Rental Rules

We currently have 32 out of 64 units used as rentals. The HOA sent out a list of Rules specifically for those rental units. One of the rules requires a minimum 1 year lease and a signed copy of the lease. Do any other HOA's do this?

Ours is a six-month lease requirement and a copy of the lease. The renters are "interviewed"...just like everyone else and given a copy of all of the association rules.

Are you saying that renters must follow additional rules---other than rules the owners must follow?

No, we don't have separate rules for the renters themselves, just the property owner. We've had instances where tenants were only here for 2 or 3 months and we had no idea who they were before they were gone. We've also had a convited sex offender living here and only found out after he left.
Here's what we have but we are currently trying to contact HUD regarding the limit on the number of unrelated persons we can allow.
1.The minimum lease period shall be 1 year.Written leases are required.If there are extenuating circumstances that require a tenant to leave prior to the end of the lease, the board must be contacted and advised.
2.No daily, nightly, weekly or month to month rentals will be allowed.
3.The landlord must provide the HOA with a signed copy of the lease agreement within 30 days of leasing.
4.The landlord must provide the tenants with copies of the following documents immediately upon leasing the unit.
Rules and Regulations, ARC change request form and a Registration form, which must be completed within 30 days of residency

5. A pet fee of $100.00 per pet (cat or dog) per tenant will be paid to the HOA by the owner of the unit in which the pet resides annually. This means that if the unit is leased twice in a one year period and both tenants have pets, the fee will be assessed twice.
6. The owner must notify the Board of Directors in writing within 5 days of the effective date of executing or renewing a lease or the termination of a lease.
7. All leases must restrict occupancy to no more than 2 unrelated persons, with a maximum occupancy of 6 persons, which is in accordance with the Rules and Regulations for all units in the development.
8. All tenants must abide by the Rules and Regulations. Any fines assessed due to tenant infractions are the responsibility of the Homeowner.

Marcia,

Is the pet fee of $100 for each pet a rule for members as well? If not, I don't know that it can be legally enforced -- recommend checking with an attorney. Frankly, if it IS a rule for members, I for one, would be vehemently objecting to it! In fact, what is the reason for it? Since the HOA does not own the unit they have no reason to be concerned with wear and tear because of pets.

Yes the pet fee applies to all residents. Our issue with pets is the dog waste and is another reason we limit pets to 2. We have very little open space and have some backyards filled with dog waste as well as other common areas. It's not a rule because of damage to the unit, not our problem but the pet waste is.

As I stated earlier, it's dogs and cats only and due to pet waste and damage to landscaping. The cost of installing pick up stations and bags easily equals the fee in one year. It's only fair that the owner of the pet pay for the items, rather than the homeowner's association.

Sam,

All of my Florida rental unit had some minimum time restriction on any lease. It protects the units from becoming turnstyle communities where owners might rent out weekly or monthly. Some cities have bed taxes--like Stuart, where any unit rented for more than 4 months is exempt from paying this tax.