I thought it was legal but...

[Sonoran Silkies]

Get the other 5 or 6 involved. Foreclosed?

 

[chandasue]

Yes, most of the original owners foreclosed and new people that moved in, like us, were also unaware of any covenant.

 

[BigPeep]

If other properties are being forclosed, you might want to ask yourself what you are doing there. Anyone who wants backyard chickens is probably not the type of person that fits in with a manicured community that would have these types of restrictions. You are probably better off getting something a bit ramshakle out in the country where you can do what you want. Release your inner chicken! Fly!

I agree that the economy is not really going to "turn around". What we are seeing now are the economic global chickens coming home to roost. All the more reason to become more self sufficient in terms of your own food.

P.S. You are doing the right thing consulting a local lawyer. Make sure it is someone who actually does zoning work. I have a website, www.MCSLegalHelp.com which contains a section entitled "Ten Questions to Ask Your Lawyer". It would pertain to your situation as well. Most towns have a couple of lawyers who represent developers in zoning applications. Those would be the best people to contact. EVerygody in small towns does real estate closings, which would be the minimum you would need. Ask the attorney how many closings he/she typically does in a normal year and if he/she has ever done real estate litigation (going to court over a real estate matter, and, if so, how many times and how recently). Vague answers may be an indication of lack of experience in that area.

 

[chandasue]

Quote:
It wasn't our ideal location but we had a terrible time finding a ramshakle with high speed internet, a requirement for my husband's home business. There was another home that I loved on 11 acres (out of nearly 2 dozen that we looked at) but only satellite internet, which we tried before and it was so unreliable we were not willing to risk the business on it. We were in a bit of a hurry to move. We were living in a 2 bedroom home and his office in the front porch with a lot of loud traffic going by. Which was doable until the baby came along. Running a business with a toddler throwing a fit in the background lost us numerous sales. Regardless we spent 4 months looking at houses before we settled on this one. If this doesn't work out, as much as I'd want to find another place where we can have animals free and clear, it's doubtful that we'll move. It's so stressful getting things transferred for the business and we've put so much into finishing this house, inside and out from the damage of the previous owners, I don't see us doing it again soon. I'll be pretty sad about the whole thing if we lose the chickens. The lawyer has dealt with these sort of things many times and seemed optimistic that he could get it changed. But I'm preparing myself for the worse. There's gonna be a lot of tears.

 

[chandasue]

Oh and these are not "manicured" developments. Many of the other developments around here allow animals, new houses with cows and horses fenced in the front yards. The soil is just too poor in this part of the state for farming. There's a few farms but most of it has been sold off into developments because it just wasn't working to grow crops.