You’ve just finished painting your home’s exterior, and you’re pretty happy with how it turned out. Then, days later, you get a worrisome note in the mail from your homeowners association telling you that you’re not in compliance with the exterior paint, and you need to change it.
Regardless of how you feel about HOAs, if you live in a neighborhood that has one, you need to consider how yours will react to your new exterior paint. Otherwise, this situation could easily happen to you. Here are some tips for making sure you stay in compliance and you don’t have to redo the project.
Look Up Restrictions and Guidelines
Most homeowners associations post their restrictions online for everyone to see. Take a little bit of time to do your research. Become familiar with the HOA’s rules for exterior paint to avoid violating them. Is there a list of acceptable colors? Are there certain features on your house (such as brick) that you’re not allowed to paint? Knowing this information well before you start the project will save you the cost, time, and stress of having to do rework later.
Talk to Your Neighbors
One of the best ways to get an idea about dealing with the HOA is to talk to other homeowners in the area. Your neighbors may provide some helpful insight on how to get the painting project approved, what colors they used, problems they faced with the HOA, and even what painting company they worked with.
Contact Your HOA and Ask Permission
If you don’t find all your answers online or talking with other homeowners in your HOA, it doesn’t hurt to contact them directly and ask. In fact, you should! In this situation, it’s smarter to ask for permission beforehand than to pay to redo the paint job later on. In some HOAs, you even need to officially file for approval before any exterior project anyway, so you should reach out to them prior to starting.
Hire Professionals
Suppose you select an approved color and follow the HOA guidelines. However, you decide to tackle the project yourself. You run the risk of having uneven painting, drips, and other imperfections. If the finished product doesn’t look clean and crisp, you may end up getting that nasty note from the HOA and having to do it again anyway. That’s why you should work with a professional team of painters that guarantee your complete satisfaction.
In the end, it may be annoying to deal with your HOA, but it is intended to keep your neighborhood looking nice and well maintained. You need to follow the rules so that you can enjoy living in your home and the area around it.
About Platinum Painting of Allen
Platinum Painting has been helping homeowners throughout the Dallas-Fort Worth area for more than a decade. As evidenced by the numerous awards we’ve received, we are committed to excellent customer service. Unlike many other companies that do both residential and commercial painting, we exclusively paint homes, which means we’re experts in working with homeowners associations. If you would like to have a free in-person estimate, just contact Platinum Painting of Allen online!