HOA Rules
Homeowners association governance, architectural review, assessments, and dispute resolution.
City hall does not enforce your HOA's rules, and your HOA cannot enforce the city's. Covenants are private contracts governed by state statutes; the municipal code is public law; a yard can violate either, both, or neither, and the remedies never mix.
The overlap comes from above. Legislatures increasingly override covenants on chosen subjects, solar panels, clotheslines, drought-tolerant yards, flags, charging equipment for an electric car, accessory dwellings, where public policy beats private contract. Those override statutes decide fights that neither the HOA board nor the city council can, and they work by voiding the offending clause outright rather than by asking the association to reconsider it.
All 50 States: HOA Rules at the State Level
Each tile shows the strongest state-level rule for that state. Click a state to see its full statewide rules and how local cities are constrained.
Severity: Few Restrictions · Light Restrictions · Some Restrictions · Significant Restrictions · Heavy Restrictions
What's Covered
Board Procedures
Rules governing HOA board meetings, elections, transparency requirements, and voting procedures for homeowners.
Architectural Review
Standards and approval processes for exterior modifications including paint colors, additions, fencing, landscaping changes, and solar panel installation.
Assessment & Dues
Rules about regular assessments, special assessments, collection procedures, late fees, and what happens when homeowners fall behind on dues.
Dispute Resolution
Processes for resolving conflicts between homeowners and the HOA board, including mediation requirements, hearing procedures, and state oversight.
CC&R Enforcement
How covenants, conditions, and restrictions are enforced, including violation notices, fines, lien authority, and legal remedies available to HOAs and homeowners.
HOA Disputes
Internal dispute-resolution processes required by statute, ombuds programs, and when a homeowner can sue the board directly without exhausting internal remedies.
HOA Fines & Enforcement
Statutory caps on HOA fine amounts, notice-and-hearing requirements before fines can be assessed, and how unpaid fines become liens against the property.
Lien & Foreclosure Limits
What an association must clear before it can foreclose on a home for unpaid assessments: minimum debt thresholds, waiting periods, mandatory notice and payment-plan offers, and the…
Board Governance
Governance structure of the HOA (board composition, term lengths, election procedures), open-meeting requirements, and member voting rights under state statutes.
Flag Display Rights
When an association may restrict flags on a lot and when it may not, the federal floor protecting the American flag, and state statutes extending that protection to state, military…
Clotheslines & Energy Devices
Right-to-dry statutes that void covenants banning outdoor clotheslines and drying racks, plus the broader energy-device provisions covering heat pumps, rain barrels, and similar…
EV Charger Rights
Statutory rights to install an electric vehicle charging station in a deeded or exclusive-use parking space, the approval conditions an association may still attach, and who carries…
Drought Landscaping Rights
Laws barring an association from requiring live turf or fining a homeowner for a brown lawn during declared drought or water restrictions, and the water-efficient and native…
Rental Restriction Limits
How far an association may go in banning or capping leasing, grandfathering for owners who already rent, minimum-lease-term and cap-percentage rules, and the member vote thresholds…