Is Green Living Stymied by Neighborhood Covenants?

The following are precluded: Outside clotheslines or clothes drying ... window air conditioning units ... vegetable gardens ...

That's an excerpt from the Home Owner Association (HOA) covenants of the Crest Mountain neighborhood of Asheville, N.C. An article published today documents many such HOA covenant restrictions, barring everything from window fans to natural landscaping, running headfirst into a growing movement for homes that reflect owners' ecological ideals.

The clothesline has been touted as one of the "seven wonders" by the Seattle-based Sightline Institute, seven simple things that can make the world a better, healthier place. (The others, since I know you're curious, are the bicycle, the ceiling fan, the condom, pad thai, the public library, and the ladybug.)

The practical effect of the covenants is to force the use of electric/gas clothes dryers instead of clotheslines; the use of utility-provided electricity instead of home-generated solar/wind/geothermal power; the purchase of store produce instead of home-grown; and the pesticide-laden maintenance of lawn instead of greener alternatives.

Eagle Point Golf Community near Medford, Ore.: "Lawns shall be watered,
fertilized and sprayed for weeds and/or insects and diseases as needed to keep
them healthy and green. They shall be mowed on a regular basis."

For more horror stories about homeowners' inability to live their green ideals, read the article: The Property Cops: Homeowner Associations Ban Eco-Friendly Practices

For a partial list of neighborhoods nationwide that ban clotheslines, and some tools for fighting such bans, visit Project Laundry List.

Finding my street on yourstreet

Say you're relocating to a new city. You do research, you drive around the neighborhoods. But how do you really know the character of a place without actually living there? Enter yourstreet.com, a site that describes itself as "a vibrant community of homeowners, buyers and renters sharing inside knowledge about their local neighborhoods."

How vibrant a community it becomes is yet to be seen. It's still in beta, and so far includes just five cities (and some adjacent areas). One of them is Seattle, which is described as a "moderate sellers' market" based on input from 29 users. Not exactly scientific, no.

The larger question may be whether people living in a wonderful, vibrant neighborhood will really want to advertise the fact on the Web, or even come in from their community barbeques and softball games to sit and the computer and write up a review of their street.

Featured Home: Generous Family Home

Lovely large family two-story home in Brookfield with four bedrooms and upstairs bonus area. New decorative colors throughout, new Pergo flooring on the main floor, new ceiling fans in all bedrooms.

Master with walk-in closet and five-piece master bath. The main floor has a separate living room plus a gracious great room family/eating/kitchen combo with access to the fenced backyard. Country kitchen includes breakfast bar.

Nicely landscaped in a cul-de-sac. The garage even has a pull down ladder for extra storage in the attic.

MLS#: 27054235

Bedrooms: 4

Baths: 2.5

Square Feet: 2310

Price: $ 310,000

Virtual Tour : Printable Flyer

For more information or a tour, contact:
Roberta Garrett Rudnick

Phone: 360-791-0688

Email: robertae@orcalink.com

Web site: www.olympiahomesearch.com

Prudential Olympia, REALTORS®

2630 Martin Way

Olympia, WA 98506