Colorado Temporary Order and Citation - Enforcement of Restrictive Covenant on Residential Property

In respect of covenants, for them to be enforceable, both the benefit and burden must run in common law or both must run in equity. So if the benefit runs in common law but the burden only runs in equity (or vice versa) the covenant will not be enforceable.

If you own a property and unknowingly (or otherwise) breach a restrictive covenant then you could be forced to undo any offending work (such as having to pull down an extension), pay a fee (often running into thousands of pounds) or even face legal action.

A restrictive covenant will generally be enforceable between the original contracting parties as a matter of contract. There can be situations where this is not so, for example, where: The covenant is too uncertain or ambiguous to be capable of enforcement.

What happens if I breach a restrictive covenant? If you own a property and unknowingly (or otherwise) breach a restrictive covenant then you could be forced to undo any offending work (such as having to pull down an extension), pay a fee (often running into thousands of pounds) or even face legal action.

The covenant must be negative (restrictive). There must be a benefited and a burdened land and the two must be reasonably close together close enough for the benefited land to be genuinely adversely affected by a breach. The covenant must actually benefit the benefiting land.

Ignoring a restrictive covenant If you choose to ignore a restrictive covenant, you could potentially face a claim in damages for the breach in addition to any injunctions granted.

If a neighbour threatens to breach a restrictive covenant binding on them you will probably want to obtain an injunction to prevent breach rather than simply claim monetary compensation.Generally only the owner of land which was, or was part of, the land intended to be benefited by the covenant, can enforce it.

Express release: It may be possible to negotiate the release or variation of a restrictive covenant. Indemnity insurance: It is possible to obtain indemnity insurance to protect against the risk of a person with the benefit of a restrictive covenant seeking to enforce it.