On Jul 22, 8:58 am, Steve Bonine wrote:
wrote:
The way deed restrictions & covenants work in the areas I know of is
that they are recorded when the property is first sold. And of course
one of the restrictions is that each owner has to pass the
restrictions on to the next owner.

But in some cases, the first buyer can say "NO!" to the developer, and
get restrictions removed *before* the sale. So while the rest of the
properties may be restricted, that one isn't.

While this might give you the legal right to erect an antenna (and it
might not; I'm not a lawyer either), I would look carefully at other
factors before considering it.

Let me illustrate what I'm trying to say
by building two scenarios:

1. The development has large lots and the neighbors are pretty laid
back. You buy the house and erect an unobtrusive antenna. Your
neighbors don't notice, and the ones who do don't care.

The problem is, how do you know the neighbors are pretty laid back
before you move in? Also, some folks consider *anything* different to
be "obtrusive".

2. You erect a tower on your tiny lot and hang a bunch of antennas on
it, creating what looks like a masterpiece to your eyes and an eyesore
to your neighbors.

This is where the question of "reasonable" comes in. A big tower on a
small treeless lot may not be "reasonable", while a simple vertical or
wire antenna would be.

A big tower on a big lot, screened by trees, is another thing
entirely.

Since the people who bought in the development are
particularly sensitive to such things, they make your life miserable
even though they have no legal recourse.

The problem is that usually you don't know beforehand what sort of
neighbors you'll get.

The point I was making is that universal antenna restrictions on new
homes may not be a foregone conclusion in all cases if you know the
right approach.

Repeating an earlier warning: This is definitely a situation where
you'd want professional counsel (RE lawyer) to make sure you get what
you think you're getting.

The scenarios are deliberately exaggerated to make the point that the
legal situation is only one aspect of living in a community. If the
other members of the community have a strong mindset about what's
appropriate and you're outside that mindset, there will be an issue.
You have to live with these people. If they, as a group, feel strongly
enough that you're acting inappropriately they'll get their way, deed
restrictions or not.

Maybe; it all depends on the situation. For example, not everyone who
buys into a restricted community cares or really knows about all the
restrictions; they may be buying on price alone, low maintenance, etc.
I've talked to a lot of folks who have no idea of the restrictions
they live under until they cross one.

Couple of problems I see all the time:

1) In many new developments, there are no trees of any size, no
fences, and all the utilities are buried. The few inconspicuous places
are used for the A/C condensers and the utility meters. The result is
that *anything* you put up is extremely visible to many neighbors.

2) In many new developments the houses are close together and the
ratio of building to ground is very high, and the roof is useless for
antennas for a number of reasons. Again, this makes anything different
stick out.

Both 1) and 2) are examples of how a lot of modern housing, even if
unrestricted, is not ham-radio-friendly.

3) In many cases all it takes to cause a problem is one or two
neighbors who don't like something. IOW "the Gladys Kravitz effect".
IOW there are people you cannot ever please.

There's a balance between doing whatever the neighbors might want, and
saying the heck with them, you'll do whatever *you* want. That balance
is the concept of "reasonable". And like Quality in "Zen And The Art
of Motorcycle Maintenance", almost everybody knows what "reasonable"
is (to them, anyway)
but almost nobody can exactly define it.

One more point:

A question I see all the time from some hams is "why would anyone buy
into/want to live under such restrictions?" or variations thereof.
Often there are declarations of how these things are evil,
unconstitutional, whatever, be they zoning ordinances, HOA rules, etc.

The answer I give is that it's often due to bitter experience, either
one's own or another's. All it takes is one or two really bad
neighbors ruin a neighborhood.

IOW, a lot of what drives this is fear that neighbors won't behave
responsibly, or reasonably. Like the person who puts his trash on the
curb on Thursday, for a pickup on Tuesday of the next week. Or the
person who can't seem to find a paintbrush or a lawn mower.

73 de Jim, N2EY