This By-Laws document for a condominium association contains information concerning: restrictions, the board of directors, and the advisary committee.
Condominium Bylaws And In Santa Clara
Category:
State:
Multi-State
County:
Santa Clara
Control #:
US-00452
Format:
Word;
Rich Text
Instant download
Description
Free preview
Form popularity
FAQ
An HOA has the authority to enforce the rules and regulations of the community using the community rules, or “bylaws and covenants.” These rules are considered “agreed upon” since homeowners approve them through board-elected representatives.
The new HOA law in California, passed in September 2024, includes amendments to the Davis-Stirling Act of 1985. These amendments make it possible for HOAs to conduct elections online rather than through costly and time-consuming paper balloting.
Laws always supersede governing documents IF they conflict and the law applies to your HOA. In California, the Davis-Stirling Act may take precedent over general corporation codes because it's specific to HOAs.
What are unenforceable HOA rules? Keep you out of court. Hush up litigation. Discriminate indiscriminately. Enter your home without cause or notice. String you out on the (clothes)line. Fine you for fun. Change rules on the fly. Demand you take down your dish.
In 2024, the California legislature passed an amendment that allowed online elections to be held within HOAs. It recognized that this could open the door to digital vote manipulation within the HOA's management, though, so the state mandated that each HOA election needed to have an independent inspector of elections.
HOAs are usually governed by a board of directors or governors that is elected by the homeowners to make decisions about the HOA and enforce its rules. Most HOAs in California are set up as nonprofit mutual benefit corporations, but some may be structured differently.
For single-family residential properties, fences are generally limited to three (3) feet in height in the required front yard or street. Behind the required front yards and corner street side yards, fences are generally limited to six (6) feet in height with one (1) foot of open/non-solid lattice material on top.
In some states, such as California, HOA bylaws are considered public record and must be made available upon request. In other states, such as Virginia, HOA bylaws are not considered public record and therefore are not required to be made publicly available.
More important, most inium documents were written by developer lawyers for the primary benefit of the developer. As a board member, you have a responsibility to ensure that owners can live with your condo documents. The declaration and bylaws of your association are your constitution.
Generally speaking, the declaration is the document that creates the inium. The bylaws spell out the day-to-day operations of the association. If your association is more than 10 years old and the bylaws have remained unchanged, board members may want to consider making updates.
