Residents of Magnolia Lakes Community,

Recently the HOA Board received a letter that has prompted us to respond by getting this community in a place of understanding. We are firm believers that it is each neighbor and citizen’s business and duty to take action and report fellow neighbors or citizen who violate the laws, codes, or covenants. These laws are in place for good reason, either to protect citizens (including children) from harm, protect animals, to protect property, or to maintain property and the surrounding environment. Some laws, codes, or covenants may seem silly or unnecessary to us, and some are. Never the less, until those laws, codes, or covenants are changed by the actions of the out cries of our citizens, and the actions taken by our governing bodies, then they MUST BE UPHELD. Paid, or volunteer persons take on the tough duties to assure laws are upheld for the greater good.

The rules of this community are the covenants, and by choosing to live here, every resident (whether homeowner or renter) has signed a contract to agree to live by our covenants. Furthermore, that agreement includes that the guest of each resident abides by these same rules. Just as with the laws of our governing sources of city, county, and country, you as a resident of this community must foremost make sure YOU abide by the covenants of this community. You as a homeowner also have the right to address and or report violations of your neighbor. HOWEVER, NO matter what your neighbor is doing, or not doing, YOU are STILL responsible for your actions, or lack there of. If in the wrong, you will likely be held accountable.

The Board of this community volunteers to uphold our covenants. When we send out violation notices, we do so in accordance to the covenants that the developer that built this community wrote. We as a Board try to start off sending these letters with a friendly reminder, stating the covenant that is directly connected to your violation in question, and request you come into compliance as soon as possible. We repeat these letters until the homeowner comes into compliance, OR until they are finally sent to either Appeals/Fining committee, or the lawyer for further action.

Each volunteer Board, ARC, or Appeals Committee member must ALSO abide by the very same covenants of this community, or be held responsible for not doing so. HOA volunteers are NOT exempt, nor do we have any expectations of being exempt. We too can, and on occasion have been held responsible for violations of our covenants.

It is foolish and childish for anyone to respond to any type of violation by attacking others with invented, or even real violations. You cannot justify your violation with someone else’s wrongdoing. The best way to a resolution of your violation is for you to comply as peacefully and quickly as possible. Don’t waste your time, or ours on attacks on others, or refusal to come into compliance. If you do, in the end, you will be the one with regrets, when you accrue large fines, fees, or even lose your home… or at the very least, the respect of your neighbors. As residents of a deed restricted community we all have the same choices. Those choices are to live in compliance, move elsewhere, or deal with the financial consequences of not living in compliance. We all can make mistakes, or get caught up with situations that arise in life. If you’ve fallen on hard times, you need to address your Board in writing and we can evaluate your issue and possibly offer you more time to come into compliance. We can’t work with you, if we don’t have anything to work with.

Furthermore, it’s foolish to take advice from residents that neither know their covenants, nor attend Board, or ARC meetings, or worse, may be in violation themselves. If you need a covenant reference, when online at www.magnolialakes.net, locate the tool bar, click on the “covenants” option. Most questions can be answered within those pages. Or ask a Board member, or attend a meeting.

Lastly, on the website, you’ll find on each page a highlighted box in the top corner for “ARC”, click on that to retrieve an ARC application, or again, ask a Board member to get one for you.

Thank you,
Your HOA Board