Here s what hoas need to know about regulating the installation of solar panels.
Hoa and solar panels.
Many homeowners discover after the fact that their request to install solar is denied by homeowners association board members due to clauses written in their hoa bylaws.
In many cases hoa members may still need to request permission before installing their solar panels and ensure all electrical wiring is out of sight.
Going solar requires a certain degree of planning.
Once you ve decided on the solar panels you re going to use the power output that you expect to have your rebates and financing options you re left to gain approval from your homeowner s association.
Solar panels clearly fall within this definition.
163 04 if a homeowner sought to install solar panels on a south facing roof area visible from the street but the association required the homeowner to move the location of the solar panels to another roof facing within 45 of due south and not visible from the street.
The main concern of hoa boards are that solar panels may drastically lower home values especially in cases where only a few homes within a community have panels installed.
Hr 2454 the american clean energy and security act was a proposed federal law that made it illegal for a homeowners association to restrict the installation of solar panels.
Community officials believe solar panels change the pre planned aesthetics and landscape of the neighborhood and generally look out of place.
As a practical matter the rectangular shapes of most buildings make the instances where this.
Consideration of hoa restrictions for solar panels is certainly a part of it.
Also the improvement of solar power technology has now made it even more viable.
For example some solar access laws allow hoas to retain the right to influence the design of a rooftop solar array.
In some cases an hoa may deny you for aesthetic reasons.
This proposed law included provisions prohibiting homeowner s associations from enacting rules limiting solar panel installation with a few exceptions.
Whether you are a member living within a development governed by a homeowners association hoa or a condominium owners association coa and interested in installing solar panels on your home or a member of the board of directors of a hoa coa or its respective architectural review committees arc in florida it would behoove you to become familiar with florida statute 163.
So long as you comply with reasonable restrictions those are stated in civil code 714 1 and 4746 an hoa cannot arbitrarily deny homeowners seeking to install solar energy systems.
The key is to check your state s solar access rights to see if it can prevent you from going solar.
An hoa will only prevent you from installing solar panels if your state requires approval for the installation and then rejects the proposal.
Associations are not permitted to prohibit the installation of solar panels on a unit or property which is owned by a member of the association.
Click on your state below to learn more about local solar access laws.
Unlike wind power and other green energy sources solar panels offer a whole lot more in terms of flexibility.
Solar power is just about the only source of alternative energy that you can put on your hoa properties.
