Where this fits on the exam
| Official syllabus topic | Private Land-Use Controls |
|---|---|
| Official PSI area | Land Use Controls and Regulations |
| Published area weight | 5% of the national portion |
| Exam portion | National salesperson portion |
| Source edition | PSI Georgia Candidate Information Bulletin dated July 1, 2026 |
The Rule
PSI publishes the weight for the complete content area, not a fixed question count for this lesson. Learn the rule well enough to apply it when PSI changes names, numbers, or parties in a new scenario.
The lesson
Deed restrictions and covenants
Recorded restrictions can limit use, design, leasing, subdivision, or other activity. Whether a covenant runs with land depends on its creation and applicable law.
Association controls
Declarations, bylaws, rules, and architectural standards allocate rights and duties among owners and an association. Different documents can have different authority.
Enforcement
Private parties or associations may seek remedies allowed by the documents and law. Public zoning officials do not automatically enforce private covenants.
Conflict analysis
Zoning permission does not cancel a stricter covenant. A private document also cannot authorize an activity that public law prohibits.
Decision rule
Georgia-specific distinction
Worked example
Scenario. Zoning allows duplexes, but a recorded subdivision declaration limits each lot to one detached dwelling.
Reason it through. Government has permitted a broader use, while the private restriction remains a separate limit if enforceable.
Answer. The owner must address both controls and cannot rely on zoning approval alone.
Common exam traps
- Calling CC&Rs zoning
- Assuming zoning overrides private restrictions
- Assuming association rules override statutes
- Predicting enforceability without document review
Original practice questions with detailed explanations
These questions were written for instruction and mapped to the current outline. They are not copied from PSI or any live examination. Choose an answer before opening the explanation.
Question 1Zoning allows duplexes, but a recorded subdivision declaration limits each lot to one detached single-family home. An owner wants to build a duplex. What is the likely result?
- A. The recorded restriction can still stop the duplex if enforceable.
- B. The duplex is allowed, because zoning overrides private covenants.
- C. The duplex is allowed, because zoning officials approved the use.
- D. The covenant is void, because only government may limit land use.
Show answer and explanation →
Answer: A. The recorded restriction can still stop the duplex if enforceable.
Public zoning and private restrictions are separate controls, and the owner generally must satisfy both. Zoning permission does not cancel a stricter covenant. Check the private covenant separately from public zoning approval.
- A. Correct. The owner must satisfy zoning and any enforceable private covenant, including the stricter residential limit.
- B. Incorrect. Public zoning permission does not erase a separate, enforceable private restriction.
- C. Incorrect. Zoning approval addresses the ordinance; it does not release the lot from private covenant obligations.
- D. Incorrect. Private agreements can restrict use, subject to legal limits on validity and enforcement.
Question 2A homeowner paints a house in a color the subdivision's recorded architectural covenant forbids. Who ordinarily enforces the covenant?
- A. The county zoning office
- B. The state building inspector
- C. The association or affected owners
- D. The Georgia Real Estate Commission
Show answer and explanation →
Answer: C. The association or affected owners
Private covenants are enforced privately, by the association or other owners with rights under the documents. Zoning officials enforce public ordinances, not private covenants. The zoning-office answer looks plausible because both controls limit land use, but they come from different sources.
- A. Incorrect. County zoning officials enforce public ordinances, rather than a private paint-color covenant.
- B. Incorrect. Building inspectors administer construction standards, not the association's architectural color agreement.
- C. Correct. The association or owners with enforcement rights under the documents ordinarily pursue covenant violations.
- D. Incorrect. GREC regulates real estate licensees and brokerage conduct; it does not administer subdivision paint rules.
Question 3A seller asks the listing licensee to tell buyers that the subdivision's leasing restriction has expired and cannot be enforced. What should the licensee do?
- A. Tell buyers it has expired, since the seller said so.
- B. Give buyers the recorded documents and suggest an attorney.
- C. Say it is unenforceable if no one has enforced it lately.
- D. Leave the restriction out of the listing to avoid confusion.
Show answer and explanation →
Answer: B. Give buyers the recorded documents and suggest an attorney.
A licensee can locate and share the recorded covenants but should not say that a covenant is expired, waived, or unenforceable, because that is a legal opinion. The buyer should review the actual documents with counsel. Relying on lack of recent enforcement looks plausible, but it predicts enforceability without reviewing the documents.
- A. Incorrect. The seller's assertion alone does not establish expiration or settle enforceability.
- B. Correct. The documents give buyers the actual restriction; an attorney can assess expiration and enforcement rights.
- C. Incorrect. Lack of recent enforcement does not by itself prove waiver or make the covenant unenforceable.
- D. Incorrect. Omitting a known restriction hides information the buyer needs to evaluate the intended use.
Question 4A buyer plans to rent a condominium unit for weekends. City zoning permits short stays, but the association's recorded declaration prohibits rentals under 30 days. What should the buyer's agent explain?
- A. The city permit automatically overrides the declaration.
- B. The buyer should review the condominium documents and resolve the separate private restriction before relying on that rental plan.
- C. An association may regulate paint colors but never leasing.
- D. The restriction matters only if the seller personally agrees with it.
Show answer and explanation →
Answer: B. The buyer should review the condominium documents and resolve the separate private restriction before relying on that rental plan.
Public land-use permission and condominium restrictions are separate. The buyer needs the actual governing documents and legal advice on any enforceability question before committing to a use they may not be able to carry out.
- A. Incorrect. City approval answers the public rule, not whether a separate lawful condominium restriction permits the use.
- B. Correct. The recorded rental limit conflicts with the buyer's intended use, so document review and resolution belong before commitment.
- C. Incorrect. Association governing documents can regulate leasing as well as physical appearance, subject to applicable law.
- D. Incorrect. An enforceable restriction can bind the unit regardless of the seller's personal opinion.
Ready to move on?
You are ready for the next lesson when all of these are true.
- Explain Private Land-Use Controls in one clear answer without notes.
- Separate Deed restrictions and covenants from Association controls using a fresh example.
- Apply the decision rule to a new fact pattern and name the fact that controls the result.
- State the Georgia-specific point or explain why the national rule applies unchanged.
- Answer every practice question and explain the rule each rejected option misapplies.
- Revisit this topic later in mixed practice without category labels.
Recommended next lesson
Continue with Appraisals: Purpose, Process, and Reports. The appraisals lesson turns from what an owner may do with land to what it is worth, and recorded restrictions like these are among the property facts an appraiser weighs in an impartial opinion of value.
Return to the Land Use Controls and Regulations hub to see every official branch and the complete lesson sequence for this content area.