Around the Neighborhood

Anyone who has lived in Lazybrook the last several years has likely noticed that more and more older houses are getting scooped up by homeowners or investors, who are then doing major renovations either for themselves or for resale.  While this is generally a great thing for the neighborhood and its value, this also exposes us to situations where certain people attempt to ignore our neighborhood’s deed restrictions. This is not legal, and anyone who violates these restrictions is subject to litigation by either the City of Houston, Lazybrook Civic Club, or both.  

Lazybrook is a deed restricted neighborhood and the Lazybrook Architectural Committee actively enforces all these guidelines with help from the City of Houston as needed.  Because our neighborhood was developed over time, there are a total of seven different sections, each with a unique set of deed restrictions.  These restrictions include, among other things, requirements regarding:

• Maximum construction height (1, 1.5, or 2 story homes)
• Construction material (51% brick or 100% brick)
• Construction setbacks from property lines

As a reminder, anyone doing exterior construction must get written approval of plans from the Architectural Review Committee.  

The Civic Club is a group of volunteers, and with the turnover rate of homes in our neighborhood it is very hard to stay aware of everything going at all times.  We need your help to keep our neighborhood safe from any blatant rule
violators by keeping an eye out on your street for any ongoing projects.  If you see something that looks like a violation, report it to the Committee (deedrestrictions@lazybrook.org) as soon as possible so we can address it.

Check out our new website and review the deed restrictions page if you need more information regarding the section you live in or any of its specific requirements at: http://www.lazybrook.org/deed-restrictions/

In recent months, you may have noticed some construction in the neighborhood that is in violation of the Deed Restrictions. Specifically, there is one home on TC Jester Blvd (Section 5) which is in violation of multiple restrictions and one home on Tannehill Drive (Section 2) which is in violation of the brick percentage restriction. 

The Lazybrook Civic Club is actively enforcing the restrictions and has recorded a “Notice of Non-Compliance” with Harris County in the real property records for both of these properties. The City of Houston has also filed suit against the home on TC Jester for (i) constructing a 2-story home in a section limited to 1.5-story in height, (ii) constructing a porch that encroaches the front building setback line, (iii) failing to obtain necessary building permits, and (iv) failing to stop work after receiving a Stop Work Order from the City. 

The owner of the home on Tannehill Drive is currently trying to pass an amendment to the Section 2 Restrictions, which would lower the brick percentage from 100% to 51%. In order to pass this amendment, the majority of homeowners in this section must agree to the changes by signing a petition. 

These individuals are not looking to make Lazybrook their home in which to raise a family, but are only thinking about how quickly and inexpensively they can turn a quick profit (by taking certain short-cuts, such as not installing brick siding to their homes). To be clear, these individuals, who have no intention of being your neighbor beyond how quickly they can flip and sell the house, they are the only ones who gain by this. They are taking advantage of our long adherence to the deed restrictions which have been in place for over sixty years. 

For instance, property appraisers in Texas value all brick homes at a minimum of 6% – 8% higher than homes with alternative siding such as stucco or hardy siding. Deed restrictions by their very nature are intended to benefit all those who live in a subdivision by protecting our collective property values. If we collectively want to protect our property values, we must all agree to abide by the deed restrictions. We agreed to this when we purchased our homes in Lazybrook, including items such as brick percentage because this has a direct correlation on our home values.  

We strongly and emphatically encourage each and every one of you to not sign any petition agreeing to change our deed restrictions, because at the end of the day, the only property value you will be harming will be your own.  

Contributions by Lazybrook residents 

Ben Dolan and Paul Thannisch