Stegall v. Housing Authority of the City of Charlotte, N.C.
North Carolina Supreme Court
178 S.E.2d 824 (1971)
- Written by Mary Phelan D'Isa, JD
Facts
Garrison and his wife owned a tract of land—59.77 acres—in Charlotte, North Carolina, whose deed was not subject to any restrictive covenants. The Garrisons sold all but less than one acre of the land in three conveyances, including a conveyance of eight-plus acres to Williams (defendant) that contained covenants restricting the land to residential purposes only and limiting construction on each lot to no more than one single-family residence. Willimas was planning to build multifamily units on the property. The small lot that the Garrisons retained was unsuitable for building and encumbered with a railroad right-of-way. Owners of single-family residential lots adjacent to the property Williams purchased from the Garrisons (the adjacent-lot owners) (plaintiffs) sued to enforce the covenant and enjoin Williams from erecting multifamily units on the property. The trial court found that the restriction in the Garrisons’ deed to Williams created a personal covenant, enforceable only by the Garrisons, provided they could show a benefit to themselves from enforcing the clause. The trial court ruled for Williams, and the adjacent-lot owners appealed.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Sharp, J.)
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