appeal by keeping the lawn, bushes, etc. looking nice. This usually means regular watering and mowing. You can also hire a landscape company for regular maintenance.
- Immediate treatment of weeds
- Rules against overgrown areas within the lawn
4. Parking
- Speed regulations while diving in the community
- Set areas where you can park and where you can’t, especially overnight
- Prohibitions against cars on cinder blocks, parking on the lawn or keeping cars that leak in the driveway. These can mess with the aesthetic of the neighborhood, a major area HOAs enforce.
- Guidelines for commercial vehicles parking overnight in front of a home
5. General nuisances
- Breakdown of noise restrictions, which can include loud talking, yelling and music. This sets a time when things need to quiet down around the neighborhood.
- Prevention of outdoor odors such as trash, pets or cigarettes
- Regulations about garbage. Timeframes for when you can take it out for pick-up and how soon garbage cans must come in after trash collection. These can also include the rule that trash cans get stored out of sight.
- Criteria to prevent any outdoor clutter, from trash to basic home items such as children’s toys
6. Holiday decorations
- Set times of year decorations can go up, and when you must take them down
- Limitations on the total size of a display
- Rules to protect the impact decorations have on neighbors. These often set time limits for when flashing lights or music must go off at night.
If you break a rule
There’s a pretty good chance your HOA won’t include this entire list of CC&Rs. There’s also the possibility that at some point, you’ll break an existing rule. It happens. Maybe you’ve only just moved in and haven’t had time to mow the lawn, but you get notified about landscape upkeep. Maybe you invite friends to the pool and they bring extra guests so you exceed the limit.
Regardless, the best course of action is to take care of the issue as soon as possible. If, for some reason, it’s something you can’t easily address, contact the property owner before reaching out to the HOA.
“Landlords must enforce the community’s rules when tenants lease property from them,” says RealManage.com. Luckily, this means the HOA can’t take direct action against a renter. They have to go through the property owner to resolve the issue.
The best way to stay on top of your responsibilities with an HOA is to know the rules. Asking for any documentation related to the HOA when you sign the lease can ensure you avoid any issues in your new community.
