North Carolina law N.C.G.S. §22B-20 voids HOA covenants that prohibit rooftop solar. In Orange County's neighborhoods an association cannot ban panels, though it may still restrict the location of street-visible panels within limits.
North Carolina protects rooftop solar. N.C.G.S. §22B-20 makes any deed restriction or covenant that would prohibit, or effectively prohibit, a residential solar collector void and unenforceable. The statute carries one exception: subsection (d) lets an association restrict the location of collectors visible from the ground on a street-facing facade or a roof slope facing common or public areas, but only if that restriction does not unreasonably reduce the system's output or increase its cost. So an Orange County HOA cannot ban rooftop solar, yet it may reasonably steer street-visible placement. The law does not cover multi-story condominium buildings.
An HOA that enforces a flat solar ban is acting on a void covenant, and a homeowner can challenge it. Location restrictions that unreasonably cut performance or raise cost are likewise unenforceable under §22B-20.
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Orange County, NC
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Orange County, NC
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Orange County, NC
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Orange County, NC
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Orange County, NC
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Orange County, NC
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