Bought a townhome with HOA rental restriction

[Michael H.]

Hey all. I made a big mistake purchasing a town home with rental restrictions. When I read the by laws, I did not see anything regarding rental restrictions. Only to find out there is an amendment to add this restriction. If you read it, it states that it adds restriction to the number of rentals one owner can have. It later talks about if an owner has more than 3 rentals, they can only sell to owner occupied buyers unless they own 3 or less rentals.the first sentence where it says “the maximum number of tenant properties allowed at any one time will be limited to 3”. Since this is a restriction for number of units an owner can have, I feel like they meant the maximum number of tenant properties an owner can operate. 

In my opinion, this restriction is for how many rentals an owner can have. Since I only have one rental, I’m able to rent it out. What are your thoughts? 

[Wayne Brooks]

While not worded great, overall it definitely applies to “maximum 3 rental units Per Owner”.  I’d rent it, and if someone tries to interpret it differently, I’d simply tell them they were wrong and pursuing it will only cost Them money. Of course, ask a local attorney.