# Texas HOA Standby Generator Rights: What the Law Allows (2026)

> Texas Property Code 202.019 stops a property owners association from prohibiting, restricting, or effectively blocking an owner from owning, installing, operating, or maintaining a permanently installed standby electric generator. The board can require screening when the generator is visible from the street the home faces, sits in an unfenced side or rear yard visible from a neighbor or association property, or sits behind a wrought-iron or aluminum fence and is visible through it. But a provision that dictates the generator's location and raises the install cost by more than 10 percent is unenforceable. For a buyer, a CC&R with a blanket 'no exterior equipment' or 'no generators' clause is likely void on that point, and the architectural guidelines tell you what screening the board can ask for.

_Source: https://hoanotes.com/hoa/texas/standby-generators/ | Last reviewed 2026-06-03_

## What the law protects

Texas Property Code 202.019 says a property owners association cannot prohibit, restrict, or have the effect of blocking an owner from owning, operating, installing, or maintaining a permanently installed standby electric generator.

The board keeps a screening right in specific cases: when the unit is visible from the street the home faces, sits in an unfenced side or rear yard visible from a neighbor or from association property, or sits behind a wrought-iron or aluminum fence and shows through it. There is a hard limit, though. A provision that regulates the generator's location is unenforceable if it raises the cost of installing the unit by more than 10 percent.

## Why a buyer should care

If backup power is part of why you are buying, 202.019 protects the install and the packet tells you what the board can require around it. A document that bans all exterior equipment is the warning sign: it conflicts with state law on generators and suggests the rest of the rules may be dated.

## What to check in the disclosure packet

Read these together before you make an offer:

- The CC&Rs and rules for a blanket ban on generators or exterior equipment, which is likely void as applied to a standby generator.
- The architectural guidelines for any screening or location requirements.
- Recent board minutes for how generator or equipment requests were handled.
- Whether a location rule would push the install cost up by more than 10 percent, which would make it unenforceable.

## Why this matters to your offer

Generator rights are narrow, but a CC&R that bans them outright is a quick read on whether the document tracks current Texas law.

An HOA Notes brief reads the CC&Rs, the architectural guidelines, and the minutes together, flags the equipment rules that conflict with the Property Code, and cites the page behind every finding.

## What the statute says

**Texas Property Code section 202.019** (Standby generator rights). An association may not prohibit, restrict, or have the effect of prohibiting or restricting an owner from owning, operating, installing, or maintaining a permanently installed standby electric generator. The association may require screening when the generator is visible from the street or adjoining properties, regulate generator location on the lot, require use of licensed contractors, and set reasonable times for periodic testing; however, location or screening restrictions that increase installation costs by more than 10 percent are unenforceable.

## Texas HOA standby generator rules: common questions

### Can a Texas HOA ban a home standby generator?

No. Texas Property Code 202.019 bars a covenant that prohibits a permanently installed standby electric generator.

### Can the HOA make me screen the generator?

Yes, when the unit is visible from the street or a neighbor. But a location or screening rule that increases the install cost by more than 10 percent is unenforceable.

### The CC&Rs ban exterior equipment. Does that cover generators?

A blanket ban is most likely void as applied to a standby generator under 202.019. Confirm the current rules and any screening requirements.

### Does this protect a portable generator too?

Section 202.019 covers permanently installed standby generators. Portable units are treated differently and may fall under other rules in the documents.

## Sources (verified 2026-06-03)

1. Texas Property Code section 202.019 (standby electric generators), Texas Statutes, Texas Legislature. Verified 2026-06-03. https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/PR/htm/PR.202.htm
2. Texas Property Code PROP section 202.019, Standby Electric Generators, FindLaw. Verified 2026-06-03. https://codes.findlaw.com/tx/property-code/prop-sect-202-019/
3. Texas Property Code Section 202.019, Standby Electric Generators, Texas Public Law. Verified 2026-06-03. https://texas.public.law/statutes/tex._prop._code_section_202.019

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