October 16, 2025
Can a Michigan Condominium Association Remove an Aggressive Dog Without Notice? Disputes involving the enforcement of condominium deed restrictions and restrictive covenants can raise serious questions about the rights of individual condo unit owners (formally referred to as co-owners) and how restrictions within condominium governing documents should be interpreted and applied, especially when those restrictions are being used as a…
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September 25, 2025
Fair Housing & HOAs: Can an Emotional Support Animal Be Denied if Another Unit Owner Has Allergies? In typical circumstances, each owner in a homeowners association must comply with the restrictions defined in the governing documents. Most governing documents contain some restriction concerning pets, whether it be a restriction on the number of pets that may be kept or an…
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July 31, 2025
Chickens are becoming increasingly trendy animals for people to own. At least part of the driving force behind people keeping chickens is the fresh supply of eggs. With increasing awareness around farming practices and consciousness about health, many people are keeping chickens in their backyards. For those who are part of a homeowners association in a suburban setting, though, there…
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March 18, 2025
Disputes over whether exotic animals, such as chickens, can constitute pets under restrictive covenants are becoming increasingly common. In Nemeth v DiGirolamo, unpublished opinion of the Court of Appeals, issued March 12, 2025 (Docket No. 366595), 2025 WL 796149, the Michigan Court of Appeals considered whether four cows and a ram constituted “pets” under the deed restrictions. The case also…
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November 21, 2023
Over the last several years, emotional support animals have been a continuous source of speculation and confusion for many Michigan condo and HOA boards. We all have seen the news stories of individuals attempting to bring animals such as squirrels and even alligators into places of public accommodation under the claim that they are emotional support animals. Many will read…
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September 16, 2022
Most homeowners associations require that owners within the subdivision be members of the association. While these types of homeowner associations are the norm, they are not the only type of homeowners associations in existence. A voluntary homeowners association is just that, an HOA where membership is voluntary. But as a voluntary homeowners association, some members may believe that the association’s…
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