One condo owner in the Seattle, Washington, area chafed at their homeowners association's restriction on adding heat pumps to their building. They approached Reddit for advice on how to get those rules changed.
"Most residential buildings here that are more than a few years old do not have air conditioning," said the original poster. "Currently, my HOA doesn't allow us to permanently attach anything to the outside of the building or put holes in the walls to the outside. I'd like to change the rules so we can install ductless heat pumps, but I'm unsure how to do it."
The original poster also pointed out another benefit. "I'm hoping I can use the argument of safety because most units still have baseboard heaters, but even then, I'm not sure where to start. Should I just go to a meeting and suggest we change the rules?" they asked.
In most cases, there is actually an official process for changing the bylaws in an HOA. It may require the support of a certain portion of the neighborhood and usually does involve attending the meetings. The HOA's legal documentation will include the procedures.
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