Answers

Short answers to the questions people ask about HOA rules and recorded covenants. Each one quotes a clause from the public record.

• Can an HOA ban rentals?What a recorded declaration can say about leasing, what Washington law allows, and how to check your parcel.
• Can an HOA block an ADU?What recorded covenants say about accessory dwelling units, and what Washington's 2023 ADU law changed.
• Can an HOA stop short-term rentals (Airbnb)?How recorded covenants limit short-term rentals, how an amendment adds a limit, and what to read before you buy a rental.
• Can I park an RV or boat at my house under HOA rules?What recorded covenants say about RVs, boats and trailers, and the three forms the rule usually takes.
• Does an HOA have to approve my fence?How architectural review works in a recorded declaration, and what fence rules usually set.
• Does every subdivision have an HOA?Why many subdivisions have recorded covenants but no association, and what that means for an owner.
• How do I find the HOA for a property?Three places that name a property's association, and what to do when none of them does.
• How do I read a recorded declaration?The parts of a recorded declaration, in the order they appear, and where the rules that matter usually sit.
• How much does it cost to look up HOA rules?What the county, the association and Setback each charge to see the recorded rules on a property.
• What happens when a covenant and a city code disagree?Why both rules apply, which one wins, and the one case where state law overrides a covenant.
• What is a CC&R, and where is it recorded?What covenants, conditions and restrictions are, who records them, and why the recorded copy is the one that counts.
• What is an amendment to a declaration, and does it bind me?How a recorded amendment changes the rules, what vote it needs, and why the recording date matters.