Key Points
- Legal Provisions Relocated: Virginia’s restrictions on HOA solar panel prohibitions have moved to new sections (55.1-1951.1 and 55.1-1820.1) under the Condominium Act and Property Owners’ Association Act, effective October 1, 2022. No substantive changes were made — it was a transfer of existing law to a new location in the Virginia Code.
- HOAs Cannot Outright Ban Solar: Community associations in Virginia cannot prohibit solar panels on individually owned properties unless the recorded declaration explicitly establishes that prohibition. Board-adopted rules alone are not sufficient to ban solar panels.
- Reasonableness Standard: HOA restrictions are legally unreasonable if they increase installation costs by more than 5% or reduce energy production by more than 10% compared to the homeowner’s initial proposed installation. Homeowners can challenge restrictions that exceed these thresholds with documentation from a NABCEP-certified solar specialist.
- Common Areas: Associations retain the right to prohibit solar panels on common areas and common elements, regardless of what the recorded declaration says — and doing so is generally recommended to limit association liability.
Solar Panel Restrictions Find a New Location
Effective October 1, 2022, Virginia’s legal protections for homeowners seeking to install solar panels were relocated within the Virginia Code. The provisions previously found in Virginia Code Sections 67-700 and 67-701 (“Covenants Restricting Solar Energy Collection Devices”) have moved to the Condominium Act and the Property Owners’ Association Act as new Sections 55.1-1820.1 and 55.1-1951.1, respectively. This change was enacted through legislation passed during a 2021 Special Session of the General Assembly. Importantly, no substantive changes were made to the law — it was a straightforward transfer of existing provisions to a new location in the Code.
Solar Panel Regulations and Guidelines
In Virginia, community associations — including HOAs and condominium associations — generally cannot prohibit homeowners from installing solar panels on their individually owned property. The only exception is if the association’s recorded declaration explicitly establishes such a prohibition. Board-adopted rules and regulations alone are not sufficient to ban solar panels outright on individually owned lots or units.
This means that if your HOA wants to completely prevent solar installations within the community, that ban must have been written into the original recorded declaration — not added later through board action. If it isn’t in the declaration, the HOA cannot block your installation.
“Reasonable” Constraints on Size, Location, and Placement
While HOAs cannot outright ban solar panels (unless the declaration says otherwise), they do retain the authority to impose reasonable restrictions on the size, location, and placement method of solar panels on individually owned properties — even without an explicit provision in the recorded declaration. These restrictions may cover aspects such as panel visibility from the street, quantity limits, sizing requirements, screening, and permissible roof locations.
However, Virginia law sets a clear objective standard for what counts as “reasonable.” Under both Section 55.1-1820.1 of the Property Owners’ Association Act and Section 55.1-1951.1 of the Condominium Act, a restriction is legally unreasonable if it:
- Increases the installation cost of the solar system by more than 5% above the projected cost of the homeowner’s initial proposed installation, or
- Reduces the energy production of the solar system by more than 10% below the projected output of the homeowner’s initial proposed installation.
This standard gives homeowners meaningful leverage. For example, a restriction requiring panels only on the rear roof could be successfully challenged if the front roof receives substantially more sunlight — and the 10% production threshold is exceeded. HOAs should be aware that restrictions which might seem reasonable on their face may still be lega