Is Your Homestead in an HOA or Governed by Restrictive Covenants?

[Calista]

Well, this was interesting to me. A business friend of my husband's has decided to relocate from California to a "redoubt" state for retirement and wishes to live a sustainable lifestyle on acreage. He and his wife have a good grounding in the skills and mindset required to make a go of it and are now actively searching for that perfect piece of property.

They are considering buying in to an HOA community. The friend knows of our commitment to and interest in being self-sufficient and sent us a copy of the headings for covenants attached to properties sold in this community.

Would you run the other way? Would you be able to achieve your sustainability goals within these parameters? (I do not have access to anything other than covenant headings right now.)

What do you think? Do you consider your HOA and/or covenants reasonable? Are these reasonable?

These are not five-acre "ranchettes" but lots from 20 to 80 acres per family.

Yes, we advised our friend to continue looking. For me personally? I feel suffocated just reading the headings.

General Design Considerations & CriteriaSite Planning Standards
Setbacks
Building Envelopes & Horse Properties
Paths & Terraces
Site Specific Design
Viewshed Protection
Site Disturbance
Grading & Drainage
Erosion & Sediment Control
Hardscaping
Exterior Service Areas
Retaining & Site Walls
Right-of-Way
Driveways & Parking
Tall Walls, Fences, & Gates
Landscape & Outdoor Structures
Hot Tubs, Swimming Pools, Tennis Courts, etc.
Outdoor Landscape Art
Exterior Lighting
Ponds & Water Features
Rainwater Collection
Berming
Weed Management & Mitigation
Architectural Style
Building Orientation
Building Square Footage
Building Height
Roofs
Chimneys
Exterior Walls
Inappropriate Materials
Windows & Doors
Detailing, Trim, & Accent Colors
Porches, Decks, & Balconies
Accessory Structures
Garages
Construction Management Plan
Permits
Inspections and Certificate of Compliance
Changes to Approved Plans
Appeal Process

 

[baymule]

We used to live in the middle of our small town. One night there were lots of police at the tire store across the street, lights flashing, the store alarm was going off. I looked out the blinds and told my husband. He got up, wearing ONLY a shirt and waked out on the porch to get a better look. I told him that wasn't a good idea, but he brushed me off with, "They can't see anything, it's dark." So he proceeds to pee off the porch.......over the loudspeaker on one of the police cars came......"Bobby Joe-you need to get back in the house!"

 

[Beekissed]

We used to live in the middle of our small town. One night there were lots of police at the tire store across the street, lights flashing, the store alarm was going off. I looked out the blinds and told my husband. He got up, wearing ONLY a shirt and waked out on the porch to get a better look. I told him that wasn't a good idea, but he brushed me off with, "They can't see anything, it's dark." So he proceeds to pee off the porch.......over the loudspeaker on one of the police cars came......"Bobby Joe-you need to get back in the house!"

That reminds me of something my middle son did while working the oil fields up in PA. All the guys he lived near, all renting the same houses and rooms nearby, would love to get drunk and dust it up whenever they got off work. Eli doesn't drink, so he has no patience with this kind of thing...especially when he's just come in off a job that lasted 3 days and hadn't seen a bed in that long.

He was awakened by all the yelling and such outside his room, looked out the window to see this crowd of guys yelling, two rolling on the ground fighting, right by his truck. He puts on his boots, grabs his machete and proceeds to go out to the crowd...he's standing there in boots, his underwear, a machete tapping against his leg and he isn't saying a thing. Big, hairy, bearded guy, eerily silent. The crowd slowly stops yelling...things go mysteriously quiet. The guys rolling on the ground fighting notice the silence and stop fighting.

In the distance sirens begin but the crowd was already leaving. One of Eli's roommates touch Eli on the arm and gently suggests he go inside. Eli doesn't say a word, just turns and leaves. The next day one of the guys who was fighting knocks on his door and apologizes for making all that noise and waking him up.

Eli never said a thing the whole while...I guess a grumpy looking bear of a man in his boxer briefs and a machete can really put the damper on a night of drinking and brawling.

Poor guy forgot he wasn't in the sticks anymore and you can't run around in your drawers and work boots and carrying a big knife without scaring folks a little.

 

[milkmansdaughter]

Lol, reminds me of a time two older JW ladies came to our apartment. On the door was a big sign that said, "Night worker. Please do not disturb." Those two ladies found out my husband meant it when he threw open the door dressed only in his drawers, holding a cocked gun.

 

[NH Homesteader]

NH's state motto is Live Free or Die. I can't stand the thought of someone telling me what to do on my own property. RUN!

 

[Beekissed]

Then they built on an addition of equal size. So it looks like half singlewide half cabin.

Like this one? Yes, we are aware it looks like a redneck, hillbilly hodgepodge but we wouldn't trade it for any McMansion in an HOA. For starters we can pee right in the front yard iffen we want to and no one can tell us we can't.

 

[CrealCritter]

Hell no my homestead is not in a HOA or any other type of restriction. If it were, I wouldn't be living here.

 

[sumi]

Hell no, that is ridiculous! Keep looking.

 

[frustratedearthmother]

HOAs (like local or state or federal governments) can go wrong, sometimes idiotically wrong. But so can your 5 or 10 acre unrestricted piece of rural paradise if you happen to be blessed with an ATV running,(yep - got 'em next door) gun wielding, (yep - all of us) heavy-machinery enthused,(do tractors count? - me and the neighbor and half the folks on our street - If I stick mine in the mud the neighbor will pull me out - if my battery is dead I jump on his. If he left his at the deer lease - he jumps on mine) junk car loving redneck neighbor (got one of those too). You can wake up to the smell of gasoline (we all mow - mowers use gasoline - it's the smell of the country) or noise of gunshots (yes) or both combined(YES)! Their kids can become your kids when you find them in your apple trees (love them neighbor kids - my substitute grands!) and their wandering hunting dogs or pit bulls can become your pets too. (or it could be MY dog that wanders and is fairly well tolerated by the neighbors, lol) 'Cause they are not afraid of sharing all of that you see.

See - all that is normal around here and we all tolerate each other and our guns, tractors, mowers, dogs, cats, and kids. For the most part we all have similar ideas and goals. All is well (unless someone cusses my dog!)

 

[Beekissed]

Me too! We were wondering just why our butterfly bush next to the porch was growing so tall and lush this past year...that thing grew to twice it's normal size, both in circumference and in height. And the blossoms were more numerous and bigger, brighter in color!

Just when I was thinking it was due to my tender care, one of my boys told me that he'd been peeing off the porch on that bush every time he comes for a visit...and his brother chimed in and said, "Me too!"