North Carolina HOA solar panel rights

The core rule is broad. A covenant that bans solar, or that works as a ban in practice, is void on residential property. Belmont v. Farwig is what gives that rule teeth. In that case the HOA pointed to its general authority over architecture and aesthetics to deny front-facing panels. The Supreme Court said that is not enough: broad architectural discretion cannot be used to prohibit solar, and the board could not force panels to the back of the home when that location would prevent their reasonable use.

An association still has a narrow lane. If the declaration expressly says so, it can restrict placement on facades and roof slopes facing public or common areas, and within the sightlines from those facades to the property line. Even there, it cannot regulate the panels into uselessness, and it can ask the owner to cover removal and indemnify the association.

The protection has a real boundary. Section 22B-20 applies to single-family lots, townhomes, and detached residential property. It does not reach owners in multi-story stacked condominium buildings with horizontal unit boundaries, the classic high-rise or stacked-flat arrangement. If you are buying that kind of condo, the state solar protection does not apply, and the association's restrictions on the shared roof control.

If solar matters to you, read these before you make an offer:

• Whether your home is a lot or townhome (protected) or a stacked condo (not protected by 22B-20).
• Any express, solar-specific placement restriction in the declaration, which is the only kind that can limit location.
• A blanket architectural rule the board might wrongly try to use to deny solar after Belmont v. Farwig.
• Whether existing panels on the home were approved and documented.

If you are buying for the solar potential, the difference between a townhome and a stacked condo decides whether state law is on your side. And a board still operating off a general architectural rule may try to block panels it has no power to block.

An HOA Notes brief identifies your property type, finds any solar-specific language in the declaration, flags an architectural rule that conflicts with Belmont v. Farwig, and cites the page behind each finding.

North Carolina General Statutes section 22B-20 (Solar collector prohibition void (HOA/planned community only)). Any deed restriction, covenant, or CC&R provision that prohibits or has the effect of prohibiting installation of a solar collector on residential property is void and unenforceable; this applies to systems used for water heating, space heating or cooling, passive heating, or electricity generation; per Belmont Ass'n v. Farwig (NC Supreme Court, 2022), a general architectural control clause is insufficient to block solar -- only express solar-specific restrictions can limit placement, and even then cannot prevent reasonable use; IMPORTANT: this statute DOES NOT protect owners in multi-story stacked condominium buildings with horizontal unit boundaries (Chapter 47A/47C condos). The association may restrict solar collector placement in three narrow locations if the declaration expressly says so: (1) on building facades facing public or common-access areas, (2) on roof surfaces sloping toward such areas, and (3) within sightlines extending from such facades to property boundaries; even these restrictions cannot prevent reasonable use of a solar collector; it may require the homeowner to indemnify the association and bear removal costs.

When you read the disclosure packet, watch for no solar panels visible from any street or neighboring property, all exterior modifications require ARC approval -- used to deny solar without express restriction, no changes to roofline permitted without board approval, and all roof-mounted equipment prohibited. HOA Notes flags each of these against the statute and tells you which restrictions are actually enforceable.