Centerfield

Deed Restrictions Are Evil And Should Be Banned

Yep, I've been reading some while looking for a house recently.

As I see it, a law should be passed invalidating deed restrictions after some startup period to allow for replacement by HOAs where desired. It's also evil that there are plenty of properties that change ownership without the buyer being able to find out about the restrictions, but as I see it, the fix is to eliminate them.

I'm fine with groups being allowed to set restrictions, like zoning and home-owners associations, though I'd rather not join one myself. The key difference is that people alive today can vote on the rules. You can vote out racist rules.

Jefferson was deeply concerned at spots where we, as a society, can come to be ruled by the dead. Deed restrictions are just that. To that extent, we're ruled by the dead's ethics and priorities. How many deeds, like one of Bush' houses, have wording requiring that they only go to white owners? How much legal money and court time will be spent deciding how to translate wording about cars to whatever the next popular transport device is?

As an engineer, another thing that gets my goat is that you can only add to the pile. You can't take away a deed restriction. Eventually, they'll tend to become as impractical as US law to read and understand.