Greenwood’s municipal court posts the number on its website: $1,087.50, or 30 days, for a jury no-show held in contempt. If you miss jury duty in South Carolina, state law caps the fine at $100. But ignoring that $100 is what turns a fine into a contempt hearing, where the ceiling climbs. Note: This is…
North Carolina’s septic rules require you to keep a private well at least 50 feet from any system already on your lot, per the state’s environmental health division. Fifty feet is a long way in a small backyard. To make things more complicated, the permit draws lines like that all over the property, not just…
In 2007, a neighbor’s tree roots cracked a masonry wall, worked into the water and sewer lines, and pushed up through the patio brick. That fight reached the Virginia Supreme Court. The lines the court drew that day are ones many homeowners don’t know exist. These are the tree laws Virginia homeowners only learn about…
California’s Board of Forestry and Fire Protection signed off on a new statewide fire-safety rule for homes on August 19. Sellers got a longer list that day. But the disclosures that already carried legal weight are the ones that follow a sale, and plenty of sellers have never read them. These are the wildfire disclosures…
You found a tenant, agreed on a price, and picked a move-in date. Then somebody mentions the board. More than 5,500 community associations govern roughly 315,000 Tennessee homes, according to a 2026 Community Associations Institute report, and no two of them ask for the same thing. These are the things a Tennessee HOA can require…
Hitting a deer takes about a second. Tennessee Highway Patrol logged 8,036 of those seconds across the state in 2024. Then a new clock starts. State deadlines run in days and weeks from the moment of impact, and missing them can cost a driver more than the deer ever did. These are the things Tennesseans…
About 32% of occupied homes in Texas answer to a property owners association, according to the Foundation for Community Association Research’s 2024 Fact Book. The HOA letter addressed to you comes folded in thirds, with a dollar amount in the second paragraph. But here’s the thing: Your board may not get to collect it. These…
You come home to the blinds opened and a chair pushed in wrong. Somebody walked a buyer through your kitchen today. More than 44% of California households rent instead of buy, and Civil Code 1954 decides how much of that visit was legal. These are the rules a California landlord has to follow before showing…
North Carolina has taken a direct hurricane hit about once every two years since 1851, according to the North Carolina State Climate Office. Lifelong residents know the drill. These are the hurricane prep habits longtime North Carolinians never skip, no matter how calm the forecast looks. Note: This is general information, not insurance advice. Waiting…
A citation for tall grass might not seem like a big deal when it lands in your mailbox. The problem is the clock. Pennsylvania townships set different property rules and, in some places, give people only a matter of days to challenge a violation before enforcement moves forward. These are the lawn citations Pennsylvania homeowners…
