Rental Cap in a HOA

[mikeyboy745]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Virginia
My HOA says that they have implemented a new rule stating that there is a rental cap of 25% of the homes in the association. However the governing documents state nothing to this effect. They tried to get 66 2/3 percent votes but didnt. we even got a letter from an attorney explaining how we needed to vote to change this by law. The association manager is now saying that we need her permission along with the Board of Directors permission to rent our house as long as the rental cap has not been reached. Isnt it required by VA condominium act to have 66 percent of the votes of home owners to ammend by laws. Is this leagal for them to do this if the by laws were not changed and or filed with the city / state?
For the attorney that responds I have .PDF of the by laws that you can review, also the new letter that the Board wrote stating we need to contact them and ask permission (which they have 45 days to respond to) then we have 60 days to find a tenant or we have to start the process over again any help from an attorney would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Zigner]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Virginia
My HOA says that they have implemented a new rule stating that there is a rental cap of 25% of the homes in the association. However the governing documents state nothing to this effect. They tried to get 66 2/3 percent votes but didnt. we even got a letter from an attorney explaining how we needed to vote to change this by law. The association manager is now saying that we need her permission along with the Board of Directors permission to rent our house as long as the rental cap has not been reached. Isnt it required by VA condominium act to have 66 percent of the votes of home owners to ammend by laws. Is this leagal for them to do this if the by laws were not changed and or filed with the city / state?
For the attorney that responds I have .PDF of the by laws that you can review, also the new letter that the Board wrote stating we need to contact them and ask permission (which they have 45 days to respond to) then we have 60 days to find a tenant or we have to start the process over again any help from an attorney would be greatly appreciated.

This is not an attorney referral service. You can find an attorney at attorneypages.com

 

[HomeGuru]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Virginia
My HOA says that they have implemented a new rule stating that there is a rental cap of 25% of the homes in the association. However the governing documents state nothing to this effect. They tried to get 66 2/3 percent votes but didnt. we even got a letter from an attorney explaining how we needed to vote to change this by law. The association manager is now saying that we need her permission along with the Board of Directors permission to rent our house as long as the rental cap has not been reached. Isnt it required by VA condominium act to have 66 percent of the votes of home owners to ammend by laws. Is this leagal for them to do this if the by laws were not changed and or filed with the city / state?
For the attorney that responds I have .PDF of the by laws that you can review, also the new letter that the Board wrote stating we need to contact them and ask permission (which they have 45 days to respond to) then we have 60 days to find a tenant or we have to start the process over again any help from an attorney would be greatly appreciated.

**A: there are 2 issues here: the rental cap and the Board permission. There is no rental cap since there was no change in the By-Laws. The Board permission issue is the topic of discussion. Anything in the condo docs requiring Board permission to rent out your property? Has the Board in the past required approval or is that something new?

 

[mikeyboy745]

**A: there are 2 issues here: the rental cap and the Board permission. There is no rental cap since there was no change in the By-Laws. The Board permission issue is the topic of discussion. Anything in the condo docs requiring Board permission to rent out your property? Has the Board in the past required approval or is that something new?

The Board has been in the process of trying to get this cap put in place for about three years. They have not provided an amendment but are stating we need thier permission which was never the case before, only that we provide the tenants name. Now they want the tenants to sign the rules and regulations of The HOA and that they be given the condo doc as well. Nothing in the docs requires board permission to rent only that the lease can not be less than six months and tenant must be 21 yeras of age or older. The last I heard they did not get 66 percent of the vote to do this. is it legal

 

[HomeGuru]

The Board has been in the process of trying to get this cap put in place for about three years. They have not provided an amendment but are stating we need thier permission which was never the case before, only that we provide the tenants name. Now they want the tenants to sign the rules and regulations of The HOA and that they be given the condo doc as well. Nothing in the docs requires board permission to rent only that the lease can not be less than six months and tenant must be 21 yeras of age or older. The last I heard they did not get 66 percent of the vote to do this. is it legal

**A: then it sounds like what the Board is doing is not consistent with the current By-Laws. Request a legal opinion from the HOA legal counsel.

 

[You Are Guilty]

It may very well not be legal, but boy, are the owners going to be in for a big shock the next time they go to refinance or need a loan. There is a very good reason for the rental cap.

 

[HomeGuru]

It may very well not be legal, but boy, are the owners going to be in for a big shock the next time they go to refinance or need a loan. There is a very good reason for the rental cap.

**A: o/o ratio and now lenders are actually reviewing the reserve study to see if there is adequate reserve funds. It's getting a lot more difficult.

 

[festival]

The Board has been in the process of trying to get this cap put in place for about three years. They have not provided an amendment but are stating we need thier permission which was never the case before, only that we provide the tenants name. Now they want the tenants to sign the rules and regulations of The HOA and that they be given the condo doc as well. Nothing in the docs requires board permission to rent only that the lease can not be less than six months and tenant must be 21 yeras of age or older. The last I heard they did not get 66 percent of the vote to do this. is it legal

A board usually has the authority to adopt rules and regulations in addition to the bylaws and declaration (without an amendment). Some states allow boards to make rules that are reasonably designed to meet underwriting requirements of institutional lenders, which could mean establishing a cap.

They may also be using a rule to register the rental units. It is not necessarily bad for you to get this permission. Then if they do establish a 25% cap, your unit will be part of the 25%.

What is wrong with having a tenant read and agree to the rules and regulations of the owners association? That should be part of your tenant's lease anyway, and the tenant should agree to pay association fines.