Florida HOA Lawyer Blog
For all those who reside in communities governed by homeowner associations or are buying into one for the first time, you should be aware of documents referred to as the covenants, conditions and restrictions of such community, or CCRs in industry parlance for short. These CCRs, together with an association’s articles of incorporation, by-laws, and rules and regulations, comprise the governing provisions with which all owners in a community must abide, and they are given the effect of a legally binding agreement to which all the owners governed by the association are bound.
For some sprawling HOA communities, minimum square-footage requirements are common provisions found in such covenants. These restrictions on the size of homes within a community are aimed at maintaining uniformity as to the types of homes located within it. Homes that are too small or too big by comparison to all the others might be considered to have a detrimental effect on the property values for the enclave.
Architectural restrictions covering property improvements are also almost always in place. Again, the goal with these is to help ensure architectural aesthetics and cohesion. Homeowners and the architects they hire must pay careful attention to the architectural planning criteria to which all modifications or improvements to homes within a community must abide so as to keep in compliance with the association’s standards and to uphold its community appeal.