Drought Landscaping Rights
HOA Rules
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 landscaping a covenant may not prohibit outright.
Drought Landscaping Rights Rules by State
Statewide law governs this topic in many states. Each entry links to that state's full page.
Arizona
Some RestrictionsArizona does not give homeowners a general right to xeriscape, gravel, or desert landscaping over an HOA's objection; that stays governed entirely by each community's own declaration…
California
Significant RestrictionsCivil Code section 4735 voids any HOA rule that bans low-water plants, turf replacement, or artificial turf, and bars fines for cutting back watering during a declared drought…
Colorado
Some RestrictionsColorado law limits how homeowners' associations regulate yard landscaping, but the strongest protections in C.R.S. § 38-33.3-106.5(1)(i.5) apply only to single-family detached homes…
Florida
Significant RestrictionsFlorida law bars HOA declarations, articles, and bylaws from prohibiting Florida-friendly landscaping, defined by statute as drought-tolerant, water-conserving design. Section…
Illinois
Some RestrictionsIllinois protects native plantings, not xeriscape and not artificial turf. The Homeowners' Native Landscaping Act, 765 ILCS 167, effective July 19, 2024, bars an association from…
Maine
Light RestrictionsSince 2023 Maine has protected low-impact landscaping in condominiums and other common-ownership housing at 33 M.R.S. § 1451. A covenant, declaration, bylaw or rule may not place an…
Maryland
Some RestrictionsMaryland Real Property § 2-125 stops a covenant, declaration, contract, security instrument, or condominium or homeowners association bylaw from imposing unreasonable limitations on…
Nevada
Few RestrictionsNRS 116.330 bars a Nevada homeowners association, and its governing documents, from prohibiting an owner from installing or maintaining drought tolerant landscaping in the yard and…
North Carolina
Some RestrictionsNorth Carolina suspends an HOA's power to require landscaping irrigation once the area is designated severe, extreme, or exceptional drought and a government body has imposed water…
Oregon
Some RestrictionsOregon does not give a homeowner a standing right to xeriscape. What ORS 94.779(1) does is switch off the association's irrigation mandate: any provision of a planned community's…
Texas
Light RestrictionsProperty Code Section 202.007 voids any homeowners association rule that bans drought-resistant landscaping or water-conserving natural turf, and Section 202.008 bars fines for a brown…
Utah
Few RestrictionsUtah Code § 57-8a-231(2) bars an association from enacting or enforcing a governing document that prohibits, or has the effect of prohibiting, the owner of a detached dwelling from…
Washington
Some RestrictionsThis right applies only within Washington homeowners' associations governed by the Homeowners' Association Act, chapter 64.38 RCW: communities formed before July 1, 2018, excluding…
Cities & Counties with Drought Landscaping Rights Rules
No locations have drought landscaping rights data on file yet.
Other HOA Rules Topics
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…
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…