Changes to the Exterior of Lakeport Homes: Getting Started

As a Reston homeowner, you are required to get the approval of the Reston Association (RA) Design Review Board (DRB) before changing the exterior appearance to your home or landscaping. There are exceptions, but you can avoid costly rework and/or difficulty in selling your house by contacting Lakeport’s designated Covenants Advisor (see below) and, if required, submitting a DRB application and getting your project approved before starting the work. Trusting the words of salespersons or doing what your neighbor did may not be a wise strategy.

Sources of Guidelines: The best place to start is with the Lakeport Cluster Standards. If the change you are planning to make is not addressed by one of Lakeport’s Standards, then you need to review the RA Cluster Property Guidelines. Links to lists of plants that RA recommends and those to avoid, as well as other landscape-related resources are available on Lakeport’s Documents page. If you are adding or replacing an exterior feature or removing a tree, you will probably need to fill out a DRB Application Form.

If the Lakeport and RA Design Guidelines are followed, approval should be easy. Usually, if a simple repair, refinishing, or replacement with the same element is desired, an application is not needed or its handling is expedited, but it’s always safer to check first.

Covenants Advisor: Reston Association Covenants Advisors are available to provide insight and advice and to answer questions. As of 2020, Vern James (vern@reston.org) is Lakeport’s Covenants Advisor.