Are the Declarations of Covenants, Conditions & Restrictions the only enforceable restrictions?

A unique question from a reader was received this week and I thought it would be interesting to share. A 1987 case, Young v Tortoise Island Homeowners Ass'n Inc., was about a homeowner wanting to install a roof that the HOA did not approve. There was nothing in the Declarations (CCR's) prohibiting the roof. While the court sided with the homeowner and allowed the roof, the court pointed out a very interesting rule of law. The court commented restrictions can be enforced that ARE NOT in the Declarations when there is a "unified scheme" in the community and the homeowner should know that variations are not allowed. The court stated that had the community had homes with only one type of roof (let's use a flat roof as an example), then the homeowner is on notice that no other types of roofs are allowed. This comes up occasionally with chain link fences. If you do not see a chain link fence in your neighborhood then you are on notice chain link fences are not allowed even if they are not mentioned in the Declarations.

Mobile Homeowner Associations

One of my favorite legal websites is www.avvo.com, where readers can post interesting questions.  Today a reader asked me about how to form a homeowners association for mobile home parks, which are voluntary associations under Fla. Stat. 723.  Here's my answer:

There is a special statute for mobile home park lot tenancies, Fla. Stat. Chapter 723. You can organize a HOA, which is voluntary and different from a HOA under Chapter 720 for homes on owned lots. You would need a majority of the members to approve having the HOA represent their interest and it's really a good thing, especially when those lot rent increases come in every year. The Department of Business and Professional Regulations and the Federation of Mobile Home Owners both have materials to help you organize. There are sections of the Florida Administrative Code that also govern the parks and supplement the statutes. You can also partner with other associations in other parks for help. I know most of the associations are willing to be helpful. Check outwww.fmo.org for the Federation of Mobile Home Owners and DBPR's website for the statutes, rules and other materials:http://www.myfloridalicense.com/dbpr/lsc/index.html.