Section 6.25 Restrictive Covenants

• Library: Local Government Deskbook (2017 Ed.)

A. (§6.25) Restrictive Covenants

Another traditional means of exerting control over land use and development outside the scope of local government regulation is through the use of restrictive covenants. These restrictions commonly take two forms. First, there are deed restrictions by which the vendor limits the uses to which conveyed property may be devoted. Virdon v. Horn, 711 S.W.2d 205 (Mo. App. S.D. 1986). A second type of restriction is the trust indenture. Generally found in residential subdivisions, these are agreements among property owners that:

restrict uses;

allocate common expenses; and

enforce building standards within the subdivision for the benefit of all owners.

Lake Sherwood Estates Ass’n v. Cont’l Bank & Trust Co., 677 S.W.2d 372 (Mo. App. E.D. 1984). Restrictive covenants may also be created by a developer by clearly including the restrictions on an accurate plat of the development that is properly recorded. Hoag v. McBride & Son Inv. Co., 967 S.W.2d 157 (Mo. App. E.D. 1998).

“Real” restrictive covenants are those that touch and concern, or benefit, the...