Unveil the colorful and complex world of HOA painting guidelines
Homeowners associations (HOAs) have their benefits and drawbacks. While your HOA maintains the parks, pools, and other neighborhood amenities, they also enforce (sometimes complicated) compliance standards and charge violators a fee. These standards can include everything from how your lawn looks to what kind of holiday decorations you’re allowed to display in your yard (and for how long). This is why asking yourself if you’re okay with living under an HOA is one of the most important questions to consider before putting in an offer on a house.
HOA rules also apply to painting the exterior of your home. Each HOA is unique, but failing to follow HOA painting guidelines will almost always cause a real hassle. Here are some tips for painting the outside of your home while remaining HOA-compliant.
Before you worry too much about all the rules and regulations and fines (oh, my!), keep in mind that you’ll never go wrong by following the existing guidelines outlined by the HOA. However, every community, and therefore every homeowners association, is different. Some associations may be more lenient than others, and some may offer absolutely no room for interpretation when it comes to their unique set of HOA painting guidelines.
All that being said, here are the most common rules that many HOAs follow to some degree:
Your trim color and gutter color should generally match.
Exceptionally bright accent colors (like neon or fluorescent reds, greens, pinks, etc.) are typically not allowed.
An entire home color scheme change usually requires HOA approval.
Contrasting accent colors may only be allowed on front doors and shutters.
Brick repainting often requires a longer, more detailed review before approval.
You can usually only choose from a predetermined set of colors for your exterior that have already been approved by the HOA and that match the look of the neighborhood.
Minor paint jobs, such as small touch-ups to exterior areas, typically don’t require approval.
Your HOA can request that you repaint your home any time they feel that you need to, or after a set number of years.
These are just general guidelines that you can find in many HOA painting rule books, so take these with a grain of salt and always reach out to your HOA representative before diving into your project.
Before you go looking for that perfect paint color, research whether your HOA has any restrictions regarding exterior paint shades.
When you first purchase your home, you’ll likely receive something called a Declaration of Covenants, Conditions, and Restrictions (CC&R). This document should explain the ins and outs of acceptable paint colors for the neighborhood and, in some cases, any preferred brands or types of exterior paint.
HOAs vary in power, but it never hurts to ask for permission before painting your home’s exterior. If they have an office in the neighborhood, stop in to ask your HOA questions about their exterior painting rules and explain what you’re looking to do with your home’s aesthetic.
Some associations may require a signed approval document to proceed, while others may just want a simple heads-up. Before you talk to anyone affiliated with the HOA, do your due diligence and make a list of your chosen paint brands, types, and colors.
If you have your heart set on a color that’s not on the list of acceptable hues, go through the approval process anyway. Even if you think they’ll deny your request, it’s always worth it on the off chance that you’ll be able to use the color of your home improvement dreams.
Some HOAs have rules that define when you can perform renovations on your home, including house painting. These restrictions could apply to the time of day, season of the year, or even the day of the week. Working outside established times can result in non-compliance, which can lead to hefty fees.
To find out the scheduling requirements, call or email your HOA office for more information, or check the CC&R document. If there are no formal scheduling parameters, use common sense and be considerate with your planning. In other words, schedule the work for regular business hours and try not to disturb your neighbors.
An easy way to gauge the acceptability of your house painting plans is simply to look around the neighborhood. How uniform are the other houses and their colors? Some HOAs require all homes to feature similar color schemes, while others encourage a certain level of individuality.
Many HOAs discourage exact duplicate houses, but they also require that people adhere to similar designs and patterns. You can get a feel for the general theme by walking around the neighborhood and taking note of the similarities and differences in exterior paint colors.
Hiring a professional painter will usually get you the best result and ensure HOA compliance. As you’re shopping for quotes, inform every local exterior painter you talk to of HOA-imposed restrictions on the paint job, especially if they haven’t worked in your neighborhood before.
Check with your HOA to see if they have a list of approved contractors, as some HOAs only allow specific pros to work in their community.
Make sure your pro has the appropriate license, adequate insurance, and the ability to meet any HOA compliance requirements. Poor-quality house painting will not impress your HOA, and it could even result in fines and a request for a completely new paint job.
The cost to paint a home’s exterior is $3,000 on average, so you want to make sure the person you hire is up to the task and that you don’t have to hire someone else to redo it. Checking online reviews or local customer testimonials can help ensure the quality of their work.
Yes, your HOA can make you paint your house. Be sure to read through your community guidelines to understand the rules around paint—some communities only accept certain colors for exterior paint. Talk to your HOA before painting your home to share your plans and make sure they fit within the bylaws.
Yes, but you’ll need to make sure that the old exterior paint is in good condition. Before painting over the old paint, clean the surface thoroughly with a pressure washer. If you are opting to paint a lighter color over a darker one, you might need to apply a tinted primer so that the old paint color doesn’t show through.
The best time of year to paint a home depends on your climate, but optimal weather is when the outside temperature is between 65 and 90 degrees Fahrenheit. If it’s too hot outside, paint can crack; when it’s too cold, the paint can resist adhesion and roll off. Humidity is a concern, as well. When it’s humid out, the paint will take longer to dry.
