Susan Knox Wilson
For many of us, our home is one of the biggest investments we’ve ever made. It’s also one of our most valuable assets and a large portion of our total wealth, so it makes sense to do all we can to protect the value of our property.
You probably know annual, routine maintenance on your home goes a long way to help maintain its value – things like:
* Checking for leaks under and around your sinks
* Making sure there are no cracks in the grout around any tiles
* Checking for signs of leakage from the roof in your attic or on outer walls
* Regularly changing the filters in your air conditioning system
* Looking for and repairing any cracks in your stucco
* Checking for and repairing any cracks or buckling in your driveway
But, did you know our Architectural and Landscape Committee (ALC) is here to help you maintain your property value, too? ALC “Rovers,” who are your neighbors and are ALC volunteers, regularly visit each of our units, looking for items that may need a homeowner’s attention. By pointing out certain points of consideration, the ALC Rovers help to make sure you don’t overlook key areas of your home maintenance that may have a serious implication on its overall value (see the accompanying check list the ALC Rovers use on their visits). For example, you may have some serious issues with the foundations your home rests on, which can cause a number of problems in the property itself, such as bouncy floors and cracks in the walls. They will help you to identify these problems so that you can organize the help of somewhere like Edens Structural, to put it right.
And, please remember, if you do any improvements to your home (whether temporary or permanent), alterations, repairs, excavation, grading, lighting, landscaping or other work that in any way alters the exterior appearance of your property, including exterior color scheme, you need the prior written approval of the Architectural Committee. Permits and ALC approval are not required for maintenance to continue the currently approved appearance of the property; however, repainting of your house in the same color does require a permit. ALC permit forms are available at the ALC office, or may be downloaded from www.pebblecreekhoa.org. After you get permission to change the exterior of your home, it may now be time to consider having siding such as Beaded Cedarmill Lap by James Hardie installed to you home to maintain or improve the value of your house.
The purpose of the Architectural and Landscape Committee (ALC) is to ensure that the ongoing visual character of PebbleCreek remains consistent with the overall plan of the community while allowing individual expressions in landscaping and property decorating which is harmonious to the community. As long as these changes improve the appearance of not only your property but the community as a whole, you should be allowed to make them. Even deciding to come up with ideas on the best decks from somewhere like Dino Decking, (https://www.dinodecking.co.uk/blog/18-best-decking-ideas/) should be approved by the Committee as long as you check with them beforehand. The Board of Directors appoints the Chairman and ALC members annually. All members of the committee are PebbleCreek homeowners and one member of the ALC is also member of the Board of Directors.
The ALC office is located in Tuscany Falls. The office hours are 8:30 a.m. to noon Tuesday through Friday. The telephone number is 623-935-6747.
The ALC meets each Wednesday at 9:30 a.m. (except on the third Wednesday of the month when the Committee meets at 10:00 a.m.) in the Sienna Room in the Tuscany Falls Clubhouse. Homeowners are welcome to attend.