What the recorded documents actually say about Cloverleaf Villas in South Bend — fences, sheds, pools, pets, parking and the rest — with the part of the document each answer comes from.
5 homes have sold here in the last four years, which is why this neighborhood was compiled early.
Before you rely on this page
THE RECORDED NAME OF THIS PLACE IS CLOVERLEAF VILLAS. The MLS lists these homes under Cloverleaf Farms and Cloverleaf Farm's, which is the developer's name - Cloverleaf Farms, L.L.C. declared the covenants - and the property itself is named Cloverleaf Villas in the declaration, on Cloverleaf Drive in the 46637 zip. Two further notes on dates. The declaration's own term ran to 30 June 2012 and then renews automatically for successive ten-year periods unless owners of 75 percent of the homesites record an instrument ending or changing it, so it is still in force. And the Rules and Regulations are a living document the Board may change at any meeting - the version read here is the 17 June 2022 one, so ask the association whether a newer set exists before you rely on a detail.
No perimeter fencing of any type. The covenant names chain link, split rail and any other kind of fence, and it goes further than most by naming hedges and other growing fences as fences too - so you cannot plant a fence either. The only way to get one is advance written approval from the Board of Directors.
No tool shed, storage shed, or outbuilding of any type or nature, temporary or permanent. The same paragraph also rules out trailers, tents and barns. There is no approval path written for a shed the way there is for a fence.
A recreational vehicle may not be parked on a villa driveway or on the street except briefly to load and unload. The declaration is broader still: nothing other than an automobile may be parked on a homesite or on the roads unless it is entirely enclosed in the garage, or the Board approves it in writing. There is no lake access for a boat either - boating and swimming in the lake are not allowed.
No swimming pools, tennis courts or other similar outdoor recreational facilities on any homesite. The lake is not a swimming alternative - swimming in it is specifically not allowed.
Any change to the outside of the villa goes to the Board first, in writing, on the Architectural Review Committee's own form, before the work starts - and this community specifies materials and colours to a degree few do. Siding repairs match the original style and colour. New roofing matches the original shingle style and colour, and the Board wants a shingle sample with the request. Replacement windows and skylights match the existing style. Front doors are a wood tone or one of the original door colours, storm doors are full-view, and shutters must be an original style and colour matching the front door. Trim paint and shutter and door paint each come from a named list of Benjamin Moore colours the Board holds samples for. Awnings need Board approval. House numbers have to stay visible for emergency services.
A satellite dish is allowed within limits, and the association has to approve its placement in writing before it goes up. The dish may be no more than one meter - 39 inches - across, and the same limit covers an MMDS antenna; a plain television broadcast antenna is also allowed. It has to go where it is not visible from the street as far as that is feasible, and the association can require you to plant screening at your own cost or to match its colour to the house. A dish sitting on the ground is to be concealed by landscaping. Above-ground AM, FM and shortwave radio antennas are not allowed at all.
We don’t have this one confirmed yet — we can ask the association and get you an answer before you commit to anything.
We can find out →The association mows and maintains the original landscaping and pays for it out of the common expense, and that is precisely why an owner's freedom here is narrow. The original footprint of the landscaped areas cannot be changed without Board approval, because changing it changes what the lawn service costs everyone. Front and side mulch beds hold flowers, shrubs and trees only, and flower containers may not run into the lawn areas. Anything you plant has to fit the Board's approved Landscaping Plan. Replacing plants and removing dead ones is at your expense. Outdoor statues and ornaments have to suit the character of the community and may not sit in the lawn - and if a majority of residents sign a petition objecting to a piece, it is treated as a nuisance and has to come out.
We don’t have this one confirmed yet — we can ask the association and get you an answer before you commit to anything.
We can find out →The 2022 rules are narrower than the covenant. The only animals that may be kept are personal pets, and the rules name them: dogs, cats and caged birds. Every pet is leashed and under its owner's control outside the villa, and droppings are cleaned up daily - including on your own lot, which the rules tie to county ordinance. No pet may be kept or bred for any commercial purpose or become a nuisance.
Renting is allowed, but not short-term: a villa may not be rented out for any period of less than six months.
No basketball hoops at all. The covenant bans them by name alongside tennis courts and pools, with no approval path and no exception for a portable hoop.
Signs and notices of any kind are not allowed, with a short list of exceptions: seasonal decorations, a For Sale sign, a home security sign, and political signs during election season. A political sign may go up no more than 30 days before election day and has to be down within five days after, and a villa may display only two of them, each no bigger than 30 by 30 inches. The declaration separately caps a for-sale or for-rent sign at five square feet.
Your own vehicles are fine on the driveway if they are passenger vehicles - the 2022 rules read the covenant's word automobile to include a privately owned pickup, SUV, Jeep or van carrying no more than seven, and read its truck ban as aimed at commercial trucks and vehicles with signage, which have to be kept entirely inside the garage. Guests should park on one side of the street only so an emergency vehicle can get through, and if a visitor's car sits on the street more than four nights the homeowner is asked to email the Board so it is not reported as abandoned. Do not park in the street during snowfall, and a car left in the driveway means the contractor cannot clear that driveway. Sidewalk parking, if it has to happen for safety, belongs on your own sidewalk - each owner is responsible for damage to their own sidewalk, curb and driveway.
A home occupation is allowed only if it is invisible and tiny: conducted entirely inside the dwelling, carried on solely by a family member living there, incidental to using the home as a home, with no exterior sign or display, no commodity sold on the property, nobody employed there who does not live there, and no mechanical or electrical equipment used. A barber shop, styling salon, tea room, fortune-telling parlor or any form of animal care such as dog grooming is specifically excluded. Separately, and this catches sellers by surprise: no sales of any kind are permitted here - garage, estate, yard, moving or auction - and the rules set a $500 fine for breaking that one.
A villa may not be rented for less than six months, which rules out nightly and weekly letting.
We don’t have this one confirmed yet — we can ask the association and get you an answer before you commit to anything.
We can find out →Cans and recycling bins stay inside the villa or the garage until the day before pickup and go back in by the evening of pickup day. A bulky item is arranged with your own private hauler and may not go out earlier than the day before the scheduled pickup. Waste is kept in sanitary containers and no homesite may be used as a dumping ground.
Cooking is permitted on your own lot but not on the common area, and the grill is stored inside the villa or at the rear where it cannot be seen from the street. No fires are allowed on any street in the development.
No hanging of laundry, rugs, wind chimes or other items outside the dwelling unit.
We don’t have this one confirmed yet — we can ask the association and get you an answer before you commit to anything.
We can find out →We don’t have this one confirmed yet — we can ask the association and get you an answer before you commit to anything.
We can find out →Tell us the question and we will get you the answer from the recorded documents.