I can't find any of the laws on any country or state websites, and I also called the magistrate court, housing authority, and Georgia Legal Aid and none knew what to tell me.

And, it should - there's no functional difference between a dwelling unit and companion unit in City of SD. 

Our front yard was purely dirt so we put down gravel and transformed the front yard into a functional area for our tenants.

A credit is a good way to put the ball in your court to oversee how the job gets done.

They probably won't agree to it and you can take them to small claims court if you want.

How has it been for you with the tremendous backlog in essex county court?

This is fun timing as I was just talking with a friend who purchased one of these a few days ago.The HOA fee on his is steep ($355/mo on a $129,000 condo is almost as much as the mortgage) but it does include all utilities and the resort has a nice pool, pickleball courts, and a high end spa. 

Then, if no response, the notice of the petition needs to be served 10-17 days before the court date. 

This appears to not be a very tight knit agreement by any means or negotiated with an attorney, so its probably not gonna stand up in court for the builder and you have an out.

There is a good post explaining this, use the search function.