CC&Rs

CC&Rs stands for Covenants, Conditions & Restrictions, the private rulebook recorded against the lots in a subdivision or homeowners association. They are a legal contract that runs with the land: when you buy a lot inside a planned community, you agree to follow its CC&Rs, and so does every owner after you. They sit on top of city zoning, so a home has to satisfy both.

For someone building a custom home, the CC&Rs often control more than the city does. They commonly set a minimum and maximum house size, allowed materials and roof types, exterior colors, fence and wall heights, where outbuildings and casitas can go, and how long construction may take. Many require a design review board (an architectural committee) to approve your plans before you pull a permit. In Arizona, planned communities and their governing documents are defined under the Planned Communities Act in Arizona Revised Statutes Title 33, Chapter 16.

For example, a custom lot in a gated Rio Verde or Carefree community may carry CC&Rs requiring at least 3,000 square feet of living space, earth-tone stucco, a tile roof, and committee sign-off on the elevations before the county will even review the plans. Miss those rules and the HOA can force changes or fines.

CC&Rs are different from zoning, which is the city or county's public law, and from the plat, which is the recorded map of the lots. CC&Rs are the private rules layered on top. They are also enforced by the HOA, not the building department. We read the CC&Rs and clear architectural review at the start of design, because they can override an otherwise legal plan and reshape the whole home.