When a Tenant Violates the HOA Rules...

by Tina Merritt

A few years ago, a client of mine was relocating overseas. When I asked about what his plans were for his rental property, he said, "Oh, I'm not worried about it. The tenants are on a multi-year lease and the HOA will keep them in check".

Well, that is not the case. In most states, the HOA has no governing authority at all over tenants; only over members.

Yes, it is the landlord's responsibility to enforce the rules and regulations of the HOA. If there is a fine or penalty for the tenant breaking a rule, the fine is levied against the landlord. It is up to the landlord to get reimbursement from the tenant for the fine.

To help avoid problems, landlords should always give tenants a copy of the HOA rules and regulations and have them sign a document stating they have read and agree to abide by the guidelines of the HOA. Landlord's should also give tenant contact information to the HOA to be used in the case of an emergency.

It is inherently problematic to have a landlord as a middleman between the HOA and tenant. Even worse is a rental property manager added in the middle as well. If you are a "hands-off" landlord, you may want to re-think your position when dealing with a HOA. Let's look at an example:

Landlord owns a property occupied by tenants and handled by a property manager. Tenants go out of town and have a friend house-sit for the weekend. Friend decides to take a swim in the community pool and when finished, leaves a towel hung over the balcony railing of the home. The hanging towel is a violation of the HOA rules and a neighbor calls the HOA, who calls the owner, who calls the property manager, who calls the tenants, who call their house-sitter. Doesn't seem very efficient and appears to be an easy way to upset the neighbors. How about just speaking directly with the adjoining property owners, explain that you are a landlord who cares about the community and your property, give the neighbors your number and ask them to call you personally if there is ever an issue?