# Virginia HOA Solar Rights: The 5% and 10% Test (2026) > Under Code of Virginia 55.1-1820.1, a Virginia HOA cannot prohibit an owner from installing a solar energy collection device on property the owner owns, unless the recorded declaration establishes that prohibition. The association can set reasonable restrictions on the size, place, and manner of placement, but there is a test for what counts as reasonable: a restriction is deemed unreasonable if it increases the installation cost by more than 5% over the initially proposed installation, or reduces the system's energy production by more than 10% below what was proposed. To challenge a restriction on those grounds, the owner provides documentation from an independent solar design specialist who is NABCEP certified and licensed in Virginia. The association can still bar solar on common elements entirely. _Source: https://hoanotes.com/hoa/virginia/solar-panels/ | Last reviewed 2026-06-03_ ## What the law protects The starting point is that solar on your own lot or unit is protected unless the declaration itself bans it. A board rule or a general architectural policy is not enough to prohibit panels; the prohibition has to be in the recorded declaration. Where the association is allowed to set placement rules, the 5% and 10% test keeps those rules honest. If a placement demand would push the install cost up more than 5%, or cut the system's output more than 10%, it is deemed unreasonable. The owner backs that up with documentation from a NABCEP-certified, Virginia-licensed solar specialist. Common elements are different: the HOA can prohibit solar there outright. ## What to check in the disclosure packet If solar matters to you, read these before you make an offer: - Whether the recorded declaration actually prohibits solar, since only the declaration can. - Any placement rules, measured against the 5% cost and 10% output test. - Whether the home is a lot or unit (protected) or whether the panels would sit on a common element (not protected). - Whether existing panels were approved and documented. ## Why this matters to your offer If you are buying with solar in mind, the question is whether the declaration bans it and whether any placement rule would gut the economics. A board cannot quietly kill a system with a placement demand that fails the 5% or 10% test. An HOA Notes brief checks the declaration for a real solar prohibition, measures any placement rule against the statutory test, and cites the page behind each finding. ## What the statute says **Virginia Code section 55.1-1820.1** (Solar device installation rights). An association cannot prohibit installation of a solar energy collection device on individually owned property (lot or unit); any restriction is deemed unreasonable and unenforceable if it increases installation cost by more than 5% over the projected cost of the initially proposed installation, or reduces energy production by more than 10% below projected output. The association may impose reasonable restrictions on size, place, and manner of placement on individually owned property, and may prohibit or restrict installations on common elements or common areas entirely; the association may require documentation from a Virginia-licensed, NABCEP-certified solar specialist to substantiate a cost or performance impact claim. ## Virginia HOA solar rules: common questions ### Can a Virginia HOA ban solar panels? Only if the recorded declaration establishes the prohibition. A board rule or general architectural policy cannot ban solar on an owner's own property under Code of Virginia 55.1-1820.1. ### What is the 5% and 10% test? A placement restriction is deemed unreasonable if it raises the installation cost more than 5% over the proposed install, or cuts the system's energy production more than 10% below what was proposed. ### How do I prove a restriction is unreasonable? With documentation from an independent solar design specialist who is NABCEP certified and licensed in Virginia, showing the restriction fails the 5% or 10% test. ### Can the HOA stop solar on the roof of my condo building? The association can prohibit solar on common elements entirely. The protection covers property the owner individually owns. ## Sources (verified 2026-06-03) 1. Code of Virginia section 55.1-1820.1 (installation of solar energy collection devices), Virginia General Assembly. Verified 2026-06-03. https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/title55.1/chapter18/section55.1-1820.1/ 2. Code of Virginia section 55.1-1820.1 (2021), Justia. Verified 2026-06-03. https://law.justia.com/codes/virginia/2021/title-55-1/chapter-18/section-55-1-1820-1/ 3. Update on Virginia law: covenants on solar panels, Chadwick, Washington, Moriarty, Elmore & Bunn. Verified 2026-06-03. https://www.chadwickwashington.com/blog/update-on-virginia-law-covenants-on-solar-panels/ HOA Notes is not a law firm and this is not legal advice.