83R15349 AJA-F
 
  By: Menendez H.B. No. 35
 
 
 
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 
AN ACT
  relating to the authority of a property owners' association to
  regulate the use of certain lots for residential purposes.
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  Chapter 209, Property Code, is amended by adding
  Section 209.015 to read as follows:
         Sec. 209.015.  REGULATION OF LAND USE: RESIDENTIAL PURPOSE.
  (a)  In this section:
               (1)  "Adjacent lot" means:
                     (A)  a lot that is contiguous to another lot that
  fronts on the same street;
                     (B)  with respect to a corner lot, a lot that is
  contiguous to the corner lot by either a side property line or a
  back property line; or
                     (C)  if permitted by the dedicatory instrument,
  any lot that is contiguous to another lot at the back property line.
               (2)  "Residential purpose" with respect to the use of a
  lot:
                     (A)  means the location on the lot of any
  building, structure, or other improvement customarily appurtenant
  to a residence, as opposed to use for a business or commercial
  purpose; and
                     (B)  includes the location on the lot of a garage,
  sidewalk, driveway, parking area, children's swing or playscape,
  fence, septic system, swimming pool, utility line, or water well
  and, if otherwise specifically permitted by the dedicatory
  instrument, the parking or storage of a recreational vehicle.
         (b)  Except as provided by this section, a property owners'
  association may not adopt or enforce a provision in a dedicatory
  instrument that prohibits or restricts the owner of a lot on which a
  residence is located from using for residential purposes an
  adjacent lot owned by the property owner.
         (c)  An owner must obtain the approval of the property
  owners' association or, if applicable, an architectural committee
  established by the association or the association's dedicatory
  instruments, based on criteria prescribed by the dedicatory
  instruments specific to the use of a lot for residential purposes,
  including reasonable restrictions regarding size, location,
  shielding, and aesthetics of the residential purpose, before the
  owner begins the construction, placement, or erection of a
  building, structure, or other improvement for the residential
  purpose on an adjacent lot.
         (d)  An owner who elects to use an adjacent lot for
  residential purposes under this section shall, on the sale or
  transfer of the lot containing the residence:
               (1)  include the adjacent lot in the sales agreement
  and transfer the lot to the new owner under the same dedicatory
  conditions; or
               (2)  restore the adjacent lot to the original condition
  before the addition of the improvements allowed under this section
  to the extent that the lot would again be suitable for the
  construction of a separate residence as originally platted and
  provided for in the conveyance to the owner.
         (e)  An owner may sell the adjacent lot separately only for
  the purpose of the construction of a new residence that complies
  with existing requirements in the dedicatory instrument unless the
  lot has been restored as described by Subsection (d)(2).
         (f)  A provision in a dedicatory instrument that violates
  this section is void.
         SECTION 2.  This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
  a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
  provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution.  If this
  Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
  Act takes effect September 1, 2013.