One of the best parts about owning your own home is getting to decide what you do with it. From what color to paint your walls to whether you’ll grow your own fruits and veggies in your yard, being a homeowner comes with plenty of freedom.
That is, unless you live in a homeowners association (HOA). Those who live in these types of developments usually have to adhere to strict rules to keep the neighborhood uniform and tidy, or face fines for disobeying. And that’s something that one Nevada homeowner says they are dealing with after receiving a letter from their HOA about the status of their garage. Or, more specifically, what they are allowed to store in their garage.
According to the expert they reached out to, it may be well within the HOA’s rights to determine what you can and cannot use your garage for.
Keep reading to find out more, and to learn what questions you should ask before buying a home located within an HOA.
Homeowner Floored After HOA Says They Can’t Store Items in Their Garage
An anonymous homeowner sent a question into the Las Vegas Review-Journal, sharing the strange request they received from their HOA.
“The HOA in my condo complex is trying to regulate what we keep in our garage,” the letter began. “As far as that goes, they were asking for photos to make sure a car can fit in there and cannot be used as storage. If they were to see that it’s being used as storage, then we would be fined $100 per week. Is this even legal?”
Unfortunately for the homeowner, it sounds like the HOA can make certain demands of residents, including determining where they are allowed to park their car.
“According to the information that the reader sent to me, the association can enforce this parking regulation whereby one car has to be parked in the garage,” the response said.
HOAs Have a Lot of Say About What You Can Do Inside Your Home
It may be hard to believe that HOAs can determine what you do in the privacy of your own home, but the First Service Residential blog says that some HOA boards do have rules about what goes on within the walls of your home. While things like odors, noises, and structural changes are the most common since they can directly impact your neighbors, they do have a certain amount of authority over what happens inside.
For example, they may have rules about whether or not you’re allowed to have pets, or even what types of pets are legal in the development.
Additionally, they may have rules about whether you can rent your property out, or even if you’re allowed to have overnight guests for a certain length of time. Of course, the best time to find out about all of this is before you purchase a home located in an HOA. If you’re looking to buy, you should ask your HOA for a copy of its bylaws and Covenants, Conditions, and Restrictions (CC&Rs). These two documents will help you paint a picture of what kinds of restrictions you could be looking at the community, hopefully helping you to make a more informed decision about whether to buy.