Deed Restrictions

Does anybody else on here have a problem with keeping their boats in their drive way because of deed restrictions? I have had mine parked in my driveway this summer and I have an annoying, in everybody elses business neighbor that keeps telling me I need to move it. We have the boat and my wifes explorer in the driveway and I park my truck behind both of them at the end on the street. In my mind this is no worse than the annoying neighbor who has three cars and parks one of them on the street half way in front of my house! I have managed to ignore her all summer but the other day a notice came that our landlord needed to go pick up a certified letter from the home owners association and this is the only thing that I think it could be about. Anyways, I just wanted to vent a little and see if anyone else had the same type of problem.

(Message edited by maxx_wake on August 07, 2006)

thats exactly why i live out in the country!! good luck with that one, if there is an association you most likely gonna be out of luck..

Had a neighbor like that when I lived w/ my folks. Everybody on our street called him a jackass. Kill 'em with kindness, worked for me for quite a while. Well until his wife slapped the roof of my mustang. This was all after they came out side pissed off b/c they said my car was too loud and were screaming and yelling at me about and woke up every other neighbor.

Richard, my thoughts exactly! I grew up in the country but decided to rent this house in January after getting married because we didnt have any money to put down on a house. Now we have a little savings and are looking to buy something with a little more space.

The funny part about the neighbor is that she still likes my wife but completely hates me just because of the boat. I have never been anything but nice to her but she wont even wave if passing by anymore. A couple of weeks ago we were hooked up and about to pull out when she walked outside, my wife waved and she smiled and waved back, I get out to make sure the lights are plugged in and said "hey how are you today". She turned towards me and her face went from smiling to complete evil and she said "I thought you were going to put that thing in storage!" I told her I had it in storage for a little over a month but the place turned out to be pretty shady so I brought it home. She said "well you better find a new place for it soon". I just smiled, said alright and got in my truck and drove off. I told my wife as we drove off that I should never speak to her again because I dont know if I cn bite my tounge anymore. Sorry for the rant but this lady is driving me freakin crazy.

While I can certainly appreciate not wanting to deal with that oh-so-annoying neighbor (I have a few of my own.), if there's a deed restriction in place then you've agreed to abide by it as a condition of the sale. If you're renting, I was under the impression that such restrictions must be made aware to you at some point before signing the lease. Based on that assumption, it would be best for you to do what you agreed to do in the first place and not park the boat in the driveway. I can understand having it at home for a few days while you're between storage facilities but as a permanent solution, I think it's a bad idea. I can see why the neighbor wants all conditions of the deed restrictions met. I have seen first-hand how ignoring a rule here and there can lead to an utter disregard for restrictions that have a very real impact on home values.

If you're renting and you weren't made aware of the restrictions prior to signing the lease, then I would confront the landlord about it. I'm not sure about the legal standing of such a situation but I imagine at the very least you could talk the landlord into ending the lease so you can move somewhere less restrictive.

Chris,

Your not going to like this but here's My point of view.

Did you sign the CCR's when You bought Your house ? If so I don't understand why you have a problem following the rules. In My experience homes with associations make You read and sign the rules before You can buy the house.

The rules are there for good reason and if you don't like them you should move. Could You imagine what your neighborhood would look like with boats (covered with blue tarps), campers and old cars parked every where ?

Has it crossed Your mind that you have no respect for Your neighbors and the rules of the community ?

I'm in the same situation as You and gladly pay for storage because I agreed to the rules when I bought and want My neighborhood to stay nice.


There's a down side to living in the country too. I've seen many beautiful house's in rural areas surrounded by blight. Anyone want to guess what that does to the property value ?


Being a responsible boat owner doesn't end when You leave the lake.

since he rents the house he probablly never got to see the CCR's...

im not sure what "blight" is but i have a feeling i might fit into the category

Main Entry: 1blight
Pronunciation: 'blIt
Function: noun
Etymology: origin unknown
1 a : a disease or injury of plants marked by the formation of lesions, withering, and death of parts (as leaves and tubers) b : an organism (as an insect or a fungus) that causes blight
2 : something that frustrates plans or hopes
3 : something that impairs or destroys
4 : a deteriorated condition <urban>

blight

verb

To spoil or destroy:

You guys definately make valid points. I consider myself to be a respectful person and if anyone had even given me a copy of the deed restrictions I would definatly be more inclined to move the boat. I got the boat a few months after we moved in and the first thing I heard about not being allowed to keep it in my driveway was the rude comments from my neighbor. To this day I have not been givena copy of the restrictions. The only way I knew it was in there was because I looked it up online after talking to the neighbor. We never saw them when signing the lease.

I really like keeping the boat at my house because it is an older boat and I like tinkering on it plus it is so much easier to load up and go. That being said I guess the best thing to do is just be the bigger person and stick it in storage since I am only going to be living there for a few more months anyways.

Chris,

Little known fact about Deed restrictions. They aren't Self enforcing. Meaning that cops, county government, city government or any other form of authority will enforce them for your neighborhood. A Neighbor (or usually, the home owner's association) has to Sue to enforce the provisions of the the HOA CCnR's. This is costly, time consuming (courts don't really want to hear these neighbor vs. Neighbor Squabbles, so catching court calendar dates is tough)and about 50% of the time they side with the the violator, unless there is an extremely to the point restriction.

So, if your in good with your landlord, let him/her know your position and have them "Discuss" the situation with the neighbor. Usually if they say something like "I'll talk with them" you can get by without much trouble. If anything your lease is probably shorter than the resulting case would be.

Good luck

It sounds like the owner of the house set you up for a bad situation then.

The owner of the house is a whole different story. Apharently he doesnt speak English and I have never met or spoken with him. We contact the realator who showed us the house when we first signed the lease for issues with the house. We only had about three days to find a place to live after returning from our honeymoon so we basically took the first decent thing we found knowing we would be buying a house as soon as our lease was up. Oh well, live and learn. Now I am starting to think that I can use all of this as well as the fact that we have made several improvements to the house since we moved in as bartering chips to get out of our lease early and just go ahead and move.

Sounds like a jelaous neighbor to me.

we live in Southern California, Los Angeles County to be exact. In the 2 counties that i have owned homes we have never had anyting written in our deed as far as not being able to store toys in the driveway. Although we have never lived in an HOA area for that reason. We normally store a 26 foot Toy Hauler trailer in our driveway and have had our new boat here for a couple weeks until we get it out to our river house. I have never had any problems at all. Sherrifs drive by all day long and have never been cited. We also line in a unincorporated city. I know some cities are different even if you do not have an HOA.

That is a bummer that neighbors can be they way. I would be extra nice hoping maybe they would take me out for a ride. haha lol... Like I said sounds like a jealous neighbor to me. There are many of them around.

Good luck...

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Sounds like a jelaous neighbor to me.

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And how did you come up with that ?

You MIGHTTTT have a way out. Just depends. If these covenants have not been filed w/ the city you live in, then there is nothing they can do to you, besides the HOA giving you a ticket w/ no way to enforce it. It's not a legal ticket in that case.

As a developer I make sure each covenants I declare is on file w/ the city. This is mainly to protect my investment and keep property values up. As most of my developments have a minimum of 5000 sq ft., my customers don't want someone coming in w/ a house that is only 2500 sq ft. and ruining their re-sale. Since I file these w/ the city, if I let someone build a smaller house, then the Home owners Assoc. can sue me.

I have seen the other end w/ other shady developers that don't file their covenants and promise people all sorts of stuff. After a few lots are sold, they start letting stuff that isn't supposed to fly, pass. In this instance, the home owners have no legal recourse.

Since your renting however you may need to pour over your rental agreement. If there is nothing in there about it, go down to city hall and ask to see the filed covenants for "X" addition to your particular city.

But, you also need to consider that you have to live in that neighborhood. Do you really want those people pissed at you?

I once lived in an subdivision with an HOA. Covenants said no boats, trailers or non-operating cars in the driveway for more than 24 hours. We had sold our home and were in the process of packing to move from Cleveland,OH to Tennessee. Brought the trailer home from storage to avoid another months rent. I received a citation from the police after 2 days saying we had 4 hours to correct the situation. The packers were in the house working with the truck coming the next morning. One of our wondeful neighbors had complained. Said if they let us do this they would have to allow exceptions for everyone. Couldnt wait to leave that place.

Walt - Just trying to make light of the situation. There are people out there that dont like to see other succeed and will do what they can to see it stop, but there are others who just want their neighborhood to look nice, which is not a problem. Just meant for a laugh..

In my neighborhood you can not leave it un-hooked for more than 24 hours. If it is hooked up there is no time limit. I would check and see what you're restrictions are. GOOD LUCK!

I have CCR's in my neighborhood and love them. It keep's the neighborhood looking nice and clean. At my old house we lived in a culdesac and my neighbors had this huge, brown, beat up motorhome and that's all I could see when I looked out my front window. It was annoying as hell but no CCR's so I had to deal with it. Now people pull motorhome's in etc for a day or two, load them up and they are gone. That's not an issue. But if it's long term, they gotta go.

It sucks that the landlord did not notify you before you moved in but sounds like the neighbors got you.

Just pondering...

It seems that a violation of the deed restriction would be a violation against the property and or owner? As a renter, you never agreed to these restrictions. Maybe there's local city code that binds the renter to the covenants?

If the violation goes against the land owner...then let it.

The other thing that peeks my curiosity. What does the city code say about parking on the street. In the city I live in, you can park a boat on the street as long as it's attached to a truck. (because it's in transit) Many years ago, we were able to get around my parent's covenants by doing this. Cop would come down the street and write tickets on 3-4 boats, but if we were hitched up, he didn't do anything to us.

Chris,
I live just outside of spring and I have a storage place that is well maintained and has cement floors. It is about $80 per month but is well worth it. I have gotten 2 notices from my HOA and my boat was only parked out front while I was home and using it. I can get you the number if intrested. He is in the process of building about 6 new units 1 might be available.

I know this choice is not for everyone, but move. I lived in HOA, that sent me letters that I was in complianc. I had two boats in my driveway, had to threaten to sue, but in the end it got old. I moved closer to work, no restrictions, no problems, just bliss. I will never live in a place with an HOA again.

Yeah I am pretty sure I am just going to move. I am sick of the neighborhood and my Landlord so I think we are going to seriously start looking for a house. One of my requirements for the new house is definately going to be either a big garage that I can put the boat in or access to the backyard so I can build a covered parking spot for it back there. I am tired of it sitting outside anyways. I will be sure to check out the deed restrictions before we purchase anything so I know what I can and cant build and what I can and cant park on my own property before we make a deal. Thanks for all of the comments.

Matt, will you send me the number for that storage place just in case we we end up staying for longer than expected and I have to move it. Thanks.

Chris:

Many communities have restrictions about parking RVs, boats, etc. Condos, townhouses, and other and other "association" based communities generally have fairly strict rules, but many cities have similar rules.

It is not uncommon for a city to ban the parking of boats or RVs in the front of a property, including the driveway. Most cities ban the parking of anything on a non-hard surface, such as the front lawn.

In many cases the laws aren't enforced unless a neighbor complains. Too bad you have such a neighbor.

If/when you move, check out the city codes before you buy!

The only way for them to enforce it is to sue you. So let them. By the time they get ready to sue you it will be winter.

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The only way for them to enforce it is to sue you. So let them. By the time they get ready to sue you it will be winter.

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That's a nice neighborly mentality.