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The Importance of Covenant Compliance

A common interest community is a collection of real estate lots that are subject to a declaration document (aka CC&Rs). The lots are subject to the CC&Rs regardless of who owns the lot. When you closed on your home and signed on the dotted line, you as the owner agreed to abide by the declarations of that community.

The CC&Rs are the governing legal documents that set up the guidelines for the operations of the planned community as a non-profit corporation. The CC&Rs were recorded by the County in which the property is located and are included in the title to your property. 

The reason the HOA has rules, regulations and covenants is to ensure proper order, harmony and running of the community. Without these basic tenets of organization everyone living in the neighborhood would be free to do as they pleased, leading to many issues and problems related to property values, quality of life, safety, enjoyment of property, overall appearance and maintenance. Homeowners in part chose TrailMark for its appearance, attention to safety and continued maintenance of community. 

The TrailMark HOA does not have a full time inspector on site. Inspections are random on purpose and between inspections a violation may occur. We ask that residents do their part in keeping the community neat and attractive by calling or emailing the compliance officer so she can place the concern on her list for inspection. You can stay anonymous and you don’t have to feel as though you are complaining. You are rightfully concerned about a property that is in need of attention.

Keep in mind that a violation of the CC&Rs is not considered an emergency and if you feel an issue is such please call the Littleton Police Department for assistance.

The HOA hopes to gain VOLUNTARY compliance with residents and does not want to issue fines or demanding letters and notices. The homeowner’s lack of action or communication will be the determining factor when pursuing further action.

If your property is found to be in violation you may see the following process occur:

Issuance of a Courtesy Notice – Please don’t take offense to this notice. The Courtesy Notice provides an opportunity to educate and inform residents that a violation has been identified and needs to be corrected. The notice includes contact information, and we encourage residents to ask questions, request extensions if necessary or just inform the inspector that the violation is being addressed. You may already be aware of the problem but that isn’t information we are aware of.

Issuance of an Advisory Letter – An Advisory Letter may be issued if the first Courtesy Notice appears to have been ignored and the violation is noted during a second inspection. In some cases an Advisory Letter may be the first notice issued depending on the circumstances. We encourage all homeowners to contact the inspector after any notice is issued so the need for further action can be avoided. If the violation remains and you have not made contact with the inspector, the natural assumption will be that you are choosing to ignore the notice.

Further Notices – If the violation still remains and no satisfactory communication toward resolution has occurred between the inspector and the resident the HOA can begin to issue fines. This, of course, is not the route the Board wishes to take but the property owner’s actions or lack thereof will put the Board in a position where they have to take legal action in order to fulfill their responsibilities to the Community. Again this is something we wish to avoid.

Please keep in mind that there is a specific legal process that is followed and some of these concerns take time to resolve. It is important to refrain from making assumptions that “nothing has been done.” You will probably be surprised to find that in fact a lot has been done behind the scenes. If an issue appears to be unresolved, most of the time it is because the owner has failed to respond or has chosen to ignore the notices or in some cases has made approved arrangements for an extension. We encourage you to call Covenant Compliance and ask what the status is of a particular concern before you make that assumption. Specifics cannot be divulged but we can tell you if a property has an open active case.

Remember that you chose to live in a common interest community with rules and conditions. These rules and conditions benefit you in many ways. Having to put your trash containers away at night after pick-up seems silly but if everyone felt that way and left them out no one would like the cluttered look of the community. Removing your basketball hoop from the street or sidewalk may be inconvenient but if everyone placed them in the streets or on the sidewalks, the snow plows and street sweepers will not be effective and the community sidewalks would be impassable for those with special needs, seniors who need a stable place to walk or just the young kids who want to ride their toys on the sidewalk. No one should be forced out into the street.

It is the responsibility of everyone in the community to follow the rules and set an example for others. Property values and appearance are important to everyone especially when your home is your biggest investment.