Legend Oaks HOA and facade alteration - experiences? (rental, house)

[mwmosser]

Hi folks -

My family and I are currently seriously considering a move from a rental home just outside of Legend Oaks to a home right in the middle. The home we're thinking of is a Colonial Revival style (or at least what the builder envisioned as a Colonial Revival style) with twin aluminum pillars flanking the front door, holding up a decorative balcony (in the sense that there is no access to this balcony from the inside of the home). If you can picture it, you know there are at least a half-dozen of this style home in Legend Oaks, as it was apparently one of the core designs for the homes built in the early 1990s.

We are not really huge fans of pillars on the front of a house, much less decorative pillars. My wife and I would very much like to have an architect/builder design and implement a Craftsman-style arched roof over the door, tucked in to the facade in a way that complements, rather than clashes with, the two peaked roofs already on the house but which removes the faux balcony.

I know LO has a HOA. I am OK with the HOA - I understand their purpose and I plan to abide by the covenants. I would like to know if anyone has had any experience (good or bad) with an application to the ACC regarding a facade modification of this scale.

Thanks very much!