Homeowners get nod over association rules: Judges say residents can't sign away rights

In a case closely watched in many parts of the country, a state appeals court ruled yesterday that New Jersey residents do not sign away their constitutional rights when they buy homes in private communities governed by homeowners associations.

The 5-year-old case pitted a handful of residents backed by the American Civil Liberties Union against the Twin Rivers Homeowners Association in East Windsor, Mercer County.

Twin Rivers, a housing development built on a former potato farm whose 10,000 residents are spread over 719 acres, is not a gated community. But it provides various amenities and services for the exclusive use of residents. The community, just off Exit 8 of the New Jersey Turnpike, includes two schools, a library and strip malls.

In a unanimous decision, the three-judge panel said residents living in developments like Twin Rivers are entitled to all rights guaranteed under the New Jersey Constitution, notably free speech. Purchasing property with restrictions in deeds does not take away those rights, the judges ruled.

The plaintiffs had contended Twin Rivers violated their rights by enforcing various rules and restrictions, including some that regulated the posting of lawn signs, limited access to a community room and dictated content of the organization's newsletter. The trial judge rejected their arguments, saying the dissident residents agreed to the conditions when they purchased their properties.

Yesterday, the appeals court agreed with the plaintiffs and remanded the case back to the trial court to consider whether the residents' constitutional rights were violated under the new standard.

"(Twin Rivers Homeowners Association), as owner of the common property in the community where plaintiffs live, should not be permitted to control their destiny, to the extent of depriving them of the right to express their views," the panel said.

The appeals court sided with the lower court's ruling on other issues in the lawsuit, including Twin Rivers' voting system for elections. Under the system, which both courts upheld, people in its most expensive homes get the most votes; tenants get none.

Lawyers for the Twin Rivers Homeowners Association and its president, who was sued individually, said they would appeal yesterday's decision to the state Supreme Court.

"Twin Rivers will appeal because, for the first time in the entire country, a court has said Constitutional rights apply to all homeowner associations. The decision is contrary to 25 years of New Jersey Supreme Court and Appellate Division decisions," said Barry Goodman, the lawyer representing the association.

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