New neighbor about to blatently violate covenant

Question

New neighbor about to blatently violate covenant

Anonymous Jul 21, 2012 1 views 1 answers

When I built my house in 2008, I very carefully followed all of the specifications in the covenants. I live in a very rural subdivision in Virginia. Recently, I had new neighbors move in and declare that they were going to clear their land and get horses - which is a violation of our covenants. My other neighbors don't seem to care, but they don't live right next door. This week, I have seen surveyors tape go up, and heard that they were in the process of buying a horse! Their house was a foreclosure, and they claim they never received the covenants. There is also an area of wetlands conservation behind our houses that I am concerned they will disturb (which will affect the beautiful stream behind my house. What can I do???

Mark Westerfield · Accepted Answer · 2026-06-15T10:38:49+00:00

Hire a lawyer ASAP. Most HOA documents give an individual owner the right to enforce the documents. I seriously doubt that the fact they purchased in a foreclosure sale and did not receive the covenants (even it true) would allow them to ignore the covenants. Because they are your neighbors, I would also strongly urge you to approach the neighbors, tell them that you oppose what they are planning to do, that you have discussed the matter with a lawyer but would like to attend a mediation session before initiating any legal action. This case sounds like an ideal candidate for neighbors trying to work out their differences.

New neighbor about to blatently violate covenant

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