Your HOA Approval Is Its Own Permit

Owners who live in a planned community often treat the homeowners association as an afterthought. In their minds the permit is the real hurdle & the association will just stamp whatever the city approved.

It does not work that way. In many communities the association has its own review, its own rules, its own calendar & its own power to stop work. A building permit does not override any of that. Treat association approval as a second permit & schedule it like one.

What the association is actually reviewing

The building department looks at codes: structure, fire safety, energy, plumbing, electrical. The association usually looks at something else: how the project looks & how it affects the neighbors.

Depending on the community, that can include:

• Exterior colors, materials & roofing
• Height, setbacks & rooflines
• Windows, doors, fencing & walls
• Landscaping, hardscape & drainage onto common areas
• Solar panels, equipment & where mechanical units sit
• Work hours, parking, deliveries & where materials can be stored

None of these show up on a building permit. All of them can hold up the job.

Read the rules before you design

The cheapest time to learn the association's rules is before anyone draws anything. Ask the management company for the governing documents, the architectural guidelines & the application package. Read them yourself, or have someone on your team read them, before the design is set.

Look for anything that limits what you planned: a list of approved colors, a maximum height, a required setback, a rule about what can be seen from the street. Finding that early costs an email. Finding it after the drawings are done costs a redesign.

Know the calendar

Association review often runs on a meeting schedule, not a rolling one. A committee may meet once a month, want a complete package well before the meeting & send back questions that push you to the next one. Ask how the process works in your community:

• When does the committee meet?
• How far ahead does a package need to be submitted?
• What makes a package complete?
• How are approvals, conditions & denials sent back?
• Is there a deposit, a fee or a neighbor notice?

Then put those dates on the project schedule next to the permit dates. They are just as real.

Submit once, completely

Incomplete packages are the most common reason a review drags on. Send drawings, elevations, a site plan, color & material samples or specs plus anything else the application asks for, all at the same time. Keep a copy of exactly what you submitted.

When approval comes back, read the conditions closely. An approval with conditions is still an approval, but those conditions now belong in the plans & in every trade's scope.

Keep it approved during construction

Approval covers what was submitted. If something changes during the job, such as a different window, a new color, a moved wall or an added patio cover, ask whether it needs to go back to the association before the change is built. Asking first is almost always faster than asking forgiveness.

The association may also have rules about the job site itself. Share them with everyone working on the project, especially work hours, parking & cleanup. Neighbors notice & they are often the ones who call.

Questions to ask

• Who on the project owns the association submittal?
• Where is association review on the schedule?
• Which design choices are still at risk of a rule we have not checked?
• What happens to the schedule if the first submittal comes back with questions?
• Do any planned field changes need to go back for approval?

The city tells you whether the work is safe to build. The association tells you whether you can build it there. Plan for both approvals from the start & neither one will surprise you halfway through the job.

This is general information, not legal advice. Every association's rules are different, so read your own governing documents & ask your management company how its process works.