Understanding California HOA Parking Regulations

Intro to HOA parking ordinances

In California, a Homeowners Association, or HOA, manages the community according to the governing documents and association bylaws. Among the numerous responsibilities of an HOA are the establishment of a set of rules and regulations for the community. Since California law regulates certain things the association cannot do with its governing documents, if they want to have a parking rule or regulation, they can do so without having to amend the recorded documents. The association is also responsible for enforcing these parking rules and regulations in a fair and reasonable manner. While some of the rules are specific to that association, the California Civil Code requires all HOAs to follow certain statutory procedures concerning both the recording and the enforcement of parking rules and regulations.
HOA parking rules and regulations are significant because they allow the association to take some level of control over parking in the community. This is noteworthy because parking has proven to be one of the biggest headaches for many – if not most – communities . In most cases, on street parking is allowed by individual homeowners. However, there are circumstances when special consideration must be provided to certain persons such as (and without limitation) disabled persons. There are also those instances when someone feels they don’t need to abide by the rules because "I pay dues for this parking space" – and there is no designated parking for that homeowner; or the person who feels they don’t have to comply with the parking regulations because "they’re just residents" – but they are a tenant and do not own a parking space.
Statutory parking regulations provide the association an enforceable framework for regulating parking within the community. In addition to requiring the rules to be in compliance with certain statutory provisions, the association is also mandated to include certain information within the parking rules, including regulations on towing and the conditions under which a vehicle may be towed.

HOA rules in California

Without exception, California requires homeowners to comply with the governing documents and rules and regulations of their association. Much of the statutory requirements for HOA rules is in the Davis-Stirling Common Interest Development Act. As mentioned above, this Section of the Civil Code allows associations to adopt Rules regulating parking.
Associations in California must comply with certain requirements regarding Rules. Civil Code § 4350 requires that the Rules be in effect at least thirty days before distribution to the members. Civil Code § 4325 requires a minimum notice of thirty days before a change in the Rules. A provision which may come as a surprise to some is Civil Code § 4340, requiring an association to maintain a "comprehensive, current version of the governing documents", available for inspection by any member. Given the Rules require the members to affirmatively object prior to enforcement, they are a part of the governing documents and must be maintained for inspection.
A recent case upholds an association’s right to file a lien for violations of the Rules, even if those violations do not constitute breaches of the CC&Rs. The case of Julian v. Glencree Homeowners Association (2008) 169 Cal.App.4th 765 involved an association’s lien for unpaid towing fees. Although the specific Rules related only to parking, the Court upheld the lien as authorized by Civil Code §5600(c), as being for "other money expended by the association for the benefit of the common interest development" and were enforceable under Civil Code §5710.

Common HOA parking restrictions

Common HOA-Specific Parking Restrictions
HOA-specific parking restrictions commonly limit the types of vehicles that can be parked on common area (or inside a homeowner’s garage), the duration for which they may be parked there, or require homeowners to obtain permits prior to parking. For example, it is common for many HOAs to prohibit the parking of any recreational vehicles in the community: such as Trailers, Boats, or Campers. HOAs may also impose restrictions on work vehicles, commercial vehicles, or more than two vehicles for residents and limited guest parking.
Some HOAs go further than this by limiting the type or duration of parking for the vehicle types above. For example, some HOAs only allow full-sized vehicles to park in the association and not oversized or oversize vehicles. Some HOAs define when guests can park overnight in the association. A few HOAs restrict parking for overnights to Friday and Saturday nights only.
There are special considerations that apply to special circumstances involving permit parking between HOAs, but I will save that subject for a future post.
As with any restriction, the HOA must give proper notice of the restriction to the owners. Typically, this is done by including the restriction in the governing documents or bylaws of the HOA. Further attack can be levied if the restriction is not reasonably related to the protection, safety, or comfort of the residents of the community. For example, an HOA restricting parking of motorcycles would probably be deemed unreasonable, as those vehicles are low to the ground and do not present any threat to the protection, safety, or comfort of residents.

Penalties and enforcement

Enforcement and penalties for violations of the association’s parking rules or designation only may be handled by the board of directors (as explained above) or delegated to a committee of the association. The delegated committee may use their discretion, subject to the review and final approval of the board of directors. Enforcement measures may include warning letters, fines, or towing of vehicles. If the association has delegated its enforcement powers to a committee, they may impose fines or other measures within the authority delegated to them. However, the board must still approve any fines and may reduce or eliminate a fine imposed by the committee. If the committee has no authority with respect to fines, the board must impose the fines.
The association’s enforcement procedure should be set forth in the parking rules or other governing documents. Most governing documents require that the association must send the owner of the violating vehicle at least two warning letters informing them of the violations and giving them a period of time to correct the violation before imposing a fine or towing their vehicle. Fines are typically assessed per day or per violation, up to a maximum amount, as specified in the parking rules. Some associations have found that charging a flat fee is easier to implement than a daily or per violation charge.
Some associations impose a $500 fine per vehicle on a weekly basis. Many associations impose a fine of up to $500 to the owner of each vehicle parked in the wrong location or not displaying the appropriate sticker or pass on an monthly basis. If the vehicle remains in violation, the association should fine the owner every month until the violation is corrected, provided that, absent extraordinary circumstances, the total amount of fines shall not exceed $1,000. Some associations impose daily fines until the violation is cured.
However, the association must be careful about the maximum amount of a fine or fines that can be imposed, as imposition of excessive fines, or fines in excess of those amount established in the governing documents, may be challenged by a member as an attempt to violate the Davis-Stirling Common-Interest Development Act’s limit on assessments permissible without the owner’s vote, discussed below.
The Davis-Stirling Common-Interest Development Act prohibits the board from establishing or changing the amount of assessment subject to the owner’s vote for the association’s fiscal year or a change in the rate of regular or special assessments for that fiscal year that is more than 20 percent, unless the association’s budget for the fiscal year was first adopted pursuant to Civil Code § 5605 of the Davis-Stirling Act. This limit does not apply if the association is managed by a developer and the amount is set forth in the association’s governing documents.
Because violation of the limit on assessments without an owner’s vote invalidates the fine and requires the association to return the amount of the fine to the member, courts have opined that excessive fines or fines in excess of those permitted in the governing documents are susceptible to court challenge under the limit on assessments under the Davis-Stirling Act. We therefore recommend that the association’s common area rules specify fines that do not exceed $100 for any violation and do not exceed $300 in the aggregate for three or more violations, although amounts in excess of these limits may be challenged under California case law.

Disputing HOA parking fines

Residents who believe they have been wrongly cited for a parking violation have options for contesting the citation. Internal Dispute Resolution (IDR) – The Davis-Stirling Act requires all HOAs to provide an internal dispute resolution system for residents who want to contest a citation. The association must afford the resident an opportunity to meet with a member of the board to discuss the dispute and, hopefully, find a satisfactory resolution. The board is obligated to meet with the member within 60 days of receiving a request for internal dispute resolution so long as that request is not made in bad faith or for an improper purpose. This requirement can be particularly important in the parking context where the timing of a citation may impact whether a member believes they received proper notice of the parking violation either prior to the issuance of the citation itself or well after the fact following the expiration of the notice period. Alternative Dispute Resolution – If IDR does not resolve the parking dispute , California Civil Code section 5930 alternatively provides that homeowners associations and homeowners must attempt to submit their dispute to an alternative dispute resolution process prior to initiating any civil lawsuit in court. CA Civil Code section 5930 identifies mediation as a permissible form of alternative dispute resolution provided that mediation relates to one of the following: (i) Enforcement of the governing documents of the association. (ii) Claims for damage to the common area of the association. (iii) Claims for injury to a person or private property brought by a member of the association or by the association against a person. (iv) Claims against the association by a member of the association or by another person. (v) Claims brought by the association to recover an amount due it. Potential Lawsuits – A homeowner may consider filing a lawsuit against the HOA to contest parking citations, but must be careful to comply with California Civil Code Section 5975. Prior to filing suit, members must first comply with their association’s IDR and ADR requirements under Sections 5930 and 5935 of the civil code. Second, members are prohibited from filing a lawsuit against their HOA if the association has met and conferred with the homeowner to resolve the dispute and the amount in controversy is $2,500 or less. Members are also prohibited from filing suit against their HOA for issues arising from the enforcement of the governing documents if the dispute is a matter requiring a vote of the homeowners because the issue is not legally subject to a lawsuit. Finally, even if members comply with the mandatory pre-suit requirements, they must bring suit within a 60 day statute of limitations period.

Homeowner parking rights

Homeowners within HOAs have a legal right to the use of the common area, including parking areas. There are two different types of parking areas within HOAs: limited common area and general common area.
Limited common area parking is defined as portions of common area for the exclusive use of an owner, but not limited to the exclusive use of one homeowner. A good example of limited common area parking would be the parking stalls/space that are assigned to the homeowners of condominiums or townhomes. These spaces are considered limited common area because they are used by the owners of one or more separate interests for the parking of vehicles, but are not reserved for the exclusive use of any individual owner.
General common area parking is defined by the Davis-Stirling Act as parking areas for the common, nonexclusive use of all the owners. Examples of general common area parking would be the parking spaces directly outside of each unit in a high rise building, or parking spaces adjacent to the pool, clubhouse, and other community facilities.
The general rule in California is that HOAs cannot prohibit homeowners from parking where the parking spaces are defined as general common area. In addition, while HOAs can regulate limited common area parking on the property, they cannot carve out exceptions even just for Board-approved guests, tenants, vendors or visitors. Exceptions and carve-outs are considered essentially a violation of the prohibition against discrimination, because it gives some homeowners the right to park where it is forbidden for other homeowners to park. Any rules the Board enacts must make the limited common area parking rules applicable to everyone equally.

Communicating with HOAs

For a homeowner association to be a good neighbor and to work with its members constructively, it is important for the association to communicate effectively with its members. Likewise, for the homeowner association to operate efficiently and address issues in their community, it is important for the homeowners to communicate effectively with the association. Open communication is a two-way street!
Here are some suggestions for effective communications with your HOA:
Like any communication in the workplace, with neighbors, and particularly with family, it is essential to remain calm and respectful. Planning and drafting your correspondence will eliminate many miscommunications that could otherwise arise. Further, seeking resolution to any matter by phone or other delivery of written communication is far better than doing so at the proverbial 11th hour . Further, you may want to check out our "Top 5 HOA Disclosure Tips" to ensure you have considered some additional information that will help you and your HOA communicate effectively with each other.
Your HOA has promulgated rules that are intended to application to all homeowners. You may disagree with the rules, but generally speaking you agreed to those rules when you purchased your home. HOA’s aim to encourage uniform and consistent application of its rules in order to avoid any unfairness towards any HOA member. Therefore, if you believe the HOA has misapplied its rules or failed to enforce its rules, you should promptly and directly inform your HOA Board and request that it take remedial action.