Ammending Covenants

Before our developer dropped our association in our laps, he amended the CC&R's to the first 2 sections of the developement. The law states that you must wait 10 years or have 100% approval from the members before an amendment can be made. The CC&R's had been filed prior to the amendment. Is there anyway a legal amendment could have been made by the developer prior to turning over the association?

Don:
The CC&Rs must be filed with the county in which you reside; therefore, check with them on whether an amendment by the developer must also be filed with the county to be legal. I'm assuming you and all owners have been given a copy of the amendment the developer made, and that itself may state filing and recording info.

The developer is the be-all and end-all with a development's restrictions prior to it being turned over to the homeowners (turnover occurs after a certain percentage of units have been sold). I don't know what recourse you would have unless the new amendment to the CC&R was not legally filed or recorded. Then you may have a basis on which to argue.

Further, ask if you can make an 'amendment to the amendment' provided you have 100% approval to 'relax' the time and percentage required for future amendments.

Is this confusing?

Don:

Developers do have the right to make supplemental amendments to the documents, in most cases.