Violations

Violations

Violations and Charges for Violations

The Board of Directors of the Hunters Creek Homes Association (HCHA) has the legal authority to impose charges under the following circumstances:

Non-Payment of Assessments

The annual assessment is due January 1 of each year, and must be received not later than January 31.

Every homeowner in Hunters Creek and Wyndyn is a member of the Hunters Creek Homes Association and is required to pay this annual assessment and any special assessment voted by the members. As Article XIII, Sections 8 and 9, of the Bylaws state, if any assessment is not paid within thirty (30) days of the due date, the assessment will bear interest at six (6) percent per year and may be turned over to our attorneys for collection of the assessment, costs, and legal fees. If turned over for collection, the total expense will probably exceed the original assessment. The Association would prefer for all owners to avoid this added expense. If left unpaid, this assessment is a lien against the property and could ultimately lead to foreclosure.

General Upkeep and Maintenance

Those charges associated with non-compliance with the Hunters Creek Covenants, Amended By‑laws or Rules and Regulations in the Community Handbook are as follows[1]. The Virginia Property Owners Association Act ,Title 55, Chapter 26, §55-513, empowers the HCHA Board of Directors, as the governing body for the HCHA, to levy charges of $50.00 for each separate violation or $10.00 per day for a continuing violation. Such charges shall be treated as an assessment against the member’s lot. Charges of $10.00 per day may be assessed until full compliance is obtained for each individual violation, but not for a period exceeding ninety days. The HCHA Board of Directors has sole discretion as to the manner in which fines are assessed, collected or released.

According to the Virginia Property Owners Act, the Association may enforce its rules and regulations by any method normally available to the owner of private property in Virginia, including, but not limited to, application for injunctive relief or damages, during which the court may award the Association court costs and reasonable attorneys’ fees. It is the Association’s policy to charge legal costs related to an owner’s violations of Covenants, Bylaws, Town zoning or ordinance, or assessment collection from an owner to that owner.

The assessment of charges will be made after review by the Board of Directors and recommendation by the Architectural Review Committee. Items subject to charges are:

1.      Grass higher than 8 inches. This regulation is more restrictive than the one in the Town requirements that are summarized in Chapter 10 below.

2.      Lack of maintenance of home, accessory buildings, including but not limited to the following:

Siding
Roofs
Trim and fascia boards
Shutters
Front doors
Front storm doors
Windows
Decks
Patios
Firewood piles
Accessory buildings
Mailboxes
Gutters and Downspouts
Fences
Driveways and pipe stems
Any other attachment to a dwelling or accessory building

3.      Junk vehicles. See Junk Vehicle Regulations, Penalties and Removal below.

4.      The following additional items may result in an Association assessment charge or Town penalty:

(a)         It is unlawful to permit dogs to run loose or foul neighbors’ yards or public areas according to Town ordinance.

(b)         Storage of trash, garbage, rubbish or debris on any lot at a time other than the designated collection day.

(c)         Storage of trash or garbage containers in such a manner as to be visible from the public right‑of‑way, except on designated collection days.

(d)         Implementing any exterior change or alteration that requires HCHA approval without obtaining HCHA approval prior to starting.

Notification of Violation

If a property owner or tenant is found to be in violation, the owner will be notified in writing by the HCHA Board of Directors concerning the violation, charges to be imposed and a hearing date at least fourteen days prior to the hearing. The owner may either correct the violation within fourteen days from the date of written notification, provide a written schedule for correcting the violation that is satisfactory to the Board of Directors, or make an appeal at the scheduled hearing. The preferred action is, of course, that the violation be corrected. The owner is entitled to bring legal representation to the hearing. If a written schedule for correction is accepted by the Board of Directors, but the violation is not corrected within the schedule period, the Board may institute assessment of charges from the date of the original written notification.

If the appeal is denied by the Board of Directors, the owner will have fourteen days from the date of the appeal hearing to correct the violation. If correction does not occur, then the charges as defined in Section B, above, will be assessed.

The provisions and requirements for this notification process are established, in part, by the Virginia Property Owners Association Act.

Junk Vehicle Regulations, Penalties and Removal

The Town of Herndon defines an inoperative vehicle as “any motor vehicle, trailer or semi-trailer which is not in operating condition; or does not display valid licenses plates; or does not display an inspection decal that is valid or does display an inspection decal that has been expired for than 60 days[2]”. Storage of inoperable vehicles outside of a building not screened from view constitutes a Town misdemeanor[3]. The Hunters Creek Homes Association has adopted this same definition for what constitutes a junk vehicle. Our Covenants in Hunters Creek are specific that no junk vehicles are allowed to be stored on any lot in the community.

Enforcement of HCHA of junk vehicles conditions is handled in the following manner. The owner of the property on which the vehicle sits will be contacted by the Board of Directors by certified letter and will be given two weeks (14 days) to either move the vehicle, or to appear before the Board of Directors, with their attorney if so desired, to present an appeal. If no action is taken to correct the junk vehicle condition, the HCHA will begin to charge a fine of $50.00, plus $10.00 per day for each day the owner is in violation after this 14 day grace period, up to a limit of 90 days, as provided for in the Code of Virginia. Also, at this time the Town of Herndon will be notified of the vehicle, so that Town ordinances can be enforced. Assessed HCHA penalties and any associated attorney’s fees and expenses, will become a lien against the property on which the vehicle is situated.

A homeowner may have a vehicle stored temporarily on their property for restoration, provided that this is on a short term basis, and the vehicle is properly licensed, that it is covered with a commercial type of vehicle cover of a neutral color, so that only the wheels are visible, and that there is no evidence of any vehicle parts or supplies visible on the premises. For such a renovation project, the owner of the property requires the approval of the Hunters Creek Board of Directors , who will monitor the restoration to maintain the community’s interest.


[1] Hunters Creek Homes Association has no police powers to enforce violations of the municipal code of the Town of Herndon. However, every resident in Hunters Creek and Windyn, the Association membership and its Board of Directors has the right to request that the Town of Herndon provide enforcement for any such violations.

[2] Herndon Code of Ordinances, Part II, Chapter 26, Article 7, Division 2 (Section 26-306) Inoperable Vehicles.

[3] Any resident or the Board of Directors has the right to request that the town enforce its inoperative vehicles ordinance.