# Homeowners association vs. law?



## Longliner_382 (Mar 28, 2006)

I have a friend who owns a house in Milford. He has 3.8 acres of proptery. In Milford bow hunting is legal. The sub he lives in has a homeowners association. They say it is not legal to bow hunt wihtin the association boundries. Do they have the right to do this? The house is not in city limits, it's Milford twsp.

Thanks for any input.
Craig


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## bigkid (Aug 20, 2008)

His frist step is to see if it is in the association by-laws and go from there.
Good luck


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## NATTY BUMPO (May 12, 2001)

Longliner_382 said:


> I have a friend who owns a house in Milford. He has 3.8 acres of proptery. In Milford bow hunting is legal. The sub he lives in has a homeowners association. They say it is not legal to bow hunt wihtin the association boundries. Do they have the right to do this? The house is not in city limits, it's Milford twsp.
> 
> Thanks for any input.
> Craig



We live in a sub with an Association. The By-Laws spell out how things are done. In our case, Its No Hunting within the neighborhood.

NB


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## FishTales (Feb 13, 2002)

I live in a condo with an association.

1. They said you can't have a dog over 40 pounds.
If you had a dog over 40 lbs when the assoc was formed, you would be grandfathered in.

2. If you own a motorcycle, you could not ride it in the condo area.
They said you had to push it out to the main road before starting it up.

The assoc was taken to court, and the judge told them

1. You can't tell people what kind of pet they can have.
2. You can't tell people what type of vehicle they can drive.
You can have a big dog or a big bike.

They can make rules about noise or people not cleaning up after their dog, :yikes: but thats about it.
Bottom line, assoc doesn't have the final say on everything, take them to court. 
Rich


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## malainse (Sep 2, 2002)

This would be a civil situation. 

I sent ya a PM... opinion..


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## NATTY BUMPO (May 12, 2001)

FishTales said:


> The assoc was taken to court, and the judge told them ..............
> 
> Bottom line, assoc doesn't have the final say on everything, take them to court.
> Rich


Neighborhood Assns do have considerable powers, depending on how they were setup in the first place. And what the By-Laws say. I was an officer in our Association.

And another judge might tell you another thing IME. 

Rich, Are you a Lawyer??

NB

BTW, how the Hel. can you "Hunt", bow or otherwise, on 3 acres of land in someone's backyard


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## DANIEL MARK ZAPOLSKI (Sep 23, 2002)

NATTY BUMPO said:


> Neighborhood Assns do have considerable powers, depending on how they were setup in the first place. And what the By-Laws say. I was an officer in our Association.
> 
> And another judge might tell you another thing IME.
> 
> ...


bait pile or he has an apple tree


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## notmuchtime (Aug 6, 2002)

bigkid said:


> His frist step is to see if it is in the association by-laws and go from there.
> Good luck


I live in a sub that has an "association". Upon investigation, there is nothing at the county or state that supports this claim. Could find no by-laws, or incorporation papers of any kind to support this claim by the association board. Just because someone says that there is an association doesn't mean that it has any power or authority to enforce any rule.


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## Islander26 (Feb 23, 2004)

I know the surrounding areas require 5 acres to hunt and that doesn't leave much room considering safety zones and they do apply to all hunting. I tried looking up the minimum acreage to hunt on the Milford township website but the link was broke.


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## 22 Chuck (Feb 2, 2006)

Get permission from a couple neighbors and have a good time.

Somewhere after mid 70s the state rule(law?) changed. It used to say -no discharge of firearms -450'(safety zone) and somehow that was changed to hunting. No bow hunting in that type of situation is absurd. What does bow hunting and safety zone have in common?


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## Islander26 (Feb 23, 2004)

CL-Lewiston said:


> What does bow hunting and safety zone have in common?


A ticket possibly......

I think I'd be checking into the acreage required before you get the associations panties in a bunch on this one. Not to mention other township ordinances.


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## BGB (Jul 21, 2004)

if you consider a 450' radius from where you are sitting, you need 14 acres to be legal in any direction


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## tommy-n (Jan 9, 2004)

the 450ft saftey zone does not necessarily imply to your own home or others you have written permission from.


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## Islander26 (Feb 23, 2004)

tommy-n said:


> the 450ft saftey zone does not necessarily imply to your own home or others you have written permission from.


Very true....

The point I have been trying to make all along is that the Homeowner Assoc rule may be in place because 3.8 acres is not huntable in the township no matter where you are. I live in the bordering township, our requirement is 5 acres and some areas it is illegal to even target shoot your bow in your own back yard. I spoke with a friend that lives in milford and he believes it is 5 there also. I tried checking township website to verify but no luck. 

Call the township before you take the advise of someone on this board.


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## BGB (Jul 21, 2004)

I know a guy in Milford that thinks hes a great hunter because he shoots deer on his bait heap , yep heap, from his deck that borders Kensington MP. What a sportsman Keith!!!!!


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## Mitchell Ulrich (Sep 10, 2007)

"They say it is not legal to bow hunt within the association boundaries"....

Or what...?

Burn your house down? 
Physically drag you from your house and throw you outside the Ass. boundary's?
Give you a dirty look when they see you?
Ticket..?...how much...?
Maybe it's better just to hunt state land?

That's why I could NEVER live within a neighborhood "Association". To Gestapo like. 

But thats just my free willed, freedom loving, been shot at more than once, opinion.

Mitch


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## Islander26 (Feb 23, 2004)

Mitchell Ulrich said:


> "They say it is not legal to bow hunt within the association boundaries"....
> 
> Or what...?
> 
> ...


:lol: good read I almost spit my beer out when I read your location. I never thought of Dearborn Hgts as being Gestapo like either......


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## tommy-n (Jan 9, 2004)

What if you choose not to belong to the home owners assc. seems you would just loose any benefits like a club house or something. Who pays the property taxes? you or the homeowners assc.


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## FishTales (Feb 13, 2002)

tommy-n said:


> What if you choose not to belong to the home owners assc. seems you would just loose any benefits like a club house or something. Who pays the property taxes? you or the homeowners assc.


I can't speak for a subdivision, because I live in a condo.
There are a lot of things covered in our association fees.

The association manages the property and services required.
Exterior maintenance on the buildings.
Roof repairs/replacements.
Outside painting / wood replacement / etc
Since we are private property, they arrange for
road repairs / sidewalks / curbs / etc
Insurance on the building and grounds.
Landscapers : Lawn, Trees, snow removal, etc.
Water bills / sewers / sump pumps / etc
The list goes on and on, but I think you get the idea.

Oh yeah, don't pay your association fees and expect a letter 
from the court, you will pay them plus the fees to collect.
Enough said :yikes:
Rich


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