Deck Size Limitations

My covenance book is buried in all the moving boxes. Can someone tell me offhand what the limitations are for deck sizing relative to the house and property line? Thanks in advance.

 

I think, for county purposes, if your deck is more than 3' off the ground the setback is 12' (you can't build any closer than 12' from your property line). If your deck is < 3' off the ground, you can go much closer to the property line, although I'm not sure the distance.

And, to touch on neilz' favorite subject: even if your setbacks will allow a deck of a certain size to be built, YOU STILL NEED HOA APPROVAL FOR IT!

 

I also believe that the HOA doesn't allow decks to protrude beyond the sides of the house. At least I think I read that before submitting my drawings. My manual is propping up a nightstand that is missing a leg

 

My understanding is that (at least for townhomes) the deck cannot be right up against your neighbor's house (ie: if they have an extension) so our deck is 1' away from our neighbor's bumpout. BUT our other neighbor's deck was built right up to our extension & that was approved by the HOA so there seems to be some confusion as to what the real rules are.

 

Man! The distance between the back of my house to my property line is 21.4' and the door out back is at least 5' off the ground. This leaves me with approx. 9' long deck which is nothing.

 

We had the exact same problem. What model house is yours? We have a Birchwood which, technically, does not have a back yard -- it has 2 fronts and 2 sides. We ended up doing an 8x8 deck off the back door to get around the setback problem, and we then wrapped stairs around the "other" side of the house to a "patio" (really a deck) that was ground level and about 20x12. The 8x8 deck is just big enough for a grill and the corner bench we had the builder install.

 

I have a Cedarwood. This is going to change all my plans.

 

Well, don't take my word for it. I would recommend talking to a deck contractor. They will be able to tell you what the setbacks are, and will check with the county to confirm (they may be different for your particular property). And I think it is also possible to request a waiver of the setback requirements.

In addition, if you have a good contractor they will be able to work around any setback issues and find something to suit you. We used Bill Whitt at BILAW Custom Decks & Porches (703-361-0778). He was great. I'm sure he could come up with a design that would satisfy the county and HOA.

 

also the HOA has guidlines for each set of home. So besides county guidlines you need to make sure you stay with in HOA guidlines. If you need a copy of the guidlines for your section you can call Maureen our ARB secretary and she can get you a copy. She is at the nature center offices M-F 9am to 5pm and can be reached at 703 729 9714. That way you do not need to dig plus you will know everything you need to submit to get HOA approval. PAts fan is right contacting a deck contractor should help you figure out the county requirements unless you wnat to deal directly with the county

Staci Kapinos

 

As if my backyard wasn't small enough, I just found out Van Metre just put up 3 medium sized trees in the areas I was going to have a deck/patio put in. Anyone have insight into why new trees are being planted in the Southern Walk Courtyard Collection?

 

We live in Southern Walk Classics, and we recently received a bunch of unexpected trees also -- in front and in back. I'm not opposed to them exactly, it was the lack of communication that was irritating. We called to complain since we feared they would dig up our invisible fence. Customer Service informed us that they placed fliers in our doors two weeks prior. We did not receive this flier, and we confirmed with our neighbors that they did not either. They also said the trees were being planted "according to county plans". Maybe we didn't do all our research, but that was the first we had heard about tree planting plans.

 

We too live in SW and had trees planted a few month back. We also never received notice.

 

I was lucky enough to get my deck installed before the large trees were planted in my yard. Not that I'm going to complain about the trees, County requirements saved me hundreds on landscaping!

 

So you are telling me that I have to plan my deck/patio around these new trees. Do you or anyone know who to contact regarding removal or moving of the trees. After all they are sitting on private property.

 

I called the County when I found out about it. VM is required by the county to plant the trees to give certain amount of coverage to lots. We got a flyer, and they started painting the utilities a week or so prior.

Once it's on your property, I was told you could do whatever you want with it. Just like I did with my limits of clearing. : )

 

And I thought VM was being nice .. giving us extra trees ... Figured something was up I have to say trees do look nice ...since everybody has the same type ...

 

Not necessarily ... tree removal is covered by the covenants .. see page 58 of the Modification Guidelines for the exact requirements.

However, the new trees usually planted by the developer normally do not fall under the guidelines, however, moving them, rather than trashing them is preferred.


Neil Z.
Resident since 1999

 

numba41 - VM advised me that the VM-Land Development guys were responsible for these trees - based on County requirements. KT Landscaping is doing the planting. Luckily our fenced in yard prevented them from planting them before I was able to have a say on where we wanted them put. I didnt get any notice either - I only saw the blue flags and figured that something was coming.
Good Luck!!

 

"And I thought VM was being nice .. giving us extra trees"


Thank you. I needed a good laugh today. Free trees...that's a good one.

 

if you drive through Broadlands, you'll notice that the "street trees" are the same on a street, but different on other streets. so, your directions to the visiting arborist may be "turn left on the maple lined street, right on the locust dotted blvd", etc.