Are homeowners who want to paint bound by obsolete rules?

Q The guidelines in our homeowners association have not been revised for decades. A question came up about exterior paint colors. Are the homeowners still bound by the most recent, although antiquated, guidelines? — Ken

A

If the rules and guidelines were valid back then and nothing invalidated them, they are still enforceable.

Community associations can only mandate a color scheme if the community’s formative documents allow them to do so.

I have seen many communities without the authority to set specific guidelines, or require the approval of new residents, do so.

When confronted with their acting outside their authority, the board members were genuinely surprised because previous boards had been doing it the same way for years.

First, you need to check your association’s documents to confirm that the board may have paint color guidelines.

Then you will need to verify that the policy you are looking at is the correct one and were not replaced by rules you are unaware of.

Should this all check out, the community’s color scheme rules are enforceable.

A problem could happen if your community has long ignored these guidelines but is enforcing them now.

All residents need to be treated equally, and a community association may not selectively enforce the rules. What is good for one resident should be good for them all.

If a board wants to implement the regulations again going forward, it will need to republish them, putting everyone on notice that the guidelines will be enforced again.

That said, any properties painted different colors when the rules were not being enforced cannot be made to repaint their home just to comply.

When they decide to repaint their home in the future, they will need to follow the guidelines like everyone else.

Gary M. Singer is a Florida attorney and board-certified as an expert in real estate law by the Florida Bar. He practices real estate, business litigation and contract law from his office in Sunrise, Fla. He is the chairman of the Real Estate Section of the Broward County Bar Association and is a cohost of the weekly radio show Legal News and Review. He frequently consults on general real estate matters and trends in Florida with various companies across the nation. Send him questions online at www. sunsentinel.com/askpro or follow him on Twitter @GarySingerLaw.