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HOAs have a reputation for micromanaging everything from mailbox colors to holiday decorations. One homeowner learned that even charging a visiting family member’s Tesla wasn’t safe from scrutiny.
In a Reddit post, the townhouse resident said a family member parked their Tesla Model S in the driveway and charged it with a Level 1 cable from a garage outlet. No extension cords, no improvised setup — just the equipment Tesla supplies with the car.
That’s when the HOA sent a warning. The letter stated: “Electrical chords running along the ground for Electrical Vehicle charging are not permitted in the community. Charging receptacles may be mounted in the garage with a maximum 25 foot chord as per NEC 625. All installations require a licensed electrician.”
The homeowner asked: was this really illegal?
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Many responses suggested the board was overreaching. One commenter bluntly said, “Your HOA is full of sh*t.” Another added, “If your HOA is telling you you can’t do something, 9.9 times out of 10 they’re lying and just trying to exert control.”
Several pointed out that the HOA’s own wording was questionable. “If the HOA letter literally spelled it as ‘chords,’ then you can completely ignore it. Chords =/= cords,” one user joked.
But beyond spelling errors, others noted the board’s claim didn’t line up with the National Electrical Code. NEC 625 — the standard governing EV charging — does not ban Level 1 charging. It allows a standard 120-volt grounded outlet, provided the equipment is used as intended. An engineer in renewable energy even explained, “If you were plugging things in as described in the instruction manual then there should be no code violation.”
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Still, some argued the HOA wasn’t leaning on safety at all, but aesthetics. As one comment put it, “The HOA is less focused on the EV regulation, and more on the aesthetics of the cord running from the garage to the vehicle.” In other words, the board didn’t like the look of a cable stretched across a driveway.
So, were they right? NEC 625 sets safety standards, but it doesn’t prohibit charging with the Tesla’s Level 1 cable. HOAs, however, can impose their own appearance-based rules — and enforce them.
That’s the tricky part of living under an HOA. Homeowners sign on knowing they’re agreeing to more than city or county ordinances; they’re also agreeing to neighborhood rules, often written by boards made up of other residents. While those rules may keep lawns uniform and driveways tidy, they can also feel arbitrary — especially when they stretch into areas already covered by national standards.
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In this case, the homeowner wasn’t breaking electrical law, but the HOA wasn’t technically breaking its own authority either. The board can choose to ban cords across driveways simply for aesthetic reasons, even if it has nothing to do with safety. As one commenter noted, the real issue may have been optics: the car was fine, but the cord looked out of place.
For homeowners, that’s the tradeoff of HOA living — a neighborhood that promises order and conformity, but often at the cost of individual convenience.
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This article HOA Told Homeowner They Couldn’t Charge a Tesla in Their Own Driveway —Not Because of the Vehicle, But Because the Extension Cord Looked Ugly originally appeared on Benzinga.com
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