re: Chickens and HOA’s Are There Any Attorneys On The Board?

quote:

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No animals, livestock, insects, or poultry shall be kept or maintained on any lot except the usual pets may be kept on any lot for purposes other than breeding or Commericial.

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I side with the OP. The wording is ambiguous at best and I would argue that both the wording and the intent would allow for chickens to be housed on your property.

The wording says "No animals... shall be kept or maintained on any lot except the usual pets may be kept on any lot for purposes other than breeding or Commericial." This specifically says that pets may be kept for purposes other than breeding or Commercial use. The list of "livestock, insects, or poultry" is a group of examples, not inclusive or exclusive, as all of these would fall under "animals" anyway.

The obvious INTENT of the text is to prohibit disruptive, destructive animals or the use of your residence as a commercial establishment or as a breeding location. Just as you would be prohibited from breeding chickens or selling eggs from your house, you'd be prohibited from running a kennel out of your house or selling dogs from a litter.

The term "usual pets" which some people are getting hung up on is basically worthless. It isn't a commonly defined term and I think you'd have an easy time justifying and defending raising hens in a coop for personal satisfaction as pets. If they produce eggs that you consume and don't sell, then that's just a bonus.

I similarly think you could get away with raising a cow or goat and getting some milk from it.