Court Orders Owners to Restore Property Modifications

This case involved a dispute between homeowners (“Owners”) and their homeowners association (“Association”) over Owners’ construction of improvements on their property that had not been approved by Association.

Association’s CC&Rs provided that improvements could not be made to the exterior of a residence in the community “without the prior approval of the Architectural Review Board.” In 2016, Owners sought to have a basement window on the side of their home replaced with a door and stairs. Owners properly submitted an application to Association’s Architectural Review Board seeking approval of their contemplated project. Association then approved the application but excluded a portion of what had been requested by Owners. Owners then proceeded with construction that was not in conformity with what had been approved by Association. When Association became aware of the deviations, it directed Owners to cease construction and requested them to appear at an Association board meeting. The meeting was held, and the board concluded that the construction was not in conformity with what had been approved and directed Owners to comply with what had been approved.

After Association’s board ordered Owners to comply, Owners filed a complaint with the Commission on Common Ownership Communities (“Commission”), a local administrative agency, seeking: