restrictive covenant

noun

1. a covenant with a clause that restricts the action of any party to it, especially an agreement among property owners not to sell to members of particular minority groups.

restrictive covenant

noun

1. law a covenant imposing a restriction on the use of land for the purpose of preserving the enjoyment or value of adjoining land

Word History and Origins

Origin of restrictive covenant¹

First recorded in 1880–85

Example Sentences

For years, homeowners could request that the county remove a racially restrictive covenant from their records at no fee.

From Los Angeles Times

As a historian, Redford said she fears that removing the restrictive covenant language from land records won’t likely cause history to repeat itself in terms of such blatant racial restrictions, but it does raise concerns about whether people will grasp how those policies also separated people by class.

From Los Angeles Times

County has hired a company for about $8 million to redact racially restrictive covenant language from millions of county records.

From Los Angeles Times

A racially restrictive covenant recorded against the property prohibited it from being sold to any person of “African, Chinese or Japanese descent.”

From Los Angeles Times

In court, Tyler argued that the racially restrictive covenant violated the 14th Amendment of the Constitution.

From Los Angeles Times