Restrictive covenants against property were historically not favored under the law. Statutes and court opinions throughout the United States instead favored that property owners should be able to use their property how the owners would like, as long as such use does not violate local, state, or federal law, and that covenants restricting the use of land should be limited. Following that general consensus throughout the country, Georgia law likewise generally provided at Code Section 44-5-60...
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The first part of this article addresses Georgia Code Section 44-5-60, which is the Georgia statute that generally pertains to the duration of restrictive covenants, and the Georgia appellate court cases that have addressed that Code Section. The second part of his article addresses how Code Section 44-5-60 relates to the Georgia Property Owners’ Association Act (commonly referred to as the “POA”). I. CODE SECTION 44-5-60 Georgia Code Section 44-5-60 used to provide that covenants...
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One of the best ways to get involved in your community is to volunteer to serve on your association’s board of directors. The board members are in a unique position to make decisions and implement changes and policies that can affect the entire community in a very positive way. Many owners may not realize that their community’s association is a nonprofit corporation. And, like every corporation, profit or nonprofit, associations have directors. Section 14-3-802 of the Georgia Nonprofit...
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The Georgia Property Owners’ Association Act (“POA”) was adopted in 1994 to expand the powers of homeowners associations. The POA does not, however, apply automatically. Instead, the developer of a community or the members of a community’s homeowners association must “opt-in” to be governed by the POA. The “opt-in” process generally takes place either by the developer when the developer initially creates the declaration of covenants for the community, or by the members of the...
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When a community association receives notice that a delinquent owner has filed a petition for bankruptcy, the initial reaction may be one of despair. Will we ever be able to recover what we are owed? Does this mean the owner gets a “free ride?” What can and can’t we do with regard to collecting amounts that continue to accrue? These questions are common, and bankruptcy can be a complicated subject, rife with time-sensitive deadlines, special bankruptcy rules, and specific protections...
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