# Colorado HOA Solar and Renewable Energy Rights (2026)

> Under Colorado Revised Statutes 38-30-168, any covenant or restriction that effectively prohibits or restricts the installation of a renewable energy generation device is void and unenforceable, and 38-33.3-106.5 carries the same protection inside the Common Interest Ownership Act. The protected devices include solar energy systems, wind-electric generators that meet the state interconnection standards, and heat pump systems. An association can still set reasonable aesthetic rules on dimensions, placement, and appearance, but only if they do not raise the cost of the device by more than 10% or cut its performance or efficiency by more than 10%. The review has to be transparent and cannot be arbitrary, and if the association does not deny or return an application within 60 days, it is deemed approved. Common elements are different: the HOA can prohibit installations there.

_Source: https://hoanotes.com/hoa/colorado/solar-and-renewable-energy/ | Last reviewed 2026-06-03_

## What the law protects

Colorado's protection is broad. A covenant that bans or effectively blocks a renewable energy generation device is void, and the category is wider than solar alone: it includes wind-electric generators that meet the state interconnection standards and heat pump systems. That is unusual, and it matters in a state where many buyers are weighing electrification.

Where the association is allowed to set aesthetic rules on size, placement, and appearance, the 10% test keeps them in check. A placement demand that would raise the device's cost more than 10%, or cut its performance more than 10%, is unreasonable. The review process has to be transparent and cannot be arbitrary, and an application the association sits on for 60 days is deemed approved. The HOA can still prohibit installations on common elements.

## What to check in the disclosure packet

If solar or electrification matters to you, read these before you offer:

- Any blanket ban on solar, wind, or roof-mounted equipment, which is void as applied to a renewable device.
- Aesthetic or placement rules, measured against the 10% cost and 10% performance limit.
- Whether your install would sit on owner-controlled property or a common element.
- Whether existing equipment on the home was approved and documented.

## Why this matters to your offer

If you are buying with solar, a heat pump, or a small wind system in mind, Colorado law is largely on your side, and a board cannot use a general architectural rule to block a renewable device. The limits live in the 10% test and the common-element carve-out.

An HOA Notes brief checks the declaration and rules for a renewable-energy restriction, measures any placement rule against the statutory test, and cites the page behind each finding.

## What the statute says

**Colorado Revised Statutes section 38-33.3-106.5(1.5) and section 38-30-168** (Renewable energy device rights). An association cannot prohibit installation of a renewable energy generation device (solar panels, wind energy devices, or similar) on a unit or lot that the owner individually owns or controls; section 38-30-168 independently voids any deed covenant or restriction that prohibits or unreasonably restricts installation of a solar energy device on residential property; restrictions that significantly impair production or impose unreasonable costs are deemed unreasonable and unenforceable. The association may impose reasonable restrictions on placement, size, and appearance -- for example, requiring equipment to face away from the street or be flush-mounted -- as long as such restrictions do not significantly reduce production or increase cost; it may prohibit installations on common elements entirely.

## Colorado HOA solar and renewable energy: common questions

### Can a Colorado HOA ban solar panels?

No. A covenant that prohibits or effectively restricts a renewable energy generation device is void under 38-30-168 and 38-33.3-106.5. The protection covers solar, qualifying wind-electric generators, and heat pumps.

### What placement rules can the HOA still set?

Reasonable aesthetic rules on dimensions, placement, and appearance, as long as they do not raise the device's cost more than 10% or cut its performance more than 10%.

### What if the HOA never responds to my application?

If the association does not deny or return the application for modifications within 60 days, it is deemed approved.

### Does the protection cover common areas?

No. The association can prohibit installations on common elements. The protection covers property the owner individually owns or controls.

## Sources (verified 2026-06-03)

1. Colorado Revised Statutes 38-30-168 (unreasonable restrictions on renewable energy generation devices), Colorado Public Law. Verified 2026-06-03. https://colorado.public.law/statutes/crs_38-30-168
2. Colorado Revised Statutes section 38-30-168, Justia. Verified 2026-06-03. https://law.justia.com/codes/colorado/title-38/real-property/interests-in-land/article-30/section-38-30-168/
3. New legislation supports homeowner use of alternative energy devices, Colorado Homeowners Association Law. Verified 2026-06-03. https://www.cohoalaw.com/covenant-enforcement/new-legislation-supports-homeowner-use-of-alternative-energy-devices/

HOA Notes is not a law firm and this is not legal advice.