New Association Rules Need to Be ‘Reasonable and Foreseeable’

Question: In our Glendale HOA community there have been two recent incidents involving a small child being severely bitten by large dogs. Our HOA has now amended the HOA Rules and Regulations to require that all dogs be muzzled while being walked in our HOA community. We have two Golden Retrievers and we don’t want to walk them with muzzles. We know from reading your column that the Arizona Supreme Court recently said that amendments to CC&Rs have to be “reasonable and foreseeable.” Is that the same standard for Rules and Regulations? Can we be fined for not complying with the amended Rules and Regulations which require muzzles?

Answer:  The CC&Rs generally state that Rules and Regulations can be enforced in the same manner as CC&Rs. In other words, a homeowner can generally be fined for violating an amended Rule or Regulation. Just like an amended CC&R, however, an amended Rule or Regulation probably has to be “reasonable and foreseeable” by an existing homeowner at the time of the purchase of the home. After the two recent severe dog bitings of a small child, the requirement of the amended Rules and Regulations for muzzling of dogs could have been “reasonable and foreseeable” at the time that you purchased your home.