Feeling powerless against the land owner

Ok, PLEASE bear with me as I am really new to these circumstances. Short story long, here are the facts:

We purchased a premium waterfront lot from an individual who has taken his own land and divided it up into lots - forming Cedar Springs subdivision.

He, with his Realtor, is the individual who deals with builders and private individuals who are interested in purchasing in this addition. (I am assuming that means he is the developer?)

There were no builder restrictions in the covenants however we have some detailed restrictions regarding house size, frontage, landscaping etc. obviously to protect those who have heavily invested in their home.

There are currently 8 homes and the association does not get turned over to us until it is 80% occupied.

The 'developer' is certainly not hurting for money as he owns the third largest construction/engineering company in the US. (Yeah, how awesome is that), so he has not lowered the prices of the lots since the housing market tanked awhile back.

However, recently, a 'known' box builder began construction on a house in our addition and it clearly does not meet the size requirement AND the house is a typical box design.

We can not talk to this man as he will not listen nor feels like he has to. I have contacted his Realtor in order to obtain a copy of our revised covenants (as it was not sent out when it was updated) AND a copy of the approved floor plan of the box house.

Once we receive this information, and find the house in violation, What is the next step? Who should I contact? Who is our Covenants Adviser if the developer is clearly not working in our best interest?

Thank you so much in advance!

There has to be a permit to build issued by the city/county. I'd go to the courthouse and pull their permit. May be a disconnect between the restrictions and the permit department.

Hi Shelly:

I just caught something I missed before when you stated:

"I have contacted his Realtor in order to obtain a copy of our revised covenants (as it was not sent out when it was updated) AND a copy of the approved floor plan of the box house."

Check with your local county records either via website or personally. This is where you can potentially also get copies of any documents regarding the homeowners association and any amendments to your documents. Also, check your governing documents given to you when you purchased to insure whether or not proper procedure was followed to amend the covenants.

Question: What is the total number of homes for the association?