single family dwelling means man woman child living together

Greetings,

I live in Valencia, CA... I'm sure I can't say where it probably would cause a legality issue... Here is my story

2 years ago i moved into a house here in my community with my then g/f and her deadbeat children on a 1 year lease. 4 months after moving in she cheated on me and I kicked her and her kids out... I know harsh but what can I say I have self respect and know what I am worth. Anyhow I was locked into a lease and told the management company that I was kicking out the woman and children and wanted her name removed from the lease and replaced with a friend. They took his credit and discussed it with the owner and he said ok no problem. The only stipulation was the rent got paid on time and no complaints from the neighbors about parties. Well the first years lease came up and the owners went through the management company to ask us to please stay for another year. We agreed. 10 months into the second year of the lease the HOA has decided to threaten the owner of the house that my roommate and i need to leave because we are not a single family... Our CC&R's state:

Primary Use Restriction. No lot shall be used except for private single family residential purposes.

The words to use to describe what this means is a man woman and child must live together

To mean it means that the LOT needs to have a single family home on it... Not an apartment or a Walmart

So i guess because david and i are not a man woman child family the owner is being threatened that he will be sued or come into fines... This to me sounds like illegal and like discrimination. Can this be done?

Hi Mike,

Your agreement is with your landlord, the owner of the property.

The owner has an agreement with the Association. Part of that agreement is that their guests or tenants will follow the rules of the Association. Your post indicates that you had no issues with the Association at the beginning. However, something must have happened to have gotten the Associations to notice you, your room mate or the property. It might be parking issues, upkeep of the property, loud music, parties, guests, etc. Something occurred that has the Associations attention and you did say that there were to be no complaints from the neighbors as a condition of the lease.

Irregardless of what the actual issue is, it appears that the Association is properly dealing with the Owner. How the owner decides to respond is entirely up to the owner.

The details of your lease are unknown to us. Based on your posting, I suspect that once the lease ends, the owner is free to rent to whomever they chose. If you are not the individual chosen to sign a new lease and you believe you were discriminated against and wish to fight that perceived discrimination, you should consult an attorney or the appropriate State agency. Any complaint would be against the owner of the property and not the HOA as your lease would be with the owner of the property.

Tim

The HOA sent us a letter stating we could not have a work van parked in the drivewar so my roommate called them to ask them what exactly he had to do to comply and they asked who he was and he said i am mike's roommate and the womans response was "oh two men are not supposed to be renting a house together... rentals in our community are for families only"

The owner wants to keep us as tenants. He does not want to deal with the HOA and thinks they are rather ridiculous as do we

Under USE in the CC&R's this is what it states as i explained earlier
Primary Use Restriction. No lot shall be used except for private single family residential purposes.

how does the HOA come to that meaning that a man woman and child must live together in order to rent in their community?

I agree with the posters that the situation is one that is between the Owner and the HOA. The HOA really can't interfere with that contract between the owner and it's renter. They can just make it so the owner is responsible for infractions of the tenant to a point where the owner has to take action.

The concern here may be in regards to having 2 separate rental agreements on the lease other than a "family" matter. It's more of the "Frat House" potential situation they may be concerned about. I have a neigbhor who has atleast 3 roommates that live with him. He had 4 when he bought the house. Then they moved out and he got married to a woman with kids. They divorced and back to 3 roommates...They have a pool and party ALOT...

Two young single men living together may raise the flags of potential party, all hours visitors, and baby-mama drama. This is what the HOA doesn't want. Hence their definition of "Family atmosphere".

Your landlord needs to address the HOA and ask them what their concerns are. If your in violation of the rules, then let him know so he can address it with you. The HOA has a right to tell the owner to rectify an issue but NOT to enforce it upon you directly. You don't even have the right to vote, attend meetings, or make decisions. The HOA shouldn't have an issue with you at all. Your landlord does have the rights. They should say something as the lease agreement is between 2 DIFFERENT people and that's that.

That said....

A single family house is a separate house, a free-standing residential building as opposed to a multi-family dwelling. Doesnt matter how many people live in a single family unless limited by federal, state, local laws or hoa rules.

The burden of proof is on the accuser. Let the HOA prove they're not!

As Tim and others above stated HOA related issues must be resolved between the Owner of the property and the HOA. You are renters and any issues you have are then between yourselves and the Owner. However, if the Owner wants you to continue renting the following is a definition for him to use as a potential argument.

Legal definition:

http://definitions.uslegal.com/s/single-family-residence/

In essence: Single family residence means a structure maintained and used as a single dwelling unit.

Mike, ask the Board to show you a definition of a family unit.

I like these. especially #5

făm'ə-lē, făm'lē)
n., pl., -lies.
1.
a.A fundamental social group in society typically consisting of one or two parents and their children.
b.Two or more people who share goals and values, have long-term commitments to one another, and reside usually in the same dwelling place.
2.All the members of a household under one roof.
3.A group of persons sharing common ancestry. See Usage Note at collective noun.
4.Lineage, especially distinguished lineage.
5.A locally independent organized crime unit, as of the Cosa Nostra.

hahhaha.... that's great.... we will become a crime family