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HOAs, lawns and outdoor watering
No, on all the big ones. Colorado law overrides any HOA declaration, bylaw or rule that prohibits a rain barrel, xeriscape, nonvegetative turf grass, drought-tolerant landscaping, or a vegetable garden in your front, back or side yard. C.R.S. § 38-33.3-106.5(1)
What an association can still do is impose reasonable aesthetic and design rules about how those things look and where they go. The distinction between "you may not" and "not like that" is where the real arguments happen.
The statute overrides the declaration
Section 38-33.3-106.5 lists things a common interest community association may not prohibit, and it opens by making itself supreme over the community's own documents — "notwithstanding any provision in the declaration, bylaws, or rules and regulations of the association to the contrary." Three of the listed items are about water.
Rain barrels
Notwithstanding any provision in the declaration, bylaws, or rules and regulations of the association to the contrary, an association shall not prohibit any of the following: … The use of a rain barrel, as defined in section 37-96.5-102 (1), C.R.S., to collect precipitation from a residential rooftop in accordance with section 37-96.5-103, C.R.S.
The protection is tied to the state rain barrel statute: it covers a barrel that meets the statutory definition, used within the two-barrel, 110-gallon rule. Put in a 300-gallon cistern and you are outside both statutes, and the association's ordinary rules apply again.
Three limits are written into the same paragraph. The protection does not give you the right to place a barrel on leased property without the lessor's permission, on a common element or limited common element, on property the association maintains, or attached to another unit without that owner's permission. And the association may impose reasonable aesthetic requirements governing the placement or external appearance of the barrel C.R.S. § 38-33.3-106.5(1)(j)(III) — so "not on the street-facing elevation, and paint it to match" is likely enforceable, while "no rain barrels" is not.
Xeriscape and drought-tolerant landscaping
The use of xeriscape, nonvegetative turf grass, or drought-tolerant or nonvegetative landscapes to provide ground covering to property for which a unit owner is responsible, including a limited common element or property owned by the unit owner and any right-of-way or tree lawn that is the unit owner’s responsibility to maintain.
Associations may still adopt design and aesthetic guidelines for drought-tolerant landscapes, vegetable gardens and hardscape. But the statute puts four floors under those guidelines. They must not prohibit nonvegetative turf grass in a backyard; must not unreasonably require hardscape on more than twenty percent of the landscaping area; must allow the owner an option consisting of at least eighty percent drought-tolerant plantings; and must not prohibit vegetable gardens in the front, back or side yard. C.R.S. § 38-33.3-106.5(1)(i.5)(I)(A)–(D)
Associations are also required to select at least three preplanned water-wise garden designs, preapproved for front-yard installation. Using one of those designs counts as complying with the association's aesthetic guidelines, and the association must allow reasonable substitute plants when something in the design is unavailable C.R.S. § 38-33.3-106.5(1)(i.5)(II).
What an HOA can still do
- Enforce genuinely reasonable design and aesthetic guidelines, including on the appearance and placement of a rain barrel.
- Restrict nonvegetative turf grass to rear yards C.R.S. § 38-33.3-106.5(1)(i)(I)(A).
- Regulate the type, number and placement of drought-tolerant plantings and hardscape, within the four statutory floors above.
- Maintain rules about common elements — which are the association's to manage, not yours.
None of this supersedes local government rules: the xeriscape provisions expressly do not override a county or municipal subdivision regulation C.R.S. § 38-33.3-106.5(1)(i)(II).
Watering restrictions are a different thing entirely
Outdoor watering schedules — odd/even days, hours, weekly limits — almost never come from water rights law. They come from your water provider, whether that is a city utility, a water district, or a private company, acting under its own rules and drought response plan. They change from year to year and differ between neighboring providers, so this page deliberately does not print a schedule that would be wrong by next season. Check your provider's current restrictions directly.
If you are on a well rather than a tap, your limits come from a different place again: the permitted uses written on the exempt well permit itself. A household-use-only permit prohibits outdoor irrigation entirely, regardless of what any drought schedule says, and no HOA statute changes that.
For what you may collect and use at home, see collecting rainwater and the rest of wells and home.
Common questions
Can my HOA ban rain barrels in Colorado?
No. C.R.S. § 38-33.3-106.5(1)(j) prohibits an association from banning the use of a rain barrel to collect precipitation from a residential rooftop in accordance with the state rain barrel statute, notwithstanding anything in the declaration or rules. The association may impose reasonable aesthetic requirements about placement and external appearance, and the protection does not extend to common elements or to leased or attached property without permission.
Can a Colorado HOA require me to have a grass lawn?
No. An association may not prohibit xeriscape, nonvegetative turf grass, or drought-tolerant landscaping. Its design guidelines must allow an option of at least 80 percent drought-tolerant plantings, must not unreasonably require hardscape on more than 20 percent of the landscaping area, and must not prohibit nonvegetative turf grass in a backyard.
Can my HOA stop me planting a vegetable garden?
No. C.R.S. § 38-33.3-106.5(1)(i.5)(I)(D) provides that association guidelines must not prohibit vegetable gardens in the front, back, or side yard of a unit owner's property. The statute defines a vegetable garden broadly, including pollinator plants, flowers, herbs, fruits and leafy greens.
Where do Colorado outdoor watering restrictions come from?
From your water provider — a municipal utility, water district or private company — under its own rules and drought response plan, not from water rights law. They vary by provider and change year to year, so check your provider's current restrictions. If you are served by a well, the permitted uses on the well permit control, and a household-use-only permit bars outdoor irrigation entirely.
Primary sources
- C.R.S. § 38-33.3-106.5 — prohibitions contrary to public policy (Title 38, official text) C.R.S. 2025 edition; rain barrel, xeriscape and vegetable garden provisions
- C.R.S. §§ 37-96.5-102 and -103 — rain barrel definition and limits (Title 37, official text) effective Aug. 10, 2016