Getting HOA Approval for a Fence or Deck

Why approval comes first in so many neighborhoods

If your house sits in a subdivision with a homeowners association, getting HOA approval for a fence or deck is usually the first real step. Many newer neighborhoods around Murfreesboro, Smyrna, Mount Juliet, and Spring Hill were built with recorded covenants that cover exterior changes. A new fence line usually counts, and so does a deck off the back door. Older neighborhoods may have lighter rules or none at all, so check before you assume either way.

HOA approval and a building permit are separate. The association enforces private rules about how the neighborhood looks, while the city or county enforces the building code and zoning. Clearing one does not clear you with the other. If you build first and ask later, many covenants let the association require changes or even removal.

Start with the covenants and the design guidelines

Two kinds of documents matter here. The declaration of covenants is the recorded legal document, and it usually says that exterior changes need sign off from an architectural review committee or the board. Design guidelines are the working rules. They hold the details a committee checks your plan against, like which fence styles are allowed or where a deck may sit. Guidelines can be amended over time, so ask for the current version instead of trusting the copy in your closing folder.

You can usually get both from the HOA website or resident portal, or from the management company if one runs the association. Read the fence and deck sections slowly and mark any rule that sounds firm. Some neighborhoods publish a standard fence drawing that every lot must follow. Others only list what is not allowed. When a rule is unclear, email the management company and ask. A written answer is worth more than a neighbor's memory of what someone else got away with.

An HOA is not the only design review around here. In Franklin, planned communities such as Westhaven keep their own design standards, and exterior changes in the local historic districts, downtown included, go through a separate design review. Some Nashville neighborhoods sit inside historic or conservation overlays. If your street is in one of those areas, ask Metro's planning office whether your project needs that review too.

What review committees usually want to see

Every committee has its own form, but the requests look alike. Expect to include a site plan, which usually means a copy of your survey or plat with the project drawn on it. For a fence, mark the full line and every gate, and show where it meets the house or a neighbor's fence. Deck drawings should show the footprint against the back of the house and note the height. Our guide to fences and property lines covers how to find your lines if you are not sure where they run.

Beyond the site plan, most committees want to see the style. A photo of a similar fence works, as long as it matches what you will actually build. Write out the material and the color next to it. Deck applications often draw questions about the railing and which way the stairs face. Some associations also ask for the contractor's name or a signature from neighbors who share a boundary. Fill in every blank on the form, even the ones that seem obvious.

How to put together a clean submission

A complete packet gives the committee fewer reasons to send it back. An incomplete one comes back with questions, and each round trip can cost you a full meeting cycle. Use the same words the guidelines use. If the rules call a style shadowbox, write shadowbox, not a nickname. Label every page with your address and lot number, and put everything in one file in the order the form asks for it. Before you send it, read it once as a stranger would.

Your contractor can help with this part. A good estimate already holds most of what a committee wants, including a layout of the fence line or deck footprint and a written material list. Ask for those pieces in a form you can attach. Then make sure the application and the quote describe the same project. When they disagree, the committee approves one thing and the crew builds another. If you are still choosing a style, our fence page covers the common options in plain terms.

Where fence applications usually get stuck

Height comes up in almost every set of fence rules. Many guidelines set one limit for backyard fences and a lower one near the street, and corner lots often face tighter rules on the side that faces the road. Placement comes next. Plenty of associations require a fence to start somewhere behind the front corner of the house so the front yard stays open. Rules about which side faces out are also common. Where a rule exists, it usually puts the good face of the fence toward the street and the lots next door, leaving the framing on your side.

Color and material round out the list. Some neighborhoods allow only natural wood with a clear or approved stain, while others name one color every fence must match. Vinyl or chain link may be banned or allowed only in certain spots. Gallatin has golf courses and sits near Old Hickory Lake. On a golf course or lake lot, ask whether the rules favor lower or more open fences that keep views clear. Watch the upkeep rules as well. Sun and weather turn unstained wood gray over time, and some associations require fences to stay stained or sealed. New pressure treated pine usually has to dry out for a while before stain soaks in evenly, so ask how long you have to apply a required color.

How Middle Tennessee ground shapes the plan

The ground can change what a committee sees. On a sloped lot, a fence either steps down in level sections or follows the grade. Stepped panels leave triangle shaped gaps at the bottom, which some committees and dog owners dislike. Following the slope keeps the bottom tight but tilts the top line. Say which method you plan, since a drawing on flat paper hides the difference.

Newer subdivisions often have drainage swales between houses to carry storm water off the lots. Heavy clay soil does not soak up much during a hard Tennessee storm, so those swales can carry real water. A fence built tight across one can dam it or catch debris. Many plats show drainage easements, and associations and cities often limit what can be built inside them. Check the plat before you draw the fence line, not after the committee asks.

Rock is the other surprise. Across much of Rutherford County, limestone lies near the surface, and post holes can hit it. Usually a crew works through it or shifts a post slightly along the same line. Moving a gate or the line itself is a bigger change, so ask ahead how your committee handles small adjustments made in the field.

Deck placement and design questions committees raise

Deck reviews focus on what the neighbors will see. Most guidelines keep decks in the backyard, and setbacks from the lot lines can come from the covenants, the plat, or local zoning. Low decks tucked behind the house usually draw fewer questions. Tall ones off a walkout basement get a closer look. On a sloped lot, a raised deck can look straight into the yard next door, and committees may ask about privacy screens or plantings.

Expect questions about the parts under and around the deck, too. Some committees want the space below a raised deck screened with lattice or skirting, and they may ask that railings match the house trim. Composite colors can be limited to an approved palette. If the palette leaves you a choice, keep in mind that darker boards get hot in direct summer sun. Adding a roof usually means more review, and so does a hot tub. Attached decks also usually need a building permit, which our deck permit guide explains.

Plan your timeline around the review

Approval moves at the speed of your committee's calendar. Many committees meet on a set schedule, some only once a month. Covenants often give the committee a window to answer. A few say silence counts as approval, while others treat it as a denial, so read that clause closely. Ask the management company when the next meeting is and when the agenda closes. Incomplete packets usually wait for the following meeting.

Season matters too. Spring tends to be busy for review committees and building crews alike, because everyone wants the yard ready for summer. Submitting during the colder months lets approval land before the rush. Wet clay in late winter and spring can also slow digging, so an early spring start is not a sure thing. Collect estimates while the application is under review, but hold off on a firm start date or a material order until the approval is in writing.

If the committee says no or asks for changes

Conditional approvals are common. The committee signs off as long as you change one detail, such as lowering the fence near the street or switching the stain color. Read every condition and give your builder a copy. When the answer is a flat no, ask exactly which rule the plan breaks. A revised plan that fixes that one point often gets through on the next round. Many associations also allow an appeal to the board, or a variance when a lot has an odd shape or a steep slope.

Talk with the neighbors who share the fence line before the meeting. A signed note of support from an adjoining owner can help a borderline request. Once you have approval, call 811 before anyone digs so the utility companies can mark their buried lines. Keep the approval letter with your house papers after the job is done. When you sell, the association may be asked whether the lot has any open violations, and that letter helps answer it.