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Architectural review application
{{ASSOCIATION_NAME}}
Application for approval of an exterior modification, addition, or alteration
Before you print this: five things the board configures
This template ships with the decision side of the form built out, because that is the side Florida law regulates and the side most association forms leave blank. Configure these five items once, then the form is ready for owners.
Return address and submission deadline. Fill the header in Section 1 and the meeting-referenced deadline in Section 9. Chapter 720, Fla. Stat. sets no response deadline and creates no deemed approval, so the window has to come from your declaration and be expressed against your review calendar, not copied from another community's form.
Project-type menu. Section 5 ships with a starting menu. Delete any type your declaration does not actually give the committee authority over. Under § 720.3035(1)(a), Fla. Stat., a homeowners' association committee may review only what the declaration or published guidelines authorized it to review.
Hurricane protection specifications. Section 5A does not work until the board has adopted them. § 720.3035(6)(a), Fla. Stat. requires a homeowners' association board or committee to adopt hurricane protection specifications for each structure. § 718.113(5), Fla. Stat. requires the same of a residential or mixed-use condominium board.
Fee, deposit, and payee. Sections 10 and 18 are off by default. Turn them on only if your governing documents authorize the charge.
Association type. This template covers homeowners' associations, condominiums, and cooperatives. Delete the lanes you do not need. The statutory notes flag which chapter each rule comes from.
Everything in this form written as ____ is an owner fill-in. Everything in {{DOUBLE BRACES}} is a board fill-in you replace before printing.
Section 1. Return this application to
Deliver the completed application and all attachments to:
Questions about the standards that apply to your project: {{CONTACT_NAME_AND_ROLE}}
Section 2. Read this first
Do not begin work until you have written approval in hand.
Work that starts before written approval is at your own risk. The committee reviews the project as proposed. If you build first, you may be required to modify or remove the work at your expense, and the association may pursue the remedies its governing documents and Florida law allow.
Verbal approval from a director, a committee member, a manager, or a neighbor is not approval. Approval exists only when it is in writing, signed, and delivered to you under Section 16 of this form.
Approval by this association is not a permit. You remain responsible for every county and municipal permit, inspection, code requirement, setback, easement, and utility clearance that applies to the work. Where a local code and this association's standards conflict, get both resolved before you begin.
Section 3. Owner and property
| Field | Entry |
|---|---|
| Owner name or names of record | ____________________________________ |
| Property address in the community | ____________________________________ |
| Lot, unit, or building number | ____________________________________ |
| Mailing address, if different | ____________________________________ |
| Phone | ____________________ |
| Email | ____________________ |
| Preferred method of written notice | [ ] Email [ ] Mail |
| Date submitted | ____________________ |
Is the account current? Applications are reviewed on their merits. If your governing documents make an approval contingent on the account being current, this form carries no account-current condition. Add one only if your governing documents impose it, and say where it applies.
If the property is leased or occupied by someone other than the owner, the owner of record signs this application. A tenant may not apply in the owner's place.
Section 4. Are you installing, displaying, or storing an item?
Answer this before anything else. For one narrow category of request it may end the application here, in your favor. It does not apply to construction.
Step one. Which of these is your request?
[ ] Installing, displaying, or storing an item on the parcel. The statute's own examples are artificial turf, boats, flags, vegetable gardens, clotheslines, and recreational vehicles, and it is not limited to that list.
[ ] Construction of a structure or other improvement. A room addition, pool, deck, screen enclosure, fence or wall, driveway, roof, or similar work.
[ ] Not sure, please advise.
If you checked construction of a structure or other improvement, skip step two and go to Section 5. Construction is reviewed under your declaration whether or not anyone can see it. Not being visible does not take a structure or improvement out of review, and § 720.3035(4)(a), Fla. Stat. is written on the assumption that an application "for the construction of a structure or other improvement" is reviewable. Building without approval on the theory that it cannot be seen exposes you to the removal risk described in Section 2.
Step two, items only. Is any part of the item visible from the parcel's frontage, from an adjacent parcel, from an adjacent common area, or from a community golf course?
[ ] Yes[ ] No[ ] Not sure, please advise
If you answered no at step two, and this is a homeowners' association parcel, § 720.3045, Fla. Stat. bars the association from restricting the installing, displaying, or storing of that item, unless a general law or a local ordinance prohibits it. Submit this page anyway so the association has a record, and note the item below. No approval is required for that item and none will be withheld.
Item, if not visible: ____________________________________
Two related limits, same chapter, and these are the only places chapter 720 makes non-visibility a bar on the construction side of review. Under § 720.3035(1)(b), Fla. Stat., a homeowners' association may not adopt or enforce a covenant, rule, or guideline that places requirements on the interior of a structure that is not visible from the frontage, an adjacent parcel, an adjacent common area, or a community golf course; and it may not require review of plans for a central air conditioning, refrigeration, heating, or ventilating system that is not so visible and is substantially similar to a system the association or a committee has approved or recommended. Outside those two, a structure or improvement stays reviewable under the declaration regardless of who can see it.
Condominium and cooperative note. The visibility rule in § 720.3045, Fla. Stat. is a chapter 720 provision and does not apply to condominiums or cooperatives. Work inside a condominium unit, and work touching the common elements, is governed by the declaration and by chapter 718, Fla. Stat. Cooperative alterations are governed by the cooperative documents and chapter 719, Fla. Stat.
Section 5. Project type
Check every type that applies. If nothing fits, check "other" and describe it in Section 6.
[ ] Paint or exterior color change[ ] Roof replacement or roof material change (if the roof system meets ASCE 7-22 standards, go to Section 5A instead)
[ ] Windows or exterior doors (if impact resistant, go to Section 5A instead)
[ ] Driveway, walkway, or other hardscape[ ] Fence or wall[ ] Screen enclosure or lanai[ ] Pool or spa[ ] Deck, patio, or pergola[ ] Room addition or structural change[ ] Landscaping, tree removal, or grading[ ] Exterior lighting[ ] Satellite dish or antenna[ ] Generator or fuel tank (an exterior fixed generator or a fuel storage tank is hurricane protection, go to Section 5A instead)
[ ] Mailbox, house numbers, or exterior fixtures[ ] Hurricane protection (go to Section 5A, this is a different review)
[ ] Other: ____________________________________
Board note when configuring the menu. Do not add a project type the committee has no authority to review. § 720.3035(1)(a), Fla. Stat. limits a homeowners' association committee to the authority specifically stated or reasonably inferred in the declaration or in published guidelines the declaration authorizes. Three menu entries that appear on many circulating forms and should not appear on a homeowners' association form: a non-visible air conditioning condenser, a freestanding flagpole 20 feet or shorter, and hurricane protection that conforms to adopted specifications. Each is addressed in Appendix A.
Board note on the routing marks. Four lines above carry a pointer to Section 5A. That is deliberate. § 720.3035(6)(c), Fla. Stat. names exterior fixed generators, fuel storage tanks, impact-resistant windows and doors, and roof systems meeting ASCE 7-22 standards as hurricane protection, and § 720.3035(6)(b), Fla. Stat. forbids denying a conforming application for any of them. An owner does not think of a standby generator as hurricane protection and will otherwise check the discretionary lane, which invites the committee to review on aesthetics something it may not deny. Keep the routing marks on all four lines. If your community adds a menu entry for another product on the § 720.3035(6)(c) list, give it the same mark.
Section 5A. Hurricane protection
Hurricane protection is not reviewed on aesthetics or on the committee's discretion. It is checked against the specifications the board has adopted, and a conforming application is approved.
Homeowners' associations. § 720.3035(6)(a), Fla. Stat. requires the board or committee to adopt hurricane protection specifications for each structure or improvement on a parcel, complying with the applicable building code, and permits the specifications to address color, style, and other factors the board finds relevant. Under § 720.3035(6)(b), Fla. Stat., the board or committee may not deny an application for the installation, enhancement, or replacement of hurricane protection that conforms to those specifications, though it may require the owner to adhere to an existing unified building scheme regarding external appearance.
Condominiums. § 718.113(5), Fla. Stat. requires each residential or mixed-use condominium board to adopt hurricane protection specifications for each building, and § 718.113(5)(c), Fla. Stat. provides that a board may not refuse to approve an owner's conforming installation or replacement, subject to the same unified building scheme exception.
What counts as hurricane protection. § 720.3035(6)(c), Fla. Stat. gives a non exclusive list, and it is a chapter 720 definition: roof systems recognized by the Florida Building Code which meet ASCE 7-22 standards, permanent fixed storm shutters, roll-down track storm shutters, impact-resistant windows and doors, polycarbonate panels, reinforced garage doors, erosion controls, exterior fixed generators, fuel storage tanks, and other hurricane protection products used to preserve and protect the structures or improvements on a parcel governed by the association.
Condominium boards, read the previous paragraph as a reference and not as your governing text. Chapter 718 supplies no product list of its own. § 718.113(5), Fla. Stat. requires the board to adopt hurricane protection specifications for each building and § 718.113(5)(c), Fla. Stat. bars refusing a conforming owner installation, but neither defines which products count as hurricane protection. A condominium board using this form is borrowing the § 720.3035(6)(c) description because chapter 718 does not supply one. Have counsel confirm the product scope before the board writes it into its adopted specifications, and do not cite § 718.113(5)(c) for the list itself.
Complete this block instead of a discretionary review:
| Field | Entry |
|---|---|
| Product type | ____________________________________ |
| Manufacturer and model | ____________________________________ |
| Florida product approval or NOA number | ____________________ |
| Color and finish | ____________________ |
| Conforms to the association's adopted specifications dated {{SPECS_ADOPTION_DATE}} | [ ] Yes [ ] No [ ] Specifications not yet adopted |
| Installer | ____________________________________ |
If the board has not adopted specifications, say so in Section 16 and adopt them. The absence of specifications is the association's gap, not a reason to deny.
Section 6. Describe the work
Attach additional pages if you need them. The committee can only approve what it can picture.
What are you doing?________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Answer each of these. "See attached" is fine if the attachment actually says it.
| Prompt | Entry |
|---|---|
| Exact location on the property | ____________________________________ |
| Overall dimensions (length, width, height) | ____________________________________ |
| Distance to the nearest property line | ____________________ |
| Distance to the nearest structure | ____________________ |
| Primary material | ____________________________________ |
| Secondary or trim material | ____________________________________ |
| Color name, code, and manufacturer | ____________________________________ |
| Finish or texture | ____________________ |
| Existing condition being replaced or removed | ____________________________________ |
| Effect on drainage, grade, or an existing easement | ____________________________________ |
| Does the work touch a shared wall, roof, or other element the association maintains? | [ ] Yes [ ] No |
Setback note. Under § 720.3035(3), Fla. Stat., unless the declaration or authorized published guidelines specifically state otherwise, a parcel is deemed to have only one front for purposes of the front setback, even if it is bounded by a roadway or easement on more than one side. Where the declaration and guidelines do not set specific setbacks, the county or municipal setback applies, and a homeowners' association may not enforce a setback inconsistent with that local standard.
Options note. Under § 720.3035(2), Fla. Stat., if the declaration or authorized published guidelines give options for material, size, design, or location, the association and its committee may not restrict the owner's right to select among those options.
Section 7. Contractor or vendor
Complete this if someone other than you is performing the work.
| Field | Entry |
|---|---|
| Company name | ____________________________________ |
| Contact name | ____________________________________ |
| Address | ____________________________________ |
| Phone | ____________________ |
| Email | ____________________ |
| Building permit number, if a permit is required | ____________________ |
| Permit issuing jurisdiction | ____________________ |
What this association does not ask for, and why. This form does not ask your contractor to present or prove a professional or occupational license, and the association will not condition entry onto your property on one. § 720.3075(3)(e), Fla. Stat. provides that homeowners' association documents may not preclude an owner from inviting, hiring, or allowing entry to a contractor or worker solely because that person is not on a preferred vendor list, or solely because that person does not hold a professional or occupational license, and states that the association may not require a contractor or worker to present or prove possession of such a license to be allowed entry onto an owner's parcel.
That is a limit on the association, not on the contractor. Florida trade licensing law still binds whoever performs the work, and your building department will enforce it at permit and inspection. The permit number above is how this association confirms the work is permitted. It is not a licensure check.
Insurance.[ ] A certificate of insurance is attached.
Required only when the work involves association maintained property, a common area, a shared building element, or access through a common area. For work entirely on your own parcel that does not touch any of those, this association does not require a certificate. {{DELETE_THIS_BLOCK_IF_NOT_ADOPTED}}
Section 8. Attachments
Check each item you have attached. An application missing a required attachment is not denied, it is returned as incomplete under Section 16, with a note saying what is missing.
Required[ ] Written description of the work (Section 6, or an attached scope)[ ] Drawing, sketch, or plan showing what is being built and where[ ] Color and material samples, or manufacturer specification sheets with color codes
Required when applicable[ ] Survey or plot plan with the proposed change drawn on it, for anything that changes the footprint, grade, or drainage[ ] Photographs of the existing condition and the affected elevation[ ] Manufacturer brochure or product data sheet[ ] Building permit or permit application, where the jurisdiction requires one[ ] Engineering or structural documents, where the jurisdiction requires them[ ] Landscape plan identifying plant species and mature size, for planting or removal[ ] Tree removal documentation required by the county or municipality
Not required by this association
Contractor licensure documentation. See Section 7.
Section 9. Schedule
| Field | Entry |
|---|---|
| Estimated start date | ____________________ |
| Estimated completion date | ____________________ |
| Anticipated working hours | ____________________ |
| Will any work require access through a common area? | [ ] Yes [ ] No |
When the committee will decide. Completed applications received by {{CUTOFF_TIME_AND_DAY, for example 4:00 p.m. on the Wednesday before the meeting}} are placed on the agenda for the next {{REVIEW_BODY_NAME}} meeting. Meetings are held {{MEETING_SCHEDULE, for example the second Tuesday of each month}} at {{MEETING_LOCATION}}.
The response window in the governing documents of this association is: {{RESPONSE_WINDOW_FROM_DECLARATION, or "not specified"}}.
Read this before you rely on a 30 day rule. Chapter 720, Fla. Stat. does not set a deadline for an association to respond to an architectural application and does not create an approval by default when a deadline passes. § 720.3035, Fla. Stat. is silent on timing. Any response deadline, and any consequence of missing it, comes from this association's declaration and authorized guidelines. Some declarations deem a plan approved after a stated period. Others deem it denied. Check yours rather than assuming.
Section 10. Fee or compliance deposit {{OPTIONAL_SECTION}}
Include this section only if the governing documents authorize the charge. Delete it otherwise.
| Field | Entry |
|---|---|
| Review fee | $____________ |
| Compliance deposit | $____________ |
| Payable to | {{EXACT_PAYEE_NAME}} |
| Check or reference number | ____________________ |
A compliance deposit is refundable on satisfactory completion under Section 18. Conditions for forfeiture, if any, must appear in the governing documents. Do not print a per day penalty figure on this form. See Appendix A.
Some communities ask an applicant to let adjoining owners know about work that will be visible from or that abuts their property. A neighbor's signature below means the neighbor was informed. It is not a vote, and a neighbor's objection does not by itself decide the application. The committee decides against the standards in the governing documents.
____ 1. I will not begin work until I have written approval under Section 16.
____ 2. I will obtain every permit and approval required by the county, the municipality, and any other authority with jurisdiction, and I will comply with all applicable codes.
____ 3. I will build what was approved. If the work changes in material, color, dimension, or location, I will submit the change for approval before building it.
____ 4. I am responsible for the completed work, and for its ongoing maintenance, repair, and replacement, unless the declaration assigns that responsibility to the association.
____ 5. If the work damages association property, a common area, a shared element, or a neighboring property, I am responsible for restoring it.
____ 6. I will keep the work area reasonably clean, will keep materials and debris out of common areas and off neighboring property, and will remove debris promptly.
____ 7. If approval is granted subject to conditions, the conditions are part of the approval and I accept them.
____ 8. I understand the approval expires if work has not begun within {{APPROVAL_VALIDITY_PERIOD}} of the approval date, and that I may request an extension in writing before it expires.
____ 9. I authorize a representative of the association to enter the property at a reasonable time to observe the work and confirm it matches what was approved. {{DELETE_IF_NOT_AUTHORIZED_BY_GOVERNING_DOCUMENTS}}
____ 10. The information in this application is accurate and complete to the best of my knowledge.
Section 13. What this review is and is not
The committee reviews this application against the appearance and location standards in the governing documents and the authorized published guidelines. It does not review the work for structural adequacy, engineering sufficiency, code compliance, water intrusion risk, fitness for purpose, or workmanship, and it does not employ or supervise your contractor.
Approval means the proposal is acceptable under those standards. It is not a representation that the design is sound, that the work will be done well, or that it complies with any building code. Responsibility for all of that stays with the owner.
Nothing in this form waives, and nothing in it enlarges, any right the owner or the association has under the governing documents or Florida law.
Section 14. Owner signature
By signing, I confirm I am an owner of record of the property described in Section 3, that I have read Sections 2, 12, and 13, and that I am submitting this application for review.
| | |
|---|---|
| Owner signature | ____________________________________ |
| Print name | ____________________________________ |
| Date | ____________________ |
| Co-owner signature, if applicable | ____________________________________ |
| Print name | ____________________________________ |
| Date | ____________________ |
Association use only
Everything below this line is completed by the association. This is the part of the form the association keeps as its record of the decision.
Section 15. Review record
Audit dates. These three dates are the association's evidence that it handled the application within whatever window its documents impose.
Meeting at which the decision was made:____________________
Meeting notice. Under § 720.303(2)(a), Fla. Stat., the open meeting requirement that applies to a homeowners' association board also applies to any body vested with the power to approve or disapprove architectural decisions with respect to a specific parcel owned by a member. Under § 720.303(2)(c)1., Fla. Stat., notice identifying the agenda items must be posted conspicuously in the community at least 48 hours before the meeting, except in an emergency, or mailed or delivered to each member at least 7 days before, with alternatives available to communities of more than 100 members. For condominiums, § 718.112(2)(c), Fla. Stat. requires adequate notice identifying all agenda items to be posted conspicuously on the condominium property at least 48 continuous hours before a board meeting, except in an emergency, and applies the same paragraph to a committee that takes final action on behalf of the board.
Notice posted or delivered on: ____________ By: ______
Approval expires if work has not begun by ____________.
[ ] Tabled
No decision yet. The application is held for the reason below and will be taken up at the meeting on ____________. This is not a denial, and the owner does not need to reapply.
Reason held: [ ] Incomplete application [ ] More information requested [ ] Awaiting professional review [ ] Other
What is needed, and from whom:
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Requested by: ____________ Owner notified on: ____________
[ ] Denied
Both fields below are required. A denial is not complete without them, and this form may not be issued with either one blank.
§ 720.3035(4)(a), Fla. Stat. provides that if a homeowners' association or its architectural, construction improvement, or similar committee denies an owner's request or application, the association or committee must give the owner written notice stating with specificity the rule or covenant it relied on in denying the request, and the specific aspect or part of the proposed improvement that does not conform to that rule or covenant. Naming a rule without identifying the nonconforming part does not satisfy this. Neither does identifying the problem without citing the rule.
1. Rule or covenant relied on. Cite the document, article or section number, and quote or paraphrase the operative language.
Document: [ ] Declaration [ ] Bylaws [ ] Published architectural guidelines [ ] Rules and regulations
Article or section: ____________________
Language relied on:
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. Specific aspect of the proposal that does not conform. Identify the element, not the project. "The fence" is not an answer. "The 6 foot height on the street-facing side, where Article VII.3 caps street-facing fence height at 4 feet" is.
3. What would conform, if the committee can say. Optional, and not required by statute, but it is the difference between a denial the owner can act on and one the owner can only appeal.
Additional grounds. If the denial rests on more than one covenant, repeat fields 1 and 2 for each. Every ground relied on must be stated with the same specificity.
Two limits on the committee's reasoning. Under § 720.3035(5), Fla. Stat., a homeowners' association and its committee may not enforce, and may not rely on in defense of an action, a policy or restriction inconsistent with the declaration or authorized published guidelines, whether or not it has been applied uniformly. Under § 720.3035(1)(a), Fla. Stat., the standards must be applied reasonably and equitably to all parcel owners.
Decision issued by
| | |
|---|---|
| Signature | ____________________________________ |
| Print name and title | ____________________________________ |
| Date | ____________________ |
Delivered to the owner by: [ ] Email [ ] Mail [ ] Hand delivery on ____________
Retention. Keep this completed form. § 720.303(4)(a)14., Fla. Stat. makes all other written records of the association related to its operation official records, and § 720.303(4)(a), Fla. Stat. requires official records to be maintained for at least 7 years unless the governing documents require longer.
Use this only in a community where more than one body approves. Delete it otherwise. Approval by this association does not substitute for any approval below.
| Body | Decision | Signature | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sub-association or neighborhood committee | [ ] Approved [ ] Denied | ____________ | ________ |
| Master association | [ ] Approved [ ] Denied | ____________ | ________ |
| Community development district | [ ] Approved [ ] Denied | ____________ | ________ |
Section 18. Completion and closeout
| Field | Entry |
|---|---|
| Owner notice of completion received | ____________ |
| Inspection date | ____________ |
| Inspected by | ____________________ |
| Work matches the approved application and conditions | [ ] Yes [ ] No |
| If no, what differs | ____________________________________ |
| Certificate of occupancy or final inspection attached, where applicable | [ ] Yes [ ] N/A |
| As-built survey attached, where applicable | [ ] Yes [ ] N/A |
| Compliance deposit released | [ ] Yes [ ] N/A Date: ____________ Amount: $________ |
If the completed work does not match what was approved, the association addresses it through its enforcement process, not by refusing to close this file. See Appendix A on fines.
Section 19. Contractor site rules {{OPTIONAL_ADDENDUM}}
Attach and have the contractor sign only if the association has adopted site rules. These rules govern conduct on association property and in common areas. They do not condition entry onto the owner's parcel on anything § 720.3075(3)(e), Fla. Stat. bars.
Working hours in common areas: {{HOURS}}. Deliveries: {{DELIVERY_HOURS}}.
Park in {{PARKING_LOCATION}}. Do not block a driveway, a fire lane, a hydrant, or a mailbox cluster.
Keep the staging area within the owner's parcel where possible. Any staging in a common area needs advance written permission.
Remove debris from common areas daily. Do not place a dumpster on a common area without written permission.
Protect irrigation, lighting, drainage structures, and landscaping in common areas. Report any damage the same day.
Follow posted gate and access procedures.
Damage to association property is restored at the responsible party's expense.
| | |
|---|---|
| Contractor signature | ____________________________________ |
| Print name and company | ____________________________________ |
| Date | ____________________ |
Appendix A. What this form deliberately leaves out
Each item below appears on a large share of architectural forms circulating in Florida communities. Each is left out here for the stated reason. If your counsel reaches a different conclusion for your community, that is the right way to add one back.
Contractor licensure as a condition of entry or approval.
§ 720.3075(3)(e), Fla. Stat. bars a homeowners' association from requiring a contractor or worker to present or prove possession of a professional or occupational license to be allowed entry onto an owner's parcel, and bars association documents from precluding an owner from hiring a contractor solely because that person is unlicensed or not on a preferred vendor list. Trade licensure is enforced by the state and by the building department, not by the association.
A denial with no stated reason.
§ 720.3035(4)(a), Fla. Stat. requires a written denial to state with specificity both the rule or covenant relied on and the specific nonconforming aspect of the proposal. A checkbox marked "denied" does not meet that standard. Section 16 makes both fields mandatory.
Hurricane shutters and impact glass on the discretionary menu.
Once specifications are adopted, § 720.3035(6)(b), Fla. Stat. bars a homeowners' association board or committee from denying a conforming application, and § 718.113(5)(c), Fla. Stat. does the same for a condominium board. Section 5A routes these to a conformity check.
A freestanding flagpole on the approvable menu.
§ 720.304(2)(b), Fla. Stat. allows a homeowner to erect a freestanding flagpole no more than 20 feet high anywhere on the owner's real property, regardless of association covenants, rules, or requirements, so long as it does not obstruct sightlines at intersections and is not erected within or upon an easement. The flagpole and display remain subject to building codes, zoning setbacks, other governmental regulations including noise and lighting ordinances, and all setback and locational criteria in the governing documents. Under § 720.3075(3)(a), Fla. Stat., association documents may not preclude the display of up to two portable removable flags as described in § 720.304(2)(a), Fla. Stat. A conforming flagpole is not an application the committee grants. Its location against sightlines and easements may still be discussed.
Approval requirements for items not visible.
§ 720.3045, Fla. Stat. bars a homeowners' association from restricting installation, display, or storage of items not visible from the frontage, an adjacent parcel, an adjacent common area, or a community golf course, unless prohibited by general law or local ordinance, and names artificial turf, boats, flags, vegetable gardens, clotheslines, and recreational vehicles as examples. Section 4 screens for this at the top of the form.
Interior review, and review of a non-visible air conditioning or heating system, in a homeowners' association.
Barred by § 720.3035(1)(b)1. and 2., Fla. Stat. This is a chapter 720 limit. A condominium declaration may legitimately require approval for work inside a unit, particularly where it affects the common elements, and cooperative documents may do the same.
Two "fronts" on a corner lot, and community-wide setbacks that beat the local code.
§ 720.3035(3), Fla. Stat. deems a parcel to have one front for front-setback purposes unless the declaration or authorized guidelines specifically say otherwise, and where they set no specific setback, the county or municipal standard governs and the association may not enforce a setback inconsistent with it.
A printed per-day fine as the consequence of starting early.
§ 720.305(2), Fla. Stat. permits reasonable fines but caps a fine at $100 per violation and $1,000 in the aggregate for a continuing violation, unless the governing documents provide otherwise, and provides that a fine under $1,000 may not become a lien against a parcel. § 720.305(2)(b), Fla. Stat. requires at least 14 days' written notice of the right to a hearing, a hearing within 90 days before a committee of at least three members appointed by the board who are not officers, directors, or employees of the association or their spouse, parent, child, brother, or sister, and under § 720.305(2)(c), Fla. Stat. the fine may not be imposed unless that committee approves it by majority vote. A dollar figure printed on an application form is not a levied fine and is not enforceable as one. Enforcement runs through the process, not through the form.
"No response within 30 days means approved."
Chapter 720, Fla. Stat. contains no response deadline and no deemed approval for architectural applications. § 720.3035, Fla. Stat. is silent on timing. Deadlines that exist come from the declaration, and they cut both ways: some declarations deem an application denied after a stated period. Section 9 asks the board to state its own window rather than reciting a number as though it were law.
Solar collectors and other energy devices.
Florida restricts a community's ability to prohibit solar collectors through a statute outside chapters 718, 719, and 720. This template does not reproduce that rule and does not state its content. Before you place solar on the discretionary project menu, or charge a review fee for it, have counsel confirm the current text of § 163.04, Fla. Stat. and how it applies to your community.
Related limits worth knowing when the committee writes standards.
Under § 720.3075(3)(d), Fla. Stat., homeowners' association documents may not preclude an owner, tenant, guest, or invitee from parking a personal vehicle including a pickup truck in the owner's driveway, or from parking a work vehicle that is not a commercial motor vehicle as defined in § 320.01(25), Fla. Stat., in the driveway, regardless of any official insignia or visible designation. Under § 720.3075(4)(b), Fla. Stat., those documents may not prohibit or be enforced to prohibit Florida-friendly landscaping as defined in § 373.185, Fla. Stat.
Appendix B. Statutes this template relies on
Every citation below was read in full before it was used here. Read them yourself before adopting the form.
| Citation | What it governs here |
|---|---|
| § 720.3035(1)(a), Fla. Stat. | Committee authority limited to what the declaration or authorized guidelines grant; standards applied reasonably and equitably |
| § 720.3035(1)(b), Fla. Stat. | No rule on a non-visible interior; no review of a non-visible, substantially similar HVAC system |
| § 720.3035(2), Fla. Stat. | Owner may select among options the documents provide |
| § 720.3035(3), Fla. Stat. | One front per parcel for setbacks; local standard where documents are silent |
| § 720.3035(4)(a), Fla. Stat. | Written denial must state the covenant relied on and the specific nonconforming aspect |
| § 720.3035(4)(b), Fla. Stat. | Damages, costs, and fees where rights are unreasonably, knowingly, and willfully impaired |
| § 720.3035(5), Fla. Stat. | No enforcement of, and no reliance on, a policy inconsistent with the declaration |
| § 720.3035(6), Fla. Stat. | Hurricane protection specifications required; conforming application may not be denied |
| § 720.3045, Fla. Stat. | No restriction on items not visible from frontage, adjacent parcel, adjacent common area, or golf course |
| § 720.304(2)(a) and (b), Fla. Stat. | Flag display; freestanding flagpole up to 20 feet |
| § 720.3075(3)(a), (d), (e), Fla. Stat. | Flags; driveway parking; contractor licensure and preferred vendor lists |
| § 720.3075(4)(b), Fla. Stat. | Florida-friendly landscaping |
| § 720.303(2)(a) and (2)(c)1., Fla. Stat. | Open meetings for a body deciding parcel-specific architectural matters; 48 hour posted notice |
| § 720.303(4)(a), Fla. Stat. | Official records, 7 year retention, catch-all at subparagraph 14. |
| § 720.305(2), Fla. Stat. | Fine caps, notice, hearing committee, and confirmation vote |
| § 718.112(2)(c), Fla. Stat. | Condominium board and committee open meetings; 48 continuous hours notice |
| § 718.113(2), Fla. Stat. | Material alteration or substantial addition to condominium common elements; 75 percent where the declaration is silent |
| § 718.113(5), Fla. Stat. | Condominium hurricane protection specifications and conforming installations |
| § 719.1055, Fla. Stat. | Cooperative document amendments and association-side material alterations |
Chapter 719, Fla. Stat. contains no architectural control section corresponding to § 720.3035, Fla. Stat. In a cooperative, the alteration approval standard comes from the cooperative documents.
Appendix C. Before the board adopts this form
Read the declaration and any published architectural guidelines side by side with Section 5, and delete every project type the documents do not put under the committee.
Confirm hurricane protection specifications have been adopted, and put the adoption date in Section 5A.
Set the submission cutoff and the meeting schedule in Section 9 against your actual calendar.
Decide whether the fee, deposit, neighbor awareness, second-tier, right-of-entry, insurance, and contractor addendum blocks apply to you, and delete the ones that do not.
Confirm your notice practice matches Section 15: where the notice is posted, how far in advance, and who posts it.
Confirm the association keeps completed forms, including denials, for at least 7 years.
Have association counsel review the finished form before the board adopts it, particularly the denial block, the fee and deposit provisions, and anything you added back from Appendix A.
§ 720.3075(3), Fla. Stat.Prohibited clauses. (e) an association may not require a contractor or worker to present or prove a professional or occupational license to be allowed entry onto an owner's parcel, and may not preclude hiring off the preferred vendor list; (a) flags; (d) driveway parking of personal and non-commercial work vehicles; (4)(b) Florida-friendly landscaping.
§ 720.304(2), Fla. Stat.Display of flags and freestanding flagpole up to 20 feet, subject to sightlines, easements, building codes, zoning setbacks, and locational criteria in the governing documents. Reason a flagpole is off the approvable project menu.
§ 720.303(2), Fla. Stat.Board meetings. (2)(a) extends the open-meeting requirement to any body vested with power to approve or disapprove architectural decisions for a specific parcel; (2)(c)1. requires 48 hours' posted notice identifying agenda items, or 7 days' mailed notice.
§ 720.303(4)(a), Fla. Stat.Official records, 7 year retention, with the catch-all at subparagraph 14 covering all other written records related to the operation of the association. Basis for the retention note under the decision block.
§ 720.305(2), Fla. Stat.Fines capped at $100 per violation and $1,000 in the aggregate unless the governing documents provide otherwise, with 14 days' notice, a hearing within 90 days before an independent committee of at least three, and a majority confirmation vote. Reason no per-day penalty figure is printed on the form.
§ 718.113, Fla. Stat.Condominium maintenance and limitation upon improvement. (2) material alteration or substantial addition to common elements, 75 percent where the declaration is silent; (5) hurricane protection specifications required and (5)(c) a board may not refuse a conforming owner installation.
§ 718.112(2)(c), Fla. Stat.Condominium board meetings open to unit owners, with adequate notice identifying all agenda items posted conspicuously at least 48 continuous hours before the meeting; applies to a committee taking final action on behalf of the board.
§ 719.1055, Fla. Stat.Amendment of cooperative documents; alteration and acquisition of property. Cited for the cooperative lane. Chapter 719 contains no architectural control section corresponding to § 720.3035, so cooperative alteration standards come from the cooperative documents.
§ 163.04, Fla. Stat.Solar collectors and other energy devices. NOT loaded in statute_sections and NOT reproduced or characterized in the template. Flagged in Appendix A as a counsel check before solar is added to the project menu or a review fee is charged for it.