What the recorded documents actually say about West Pointe Estates in South Bend — fences, sheds, pools, pets, parking and the rest — with the part of the document each answer comes from.
8 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 DOCUMENT SPELLS IT WEST POINT-ESTATES; the county plat is West Pointe Estates. They are the same place - the scan drops the e and adds a hyphen, there is no separate West Point Estates plat in the county, and the document came off West Pointe Estates listings. Minimum house sizes run 1,200 square feet for a single storey up to 1,800 for a two-storey, and a one-and-a-half storey, bi-level or tri-level is allowed only on approved terrain. Some lots carry a wetlands designation on the plat that has to be maintained as wetlands.
The only perimeter fencing allowed is split rail, two rails high and no more than four feet, or a privacy fence up to six feet running along the edge of a patio or a swimming pool. A privacy fence has to match the architectural standard set by the style of the house and be approved in writing by the developer or the committee, unless they grant a written variance. Hedges, shrubbery and trees are not restricted by this paragraph.
A detached storage or pet-shelter structure may be permitted if the developer or the committee approves it before construction. It has to be quality construction, kept attractive and neat, blend with the established home, and sit in the yard area BEHIND the house. They may require screening around it. No trailer, basement or underground home, tent, shack, garage, barn or outbuilding may be lived in.
Recreational and commercial vehicles - campers, trailers, trucks and boats - may not be kept in open areas in the subdivision. Snowmobiles are prohibited outright, and the covenant says a user is subject to injunction.
An in-ground pool and a tennis court are both permitted if properly screened and approved in writing by the developer or the committee. Above-ground pools are not permitted.
The developer or the architectural control committee approves construction. Materials are prescribed: new materials only, no cement-block exterior or above-grade block foundation without express written approval, and roll roofing is expressly prohibited. Every lot also carries a dusk-to-dawn light of an approved type in front of the building setback line, and the owner installs a four-foot concrete frontage sidewalk at their own expense as part of the build. A one-and-a-half storey, bi-level or tri-level house is allowed only on terrain the developer or committee approves.
Outside above-ground television, AM, FM and short-wave radio antennas of any type are barred, and the covenant says expressly that this includes any type of satellite dish antenna. All utility service runs underground, with an allowance only for equipment that genuinely has to be above ground to work. Federal rules on over-the-air reception devices limit how far a private covenant can restrict a dish under one meter on property in your own exclusive use and control, so ask rather than assuming the blanket ban binds.
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 →Any restriction shown on the recorded plat has to be kept - and the covenant names one in particular: a lot carrying a wetlands designation has to be maintained as wetlands, unless the owner gets approval from every government authority with regulatory say to change the designated use.
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 →Dogs, cats and other household pets may be kept in reasonable numbers as pets for the people living there, none kept or bred commercially, none allowed to roam freely in the subdivision, and none permitted to become a neighbourhood nuisance or hazard. Unusually for this county, the covenant DOES allow a pet to be housed outdoors in a pen or run - but the developer or the committee has to approve it. Livestock and poultry may not be kept.
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 →No sign may be displayed to public view except one of no more than five square feet advertising the property for sale or rent, plus a builder's sign during substantial construction and for six months afterwards.
Driveways have to be hard surfaced, at least twelve feet wide, asphalt at least three inches thick or concrete at least four; stone and cinder are not allowed and a circular drive may be as narrow as eight feet. One unusual rule: no owner may knowingly let anyone drive any vehicle in the subdivision - minibikes, motor scooters, go-carts and cars are all named - unless that person holds a valid Indiana driver's licence, whether or not a licence would be needed for that vehicle elsewhere.
A home occupation is allowed if it is carried on entirely inside the house and stays clearly secondary to living there. It may not involve a sign or display visible from outside, anything sold on the premises, or anyone employed beyond the household.
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 →Trash, garbage and other waste have to be kept in sanitary containers, and any incinerator or storage equipment kept clean. Oil and fuel storage tanks go inside the house, basement or attached garage - a new one may not be put in the ground at all, though it may sit in a basement if it is not buried and stays readily accessible.
No fire may be allowed to burn on any easement, street or roadway in the subdivision - slightly broader than the usual street-only wording, since it reaches the easements. A fire on your own lot is not addressed.
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 →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.