What the recorded documents actually say about Lafayette Falls (F) in South Bend — fences, sheds, pools, pets, parking and the rest — with the part of the document each answer comes from.
6 homes have sold here in the last four years, which is why this neighborhood was compiled early.
Before you rely on this page
Lafayette Falls in South Bend was recorded in pieces over about twenty years, and the homes that the local listing service groups under this particular spelling of the name sit on three different streets that are not all covered by the same section declaration. The answers on this page come from the subdivision-wide covenants the homeowners association recorded in 2016, which by their own words cover all home sites within the Lafayette Falls subdivision, together with the association rules and regulations adopted on the same day. Those are the documents that reach every home under this label, which is why they were used.
Each home also sits under a declaration for its own part of the neighborhood, and those add rules this page does not carry. The homes on Cary Court are villa lots, numbered 222 through 261 in the recorded documents, and they fall under the Lafayette Falls Villas declarations and a villa association that maintains the exteriors. The homes on Lutz Drive and Vawter Circle fall under a 2021 declaration for Lafayette Falls Phase IV, Section Two, which is newer than the covenants used here and adds restrictions they do not contain: it bars open fires anywhere on a home site rather than only on streets and roadways, it treats trampolines, swing sets, sandboxes, playgrounds and basketball hoops as prohibited structures, it limits sporting and recreational equipment to two items per home site, and it requires prior written approval for flagpoles, benches, chairs and statuary. None of that governs the villa lots, which is why basketball hoops and flags are answered here as not addressed rather than from that newer document.
So before you rely on any single answer here, get the declaration recorded against the lot you are actually buying from the St. Joseph County Recorder or your title company, and ask the association for its current rules and regulations and its current dues. The recorded copies read for this page are scans of paper, so nothing here is presented as a direct quote of the document.
Fencing is allowed but tightly specified by the association rules adopted with these covenants. All fencing must be PVC or a similar product; wood or metal fences need the unanimous approval of the Architectural Control Committee. Perimeter fencing may not exceed four feet high, is allowed only in the side yards and back yard, and needs prior written approval of style and location before it goes up. Privacy fencing up to six feet high may be built around a patio next to the home, must match the architectural standard set by that home, and also needs prior written approval.
A detached storage building or pet shelter is allowed, but it may not exceed 10 by 12 feet, must sit in the rear yard, must be of quality construction and blend with the house, and must be submitted to the Architectural Control Committee for written approval before construction begins. The committee can require screening around it. The covenants also give six months from the start of construction to finish any addition of this kind.
The association rules restrict where a camper, trailer, truck, RV or boat may sit rather than banning ownership. Recreational and commercial vehicles may not be kept in open areas, on or off the home site, for longer than 7 days; a longer stay needs a written request to the Board at least 7 days ahead, approval is capped at one week, and stays must be at least 30 days apart. Watercraft and trailers may not be kept or parked in the outside driveway for longer than 24 hours. A separate paragraph says no recreational vehicle of any type may be kept or parked in the neighborhood unless it is classified as a private passenger vehicle, a licensed motorcycle or motor-driven cycle, or a private light truck. The documents never define what an open area is, and they do not say anything either way about a vehicle kept inside a closed garage, so that point is genuinely unaddressed. Ask the association how it applies these rules before you count on keeping one here.
In-ground pools are permitted, but each must have a pool cover meeting government safety codes. Above-ground pools and tennis courts are not permitted. A children's pool is allowed if it is no more than 15 inches high and 6 feet across, and it must be stored in the house or garage or kept out of sight from the street when it is not in use. A pool counts as an addition to the home, so the covenants also give six months from the start of construction to finish it.
Any alteration, improvement, remodeling or maintenance that changes how the outside of the house looks must be approved by the Architectural Control Committee before work starts. The association rules add that applications must be in writing, that a verbal approval is void, that an approval expires three months after it is granted unless work has started, and that the Board has 90 days after completion to inspect the work and can order removal of anything unapproved or non-conforming. Outside coverings over windows, including awnings of any type or style, are prohibited except for standard sizes that fit window screens.
A direct broadcast satellite dish up to one meter across is permitted, and a local TV antenna is permitted if it is no bigger than that. Outside above-ground TV, AM, FM, Citizen Band and short wave radio antennas are otherwise not allowed. A permitted dish must be placed, so far as is feasible, where it is not visible from the street or other common property, and no dish or antenna pole may be set in the ground in the front yard, measured from the street curb to the front wall of the house or garage, whichever reaches farther out. The Architectural Control Committee may require the owner to add shrubbery or other screening at the owner's cost, so long as that does not unreasonably impair use of the system.
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 side, front and rear yards of each home site must be planted with grass seed or sod unless the owner has prior written approval from the Architectural Control Committee for a different ground cover. Grading and seeding must be finished by the time of occupancy, or if the season does not allow it, as soon as practical and no later than June 15 after occupancy. Grading, sodding and seeding must not hinder drainage or the natural flow of surface water, and drainage swales and road ditches must be left open. Owners also have a standing duty to mow, remove debris, and cut down dead trees and stumps.
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 →Household pets are allowed with limits set by the association rules. No home may keep more than three domesticated pets. Kennels are not permitted. A dog exercise area must be approved, and one of limited size close to the side or rear of the house may have fencing five or six feet high if the Architectural Control Committee approves it. Dogs must be on a leash held by an adult capable of controlling the animal whenever they are off the owner's property, and patios and yards may not be used as living areas for pets or as a place a pet is left alone all day or overnight. Owners must clean up animal waste, are liable for damage their pet causes, and loud continuous barking is not allowed. A dog that threatens, attacks or bites must be permanently removed at the owner's expense.
Renting a home out is permitted and is handled as a notice requirement rather than a ban. An owner who leases or rents must give the Board the tenant's name and contact details, plus the owner's own emergency contact, within ten days of the tenancy starting, and the owner stays responsible for all fees, dues and fines. Owners must also give tenants a copy of the association rules before the rental begins and remain responsible for the tenant's compliance. The covenants separately limit each home site to use as a single-family residence.
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 →No sign of any kind may be shown to public view on a home site, with two exceptions. One sign of not more than five square feet advertising the property for sale or for rent is allowed. Political signs may go up within two weeks before the election they relate to and must come down within 24 hours after it. Approved builders and their agents keep a separate right to put up signs to promote and sell home sites, within the same size limit.
The association rules govern where vehicles may sit rather than how many you may own. No vehicle of any type, including moving vans and service trucks, may be left unattended where it blocks access to another home, a driveway, a utility meter, a fire hydrant, or any way in or out of the neighborhood. A vehicle that cannot run, is missing one or more tires or wheels, is on jack stands, or has no current registration may not be parked or stored outside the owner's garage, and may be towed without notice at the owner's expense. Campers, trailers, trucks, RVs and boats have their own limits, and watercraft and trailers may not sit in the outside driveway longer than 24 hours.
A home occupation is allowed inside an otherwise single-family home, on narrow terms. It may involve only a member of the immediate family living in the dwelling, must stay entirely within the dwelling, and must be clearly incidental and secondary to living there. It may have no sign or display indicating the building is used for anything but a dwelling, no commodity may be sold on the premises, and nobody may be employed other than an immediate family member who lives there. A barber shop, styling salon, beauty parlor, tea room, fortune-telling parlor, animal hospital or any form of animal care such as dog trimming does not count as a home occupation. The association rules separately bar commercial, business or professional office use of a residential home site.
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 →Nothing addresses repairing, servicing or dismantling a vehicle in so many words, but the association rules reach work that leaves a car undriveable. A vehicle that cannot run, is missing one or more tires or wheels, is on jack stands, or does not carry current registration tags may not be parked or stored outside the owner's garage, and one found outside may be towed without notice at the owner's expense. On the face of that wording, the garage is where a car in that condition may sit.
Trash, refuse and recyclables must be secured and put directly into the bins the City of South Bend provides, with the lid firmly closed except for overflow handled as the city directs. Bins must be stored in the garage or a shed, or otherwise kept out of sight from the street, except when they are set out on collection day, and must be brought back within 24 hours of collection. No home site or empty lot may be used as a dumping ground for rubbish, trash, garbage, weeds or other waste. Anything not properly disposed of may be removed by the association and charged to the owner on top of any fine.
The fires paragraph reaches streets and roadways only: no fire may burn on any street or roadway in the neighborhood. It does not ban a fire on a home site, so a contained cooking grill in the yard is not caught by that wording. The same covenants also expressly contemplate grilling, because the fuel storage paragraph allows portable, government-approved containers for LP gas grills. Nothing sets rules for where a grill may be used or stored. Homes in the Phase IV, Section Two part of the neighborhood are under a newer declaration that adds a ban on open fires anywhere on a home site, so check which declaration covers your lot.
Exterior clotheslines are not permitted, and the association rules go further by prohibiting the laundering or drying of clothing, towels, sheets and similar items on an outdoor patio or in the yard.
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.