A Checklist for Establishing Horizontal Property Regimes

Often mistaken for duplexes or townhomes, horizontal property regimes (HPRs) are a sometimes-controversial category within Nashville’s real estate market due to their complicated nature. With the nickname “tall and skinnies,” HPRs are usually two or three-stories tall, a 1:2 proportion of width to height in their design, and styled to match or complement their counterpart(s).  

An only-decades-old development concept, HPRs have transformed Nashville’s neighborhoods in recent years. They have created more housing for the rapidly-growing population and at more-affordable prices than had a single house been built on the same lot. 

For individuals who are drawn to these sleek, modern-looking developments, you might wonder: How do I buy or establish an HPR? 

Despite their sleek appearance, HPRs are anything but smooth, from both the buying and building standpoints! To see why, it helps to define and understand them. 

You will need a real estate attorney to establish your HPR. Contact Rochford Law & Real Estate Title!

What Is An HPR? 

Simply put, an HPR is a zoning policy that allows two homes to be built on a piece of land which previously housed only one dwelling. HPRs include private elements, common or shared elements, and limited common elements:

• Private elements typically include the land underneath the home; 
• Shared elements might be the walls between or land around the properties; and 
• Limited common elements could be the driveway. 

With sharing seemingly ingrained in the idea, HPRs can become complicated legally when HPR buyers become joint owners of the same property, are included together on a single tax bill and insurance obligations, and held accountable to the Homeowner’s Association (HOA) in which the HPR belongs.

Zoning Codes & HPRs

While, in most cases, Nashville’s Zoning Code outlines whether or not a parcel of land can be subdivided to support more than one living space, an HPR is a legal zoning policy that allows it, if approved. Something unique to HPRs is their ability to petition for rezoning without a public hearing. 

Still, the HPR developments that are cropping up all over town still require a bit of hoop-jumping to be established. In other words, a person cannot simply buy a plot of land in Nashville and build an HPR. 

In Tennessee, an HPR requires documentation approved by an attorney. 

Rochford Law & Real Estate Title assists with clearing hurdles to HPRs every day. Learn more!  

A Checklist for Establishing an HPR

Whether you are a contractor, developer, sole owner, or co-owner, in order to lawfully establish an HPR you must declare intent and desire to do so “through the recordation of a master deed or lease.” (These declarations are also known as “HPR docs.”) 

Tennessee’s 2020 Horizontal Property Act (TN Code § 66-27-107) requires the following to establish an HPR. Think of it as an HPR checklist! 

1. Comply with Private & Common Elements

“The Declarant must: Substantially comply with the Horizontal Property Act as it relates to private elements and common elements.”

Explanation: Each owner of the private element of the HPR must provide documentation of their own share of the total membership in the townhouse corporation. Their common elements (general and limited) are undivided and cannot be subject to division or co-ownership. 

2. Provide Adequate, Attorney-Certified HPR Documentation

“The Declarant must: Include in the HPR Docs, the declaration, bylaws, a plat showing private and common elements, a townhouse corporation, and the attorney certification.”

“The Declarant must: Obtain and include with the recorded document a certification from an attorney licensed to practice law in Tennessee that all legal documents required to establish an HPR are included with the HPR Docs.”

Explanation: A master deed, lease, declaration, plat, or combination must be drafted and include various descriptions of the property; the common, limited, and private elements; and a copy of the filed HOA charter with its by-laws. The master deed must be certified by an attorney to show it complies with Tennessee law. 

3. Record the HPR with the County Register’s Office 

“The Declarant must: Record the HPR Docs Register’s Office of the county in which the real property is located.”

Explanation: Plain and simple: an HPR must be documented at your county’s Register Office.

 Looking for an HPR attorney? Contact Rochford Law & Real Estate Title with your questions about your HPR, master deed drafting and review, and more!