Strike a balance between keeping your tenants happy and your HOA satisfied by getting familiar with their laws and policies. If you’re a homeowner looking to let out your property for some extra cash, it’s essential to factor in your HOA’s rules. It’s not enough to find a tenant that meets your criteria, you also have to ensure they can follow community rules or you risk paying fines for offenses you didn’t commit. Some HOAs also have policies that affect what renovations you can make and under what circumstances you can even rent your property. Read along with this article for tips on how to have a good working relationship with your HOA while running a successful rental business.
Table of Contents
Understanding the Role of the HOA in Rental Properties
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Enforce Community Rules
Steer clear of trouble by following your HOA’s community rules. Most HOAs have guidelines on things like parking, noise control, and exterior modification to prevent one tenant from inconveniencing another. For example, a renter playing loud music till late hours would certainly disturb other property owners, so the HOA might enforce a law on quiet hours to keep neighbors from enduring loud music all night long.
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Approve Tenants
Improve your chances of getting a high-quality tenant by following HOA policies on rental approval. It’s not uncommon for high-end neighborhoods to demand a say on who lives within their premises. While that might sound drastic, the extra background check helps maintain a standard of resident behavior and ensures that any tenant coming in aligns with the community’s values. The HOA might ask for information on your prospective tenants’ income, work history, and criminal record.
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Maintain Common Areas
Maintain your curb appeal by paying HOA fees that are allotted for maintaining the neighborhood’s common areas. For communities that share amenities such as pools, parks, or basketball courts, it’s common for residents to chip in a little to ensure the pool is clean, the flowers are watered, and the court gets an occasional repaint. The amenities remain in good condition for both homeowners and tenants as a result of the HOA’s responsibility for collecting these fees and outsourcing the job to a professional. The roles of a HOA manager and a property manager differ primarily in terms of the groups they serve.
Common Points of Conflict Between Landlords and HOA Management
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Tenant Violations
Avoid having friction with your HOA by undergoing a thorough tenant screening process. When tenants flaunt HOA rules by disregarding policies on parking or property upkeep, the HOA often has to take it up with the property owner. As a result, tenant violations are the most significant sources of conflict between landlords and HOAs and a frequent cause of tension.
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Rental Restrictions
Check your HOA’s policies to confirm if they have any rental restrictions. The more rentals a community has, the higher the insurance policy tends to be. Thus, to protect other homeowners from paying excessive premiums for coverage, some HOAs restrict the number of properties that can be rented at any time. Alternatively, they may also place restrictions on homeowners renting out their property unless they’ve resided in the house for up to a year or more.
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Property Maintenance
Keep up with your HOA’s property standards to avoid getting a fine. These standards include placing limitations on how long your rental agreements can be, and what your home’s exterior can look like. For example, some HOAs could demand how often they expect homeowners to repaint their houses, or what type of roof they can use. Hiring a dedicated HOA property manager in Philadelphia can help mitigate potential conflicts, especially when landlords deem some of these costs unnecessary.
How Can Landlords’ Rights Be Protected Without Violating HOA Bylaws
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Review HOA Bylaws
Go over your HOA’s bylaws carefully to avoid violating policies out of ignorance. In most cases, HOAs even clearly state that it is your responsibility as the property owner to read and follow the rules. Understanding the regulations can help plan accordingly and avoid potential conflicts. For example, if you know an HOA has a small rental cap, you may opt for a different property to avoid prolonged vacancies due to community policies.
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Create Clear Lease Agreements
Maintain harmony between your tenants and HOA by including community rules in your rental agreement. Sometimes tenant violations are a major issue for all parties because renters simply don’t know the right thing to do. If you want to ensure your tenants turn off their loudspeakers at 7 pm, stick to their parking spot, and bring the trash out only on Tuesdays, put it in your lease. That way, you ensure you only get tenants that can live by your HOA’s rules.
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Negotiate Reasonable Amendments
Advocate for fair policies by requesting amendments to restrictive or outdated policies. You don’t necessarily have to roll on your back when encountering a HOA law that doesn’t sit right with you. Rather than breaking the HOA rules, try to negotiate amendments that benefit your community. You’ll find that other landlords and homeowners may support your stance on reviewing the rental cap or lifting any home modification ban.
Conclusion
Balancing power between HOA management and landlords can be tricky, and you might even feel like they’re more of a nuisance to your business. That’s why you need to recognize that HOAs play an essential role in maintaining common areas that boost your rental’s appeal and enforcing community rules that keep public harmony. They can even help you land high-quality renters by setting policies on tenant approval.
When tenants break community laws or fail to maintain property standards, it can be a pain having to answer your HOA. It’s important to review your HOA bylaws and plan accordingly with a clear objective in mind to include these rules in your rental agreement. This can also help you prevent bringing in tenants that don’t align with your HOA’s policies.
