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2001 SESSION

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CHAPTER 271 An Act to amend and reenact § 55-515.2 of the Code of Virginia, relating to validity of declarations of property owners’ associations. [H 1836] Approved March 15, 2001

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:

1. That § 55-515.2 of the Code of Virginia is amended and reenacted as follows:

§ 55-515.2. Validity of declaration; corrective amendments.

A. All provisions of a declaration shall be deemed severable, and any unlawful provision thereof shall be void.

B. No provision of a declaration shall be deemed void by reason of the rule against perpetuities.

C. No restraint on alienation shall discriminate or be used to discriminate on any basis prohibited under the Virginia Fair Housing Law (§ 36-96.1 et seq.).

D. Subject to the provisions of subsection C, the rule of property law known as the rule restricting unreasonable restraints on alienation shall not be applied to defeat any provision of a declaration restraining the alienation of lots other than such lots as may be restricted to residential use only.

E. The rule of property law known as the doctrine of merger shall not apply to any easement included in or granted pursuant to a right reserved in a declaration.

F. The declarant may unilaterally execute and record a corrective amendment or supplement to the declaration to correct a mathematical mistake, an inconsistency or a scrivener's error, or clarify an ambiguity in the condominium instruments declaration with respect to an objectively verifiable fact (including without limitation recalculating the liability for assessments or the number of votes in the association appertaining to a lot), within five years after the recordation of the declaration containing or creating such mistake, inconsistency, error or ambiguity. No such amendment or supplement may materially reduce what the obligations of the declarant would have been if the mistake, inconsistency, error or ambiguity had not occurred. Regardless of the date of recordation of the declaration, the principal officer of the association may also unilaterally execute and record such a corrective amendment or supplement upon a vote of two-thirds of the members of the board of directors. All corrective amendments and supplements recorded prior to July 1, 1997, are hereby validated to the extent that such corrective amendments and supplements would have been permitted by this subsection.