If you’d like to know more about being a Member of a Homeowners Association like ours, read on.
Our Homeowners Association falls under the category of HOAs governed by Chapter 720 of the Florida Statutes. The Declaration of Covenants that governs our HOA was first recorded in 1993, and was extended and amended in 1997, 1999 and 2004. The last amendment provided for the development of Phase III, which essentially completed the overall development of the Buckhead Properties.
Florida law and related case law provide that a covenant is a commitment, agreement or contract which grants a right or imposes a liability. The recorded declaration of covenants for a community “runs with the land” as a set of permanent restrictions governing its use. According to Florida case law, when covenants run with the land, a person who assumes ownership of a parcel of the land also assumes ownership with the presumed knowledge of the covenants. In other words, each new parcel owner is presumed to know and understand the content of the documents governing the homeowners association and the community.[1]
Because it is a seller’s responsibility to make a buyer aware of the existence of a community’s governing covenants, the Tallahassee Board of Realtors’ (TBR) standardized Homeowners Association Community Disclosure form specifically informs all buyers of this fact prior to the execution of any Sales Contract. This form is required to be signed or initialed by the buyer(s) in all real property sales. In addition, the TBR’s Sales Contract advises buyers to seek out a copy of any applicable Restrictive Covenants for more detail.
[1]The Law of Florida Homeowner Associations, 9th Edition, P. Dunbar, Esq / C. Dudley, Esq.
See also Sec. 720.401(1), F.S.