Expert: Jessica Bryan - 10/5/2004

Question
Dear Jessica, it looks like if there is anyone who could answer my question, it would be you.
I am writing from Olympia, WA and asking for your expert advice on this issue.   I live in a 36 home development where everybody (except for a few owners) has a 5 feet tall wooden fence.  (It is the norm in this area of the state, except for the cheaper development areas, where you'll find chain link, etc).  We, officers of the Home Owners' Associaton believe our property prices will suffer if we allow out-of-character chain link fences in the neighborhood.  Although it seems common sense, several of the owners don't understand the concept.   Would you please give me a good, professional argument as to why would the prices of houses suffer if owners have different and out of character (not harmonious w/the rest of the area) fences?   Also, is there a book or authorative source where these concepts could be found in writing?  


   Thanking you very much!



  Sincerely,



  Paul Hardy


Answer
Dear Paul;
By the subject of your question I am assuming that there are no restrictive covenants in your neighborhood that address this issue. Since you have a HOA then I would think that there are, however, certain restrictions or guidelines written into a legal document.  My first suggestion is to propose adding guidelines on fences.  The argument is clearly that planned communities with similar common amenities tend to hold a higher value than those without the commonalities such as tasteful fencing.  Chain link fencing is the least desirable type of fence and is considered a lower priced alternative.  Therefore, potential buyers entering the neighborhood would be inclined to adjust the values of the neighborhood accordingly.  Some might argue that the chain link fence provides a less intrusive and more open appearance. However, it lacks the privacy aspect.  Overall, it is a "cheap" and unnatractive look that is not popular in any communities other than the lower income areas where the higher priced alternatives cannot be used because the residents cannot afford the upkeep. (You see the message? If someone perceives that some of the residents cannot afford upkeep of a fence they may also perceive that these same residents might let things slide with normal home maintenance and allow things to become rundown thus lowering property values in not only their homes but the neighborhood!) I am sure that all of the property owners would like to be able to get a few thousand dollars more out of the sale of their homes and this can easily be accomplished by having well-maintained wood fences.  I caution that the wood fences can be just as much of an eyesore if not well-maintained and actually cause property values to diminish.  Therefore, do consider having some provisions in your HOA about maintenance issues. To help convince the people who are disputing this, you might want to consider taking photos of other neighborhoods with various types of fencing and then showing how like homes with similar fencing have different values.  You can use www.realtor.com as a good resource to check neighborhoods and prices.You will undoubtedly find that the neighborhoods that provide a more uniform look are those of higher value.  People looking at neighborhoods are thinking "I am spending my hard earned dollars making the biggest purchase of my life. I want to protect that purchase.  What guarantee do I have that it will be protected?  What if my neighbors paint their house a weird color and nobody wants to live next door to that so they won't buy my house somewhere down the road?  What if my neighbors have junk strewn all around their backyard and they have a chain link fence.  No one will buy my house to look at the neighbor's junk heap!" Granted, the current neighbor may have a lovely yard but what guarantee is there that they will stay there and what about the next resident?  The same neighbor who puts in the chain link fence will run into problems when they try to sell their home.  The new buyers may not like the openness of the fence.  They want more privacy and will calculate the cost of replacing that fence when they make an offer.

As for your other question on a good resource book, I do not know one off the top of my head but there are probably several in the library that deal with HOA issues as well as restrictive covenants.  I,personally prefer doing my research on the Internet.  Just doing a quick search about Restrictive covenants, for example I found the following: "Restrictions give a development a more standard appearance, and control some of the activities that take place within its boundaries. When enforced, covenants protect property values..." Almost all articles site fencing along with setbacks, size of home and nuisances as some of the standard features of restrictive covenants.

I hope that this helps you.
Best wishes,
Jessica Bryan
Managing Broker
House to Home Realty Services