Property Inspections

Inspections by Weybridge

In order to keep the Weybridge community’s high standards for “look and feel,” our elected Board members conduct an annual property inspection, usually in May, looking for any exterior elements that may have fallen out of line with the standards listed in the Warranty Deed.

The most common problems are trees, shrubs or other plants that need to be replaced, exterior paint color or wear issues, and sometimes home decorations that fall outside Warranty Deed rules. The Board is also aware of things like street lights, curbs, and lawn conditions, which can be reported to the organizations responsible for them.

After each inspection, the Board sends written notice to any homeowner that has a violation, including a photo and description of the problem, and a request that the issue be resolved.

In recent years, homeowners have taken care of the issues in a reasonable timeframe. In some cases, the homeowner and the Board have shared some costs, when the affected trees or shrubs are on the border of shared property spaces. But in all cases the Board can act as a sounding board for ideas on how to address the problem.

Failure to fix any noted problem could become… unpleasant. The Board has a few options for handling these situations, but the most dramatic is filing a lien on a home, which can impact taxes collected, stop home sales until the lien is lifted, and is generally hard on everyone involved. Thankfully, the Weybridge HOA has not had to take such a step in many, many years, since our residents enjoy our community’s high standards and have been willing to resolve the issues identified.

Inspections by Muirfield

In October 2021, the Muirfield Association shared the following message via email about property inspections, especially in relation to home sales. We are sharing a simplified version of it here for reference, since this is not published on the Muirfield Association website, but it’s still good information.

Lately we have had some questions about how we find deed violations on your property and notify you. Do we have regular, or even periodic, staff patrols looking for violations? No.

But you may have noticed Muirfield home prices soared 20% in 2020-2021, and here is what we are doing to ensure our homes and neighborhoods are up to Muirfield standards and maintain that sellability factor:

1. If neighbors report a violation, or if our staff notice any, of course we send out a staff member (there are only 3) to take a look and take photos. That has always been the practice.

2. Over the past few years, we have encountered unfortunate situations where a new resident buys a home, moves in, and within the year violations are found — things that were a problem before the home was sold, but which had gone unnoticed by us. Not fair, right? We agree. So the Board asked our staff to check any home that went on the market, to notify present owners of problems in need of correction, heading off unwelcome “surprises” to the new owners.

Our staff person will walk the property, checking not just the street appearance, but all four sides, to be sure there are no problems. While that may present a hiccup with Muirfield homes going into contract for an average of about 5 days, at least the remedy required can become part of the negotiated price, and avoid hard feelings or legal problems later. Additionally, real estate listing agents in some cases have asked for your violation info. We are happy to share that with them — but only if you send an e-mail to us giving permission.

It‘s a good idea for all residents to review their homes anytime, but especially if you have any thought of selling. You can bring your house up to what it should be, and it avoids having to do it under the pressure of a listing. For example, take a look at:

  • driveway
  • exterior paint
  • condition of your gutters
  • wood facing boards
  • tree stumps in need of removal
  • walkways
  • windows and window frame
  • and call the Muirfield Association with any questions about what our standard is in a particular area

Remember: every Muirfield resident can have free, in-home consultation from both an architect and a landscape architect just by calling the Association office at 614-889-0922.

Finally, you can get lots of information about Muirfield property matters in the Property Handbook. Or get all the nitty-gritty details on property rules in the Declaration (aka Warranty Deed) from Muirfield.