Tag: Rentals

Many community associations trying to limit short-term rentals have found their battle complicated by the fact that their CC&Rs were drafted long before the days of Airbnb and VRBO. With CC&Rs that contain no provision explicitly addressing such rentals, some have turned to their single-family residence restrictions. “Associations try to hang their hat on that…

The California Court of Appeals recently shot down the argument that a single-family residence restriction prohibited short-term rentals (Lastavich v. Nob Hill Homowners Ass’n, Cal App. Dec 2, 2020). Many community associations trying to limit short-term rentals have found their battle complicated by the fact that their CC&Rs were drafted long before the days of…

A new law that significantly limits rental restrictions in California community associations took effect Jan. 1, 2021. Among other things, California Civil Code Section 4741 imposes a deadline on associations in the state to amend their governing documents to comply with its provisions. While the law applies only to California associations, the state often is…

A new law that significantly limits rental restrictions in California community associations took effect Jan. 1, 2021. Among other things, California Civil Code Section 4741 imposes a deadline on associations in the state to amend their governing documents to comply with its provisions. While the law applies only to California associations, the state often is…

In California, associations that can’t get a popular CC&R amendment passed because of supermajority voting requirements have another option — they can ask a court to amend the voting requirement to make it less onerous. A common question in such situations is whether an association must show voter apathy before a court can act. In…

California law lets an association turn to the courts to change the percentage of votes required to amend its CC&Rs, a helpful provision when communities have trouble reaching a super-majority. Opponents may claim that an association has to prove “voter apathy” to go this route, but a state court of appeals has made clear that…

By Carolyn Zezima

By Andrea Brescia

In some communities, there can be controversy over short-term rentals, with some members being strongly in favor of rentals while others fight to keep the community limited only to unit owners. But the outcome of a fight like this will be largely dependent on the covenants and governing documents of the association. In a recent case, a court determined that short-term rentals violated the restrictive covenant.

Homeowners in a planned community asked a trial court for a temporary injunction, prohibiting their neighbors from renting out their home to vacationers for a profit. (A temporary injunction orders a party to do or not do something while a court case is pending.) The homeowners asserted that the rental of the home violated the restrictive covenants of the association, in part because they were using the home for nonresidential purposes—that is, operating a hotel.