Michigan HOA Fence & Exterior

Quick-Reference Panel

Section 1: Overview, how fence and exterior rules work in Michigan

In Michigan, the master deed or recorded declaration — together with the architectural guidelines a community adopts under it — sets the rules for fences, walls, paint, siding, roofing, trim, exterior structures, and how the landscaping looks. But before anyone can answer an exterior question, one threshold question comes first: is this community a site condominium under the Michigan Condominium Act, or a covenant-governed platted subdivision? That single classification decides which body of law governs. Many of Michigan's detached-home communities are organized as site condominiums under the Condominium Act, MCL 559.101 et seq.,¹ and a master deed and a condominium subdivision plan govern them,⁸ even though they look for all the world like conventional subdivisions. A platted subdivision with a homeowners association works differently: its recorded covenants, the Michigan Nonprofit Corporation Act, and common law govern it instead.²

Two statutory overrides sit on top of that framework. The Homeowners' Energy Policy Act, effective April 2, 2025, bars associations from prohibiting solar energy systems and other energy-saving improvements, and it requires them to put a written solar-energy policy in place;³ and MCL 559.156a bars a condominium association from prohibiting a single United States flag no larger than three feet by five feet.⁴ No general Michigan statute sets an architectural-review response deadline or a deemed-approval rule for ordinary exterior applications — the governing documents set those timelines.⁹ Michigan lands in the middle: a moderate, non-UCIOA state that recently added a solar and energy override and leans heavily on site condominiums.² The sections that follow lay out the legal framework, the compliance mechanics, and the recent activity.

Section 2: The legal framework for exterior and fence control

2A. Where exterior and fence authority comes from

For every Michigan community, the recorded governing instrument — and the architectural guidelines adopted under it — is the primary source of exterior and fence authority. The first step is to classify the community. A site condominium is a community of detached homes organized under the Michigan Condominium Act, MCL 559.101 et seq., a statute the Legislature enacted as Public Act 59 of 1978.¹ A recorded master deed, with a condominium subdivision plan prepared under MCL 559.166 attached, creates it,⁸ and its exterior controls run through that master deed and the recorded bylaws. MCL 559.147 governs what co-owners may alter: it allows interior improvements that do not impair structural integrity, but it bars a co-owner from doing anything that would change the exterior appearance of a unit or any other portion of the project, except to the extent — and subject to the conditions — the condominium documents specify.¹⁰ MCL 559.165 requires compliance with the master deed, bylaws, and rules,¹¹ and MCL 559.146 authorizes the master deed's restrictions and covenants.¹² The Act never actually defines "site condominium"; the term is industry usage for a condominium in which the unit is a building site for a detached home rather than airspace inside a shared building.¹³

A platted subdivision with a homeowners association falls outside the Condominium Act. Its exterior authority rests instead on the recorded declaration of covenants, on the Michigan Nonprofit Corporation Act, MCL 450.2101 et seq., which supplies the corporate structure when the association is incorporated, and on common law.² Michigan has no comprehensive planned-community statute, and it has not adopted the Uniform Common Interest Ownership Act.²

The Marketable Record Title Act, MCL 565.101 et seq., matters for whether older covenants remain enforceable. A 2018 amendment required restrictive covenants to be identified by liber and page within a property's 40-year chain of title, or risk extinguishment — a change that put older subdivision covenants relying on generic "subject to restrictions of record" language at risk.¹⁴ A 2025 amendment substantially changed that exposure, and Section 4 walks through it.¹⁵

For an exterior question, the order of precedence runs like this: any mandatory statutory provision first (including the Homeowners' Energy Policy Act and, for condominiums, MCL 559.156a), then the master deed or recorded declaration, then the architectural guidelines, and finally the board rules.

2B. State-law limits on association exterior authority

Solar and energy improvements are Michigan's significant override. The Homeowners' Energy Policy Act, 2024 Public Act 68, codified at MCL 559.301 et seq. and effective April 2, 2025,³ makes invalid and unenforceable any provision in a homeowners'-association agreement that prohibits a member from installing or operating an energy-saving improvement — or that requires association approval to do so — and any provision that prohibits, or has the effect of prohibiting, a solar energy system.¹⁶ The energy-saving improvements the Act defines include clotheslines, air- and ground-source heat pumps, insulation, rain barrels, reflective roofing, energy-efficient appliances and windows, solar water heaters, and electric-vehicle supply equipment.¹⁶ The Act requires every homeowners' association to adopt a written solar-energy policy within one year of the effective date — a deadline reported as April 1, 2026 under MCL 559.309(1); it caps standards that "may not result in a reduction in the production of electricity by the solar energy system by more than 10% or increase the total cost of the installation of the solar energy system to the member by more than $1,000.00" under MCL 559.309(1)(d); and it does not reach common areas or shared roofs under MCL 559.313.¹⁷ That is a statutory cap on what an association may do. How far it reaches condominium associations remains unsettled, because the Act uses the term "homeowners association" without defining it and does not clearly sweep in an "association of co-owners" under the Condominium Act; even so, named Michigan community-association firms tell every association to comply — McDonald Hopkins' affiliated commentary says the Act "Impacts All Community Associations in Michigan," and other firms recommend that condominiums comply voluntarily to avoid liability until a court clarifies the question.¹⁸

MCL 559.156a limits how a condominium may restrict the United States flag: it bars a developer or association of co-owners from prohibiting a co-owner from displaying a single United States flag no larger than three feet by five feet anywhere on the exterior of the unit, and it bars enforcing any pre-existing prohibition.⁴ This provision is condominium-specific, and by its terms it does not reach traditional HOAs. The broader baseline is the federal Freedom to Display the American Flag Act of 2005, 4 U.S.C. 5, which bars condominium, cooperative, and residential real estate management associations from restricting display of the United States flag on property a member owns or exclusively uses, subject to reasonable time, place, and manner restrictions.¹⁹

No specific Michigan statute limits how an association may restrict political and noncommercial signs, so the governing documents control sign display. Landscaping appearance, water-conserving or native plants, and artificial turf fall under no Michigan override either — with one exception: the Homeowners' Energy Policy Act protects certain energy-related items such as clotheslines and rain barrels. Ordinary landscaping aesthetics remain a matter for the governing documents.¹⁶

Fences carry a safety floor. The residential swimming pool, hot tub, and spa barrier requirements come from the Michigan Residential Code, which the state adopted by administrative rule under the Stille-DeRossett-Hale Single State Construction Code Act, 1972 Public Act 230, MCL 125.1501 et seq.²⁰ Under the barrier provisions of the Michigan Residential Code (2015 edition, Appendix G, currently in force), a barrier must stand at least 48 inches high measured on the side facing away from the pool, with a gap of no more than two inches at the bottom.⁵ This is a floor the state has set, and an association cannot lower it; it does not otherwise cap an association's fence authority, which remains contractual.

2C. The architectural review process and procedural limits

No general Michigan statute sets an architectural-review response deadline or a deemed-approval rule for ordinary exterior applications. For condominiums, architectural control flows through the master deed and bylaws — co-owner alterations under MCL 559.147, compliance under MCL 559.165; for traditional HOAs, it flows through the recorded declaration.¹⁰ The one statutory clock in this area is the Homeowners' Energy Policy Act's 30-day solar-application window; once it passes without a decision, the member may proceed without penalty.⁶ Absent that clock, the governing documents set the application timelines.

Boards are expected to make architectural decisions in good faith, to keep them reasonable, and to apply them uniformly. For condominiums, that expectation rests on the Condominium Act and on the contractual nature of the master deed and bylaws; for traditional HOAs, it rests on Michigan's common-law doctrine governing restrictive covenants, under which courts enforce the plain language of recorded restrictions and examine waiver and selective enforcement.²¹ Architectural standards have to appear in — or be duly adopted under — the recorded instruments to be enforceable, and the Marketable Record Title Act bears on whether older covenants remain in force.¹⁴ Before it imposes fines or forces a removal, an association is expected to give notice and an opportunity to be heard.

Section 3: Compliance obligations and operational mechanics

A. Association and architectural-committee obligations

An association has to maintain its architectural standards, make them available, and review applications within whatever timeline its governing documents set (CONTRACTUAL; applies to condominiums and traditional HOAs).¹¹ A homeowners' association subject to the Homeowners' Energy Policy Act has to adopt a compliant written solar-energy policy within one year of the Act's effective date and act on a solar application within 30 days (STATUTORY; clearly applies to traditional HOAs, uncertain for condominium associations).¹⁷ A condominium association has to respect the flag provision in MCL 559.156a (STATUTORY; condominiums only).⁴ Boards must apply their standards reasonably and uniformly, and condominium boards must observe the Condominium Act's governance provisions (STATUTORY for condominiums; common-law for HOAs).²¹ And before it enforces, an association is expected to give notice and an opportunity to be heard.⁷

B. Owner and co-owner obligations and rights

An owner or co-owner has to submit an application and win approval before installing a fence or doing exterior work wherever the governing documents require it; for condominiums, MCL 559.147 bars exterior changes except as the condominium documents specify (CONTRACTUAL and STATUTORY; condominiums).¹⁰ Owners have to comply with approved plans and published standards. When an association fails to respond within a required window, or acts unreasonably or selectively, the owner may hold a defense or a claim — and under the Homeowners' Energy Policy Act, a member may go ahead with a solar installation if the association does not act in time, and may sue for damages and attorney fees (STATUTORY).⁶ A condominium co-owner holds the flag right under MCL 559.156a (STATUTORY; condominiums).⁴

C. Enforcement, remedies, and defenses

For condominiums, MCL 559.206 entitles the association to relief when a co-owner defaults — damages, injunctive relief, foreclosure of the assessment lien, recovery of costs and attorney fees to the extent the condominium documents provide, and fines after notice and a hearing (STATUTORY; condominiums).²² MCL 559.208 governs the Condominium Act assessment lien and its judicial or advertisement foreclosure (STATUTORY; condominiums).⁷ For traditional HOAs, the remedies rest on the recorded covenants and on general contract and injunction law (CONTRACTUAL; traditional HOAs).² Several limits apply: the Marketable Record Title Act bears on older covenants, and the Michigan Attorney General plays a general consumer-protection role — but Michigan licenses no community-association manager and names no dedicated HOA regulator.² An owner's defenses include selective enforcement, waiver or abandonment, a restriction that exceeds the authority the statute or governing documents grant, a restriction voided under the Homeowners' Energy Policy Act, or a covenant that has lapsed under the Marketable Record Title Act.²¹

Section 4: Recent legislative and judicial activity

A. Recent bills

B. Recent appellate rulings

C. Active legislative debates

Michigan's community-association bar keeps pressing for amendments to the Homeowners' Energy Policy Act to address drafting concerns, and observers have anticipated a periodic-reserve-study bill for condominium associations; neither is settled law yet.²⁶

Section 5: National positioning and related coverage

Michigan sits in the middle of the national spectrum. It is neither a strong-statutory-override state like California, Colorado, and Illinois, which pile detailed statutory limits across many exterior features, nor a CC&R-primary state like Iowa, where recorded covenants do nearly all the work. Michigan is a moderate state: it runs a comprehensive condominium statute, used widely through site condominiums, and a recent solar and energy override, but it has no comprehensive planned-community statute and has not adopted UCIOA.² What sets it apart is the heavy use of site condominiums under the Condominium Act, the Homeowners' Energy Policy Act, and the Marketable Record Title Act's bearing on whether older covenants remain enforceable. For a multi-state operator, the practical lesson is to identify the community structure first — pick the wrong framework and you get the wrong answer — and to remember that the recent solar and energy law may void older exterior restrictions on energy improvements.

HOA Weekly's Michigan Fence and Exterior coverage updates quarterly as the Legislature and the Michigan appellate courts act. Federal frameworks apply to Michigan associations too, whatever the state structure — among them the Freedom to Display the American Flag Act of 2005, the FCC over-the-air reception devices rule, and the Fair Housing Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act for reasonable accommodations that affect exterior features.

1. Michigan Condominium Act, Act 59 of 1978, MCL 559.101 et seq. (Michigan Legislature) ↩
2. Michigan Nonprofit Corporation Act, Act 162 of 1982, MCL 450.2101 et seq. (Michigan Legislature) ↩
3. Homeowners' Energy Policy Act, Act 68 of 2024, MCL 559.301 et seq.; "History: 2024, Act 68, Eff. Apr. 2, 2025" (Michigan Legislature) ↩
4. MCL 559.156a, Displaying United States flag on condominium unit (Michigan Legislature) ↩
5. Michigan Residential Code (2015 edition), Appendix G, barrier requirements (48-inch height, 2-inch maximum bottom clearance) ↩
6. Homeowners' Energy Policy Act, 2024 PA 68, Sec. 11(2)-(3) (30-day solar-application window; member may proceed if the association fails to act) (Michigan Legislature) ↩
7. MCL 559.208, Assessment lien; priority; foreclosure; bid; actions; receiver (Michigan Legislature) ↩
8. MCL 559.166, Condominium subdivision plan (Michigan Legislature) ↩
9. MCL 559.147, Improvements or alterations by co-owners (control flows through condominium documents; no statutory deemed-approval clock) (Michigan Legislature) ↩
10. MCL 559.147, Improvements or alterations by co-owners ("a co-owner shall not do anything which would change the exterior appearance of a condominium unit or of any other portion of the condominium project except to the extent and subject to the conditions as the condominium documents may specify") (Michigan Legislature) ↩
11. MCL 559.165, Compliance with master deed, bylaws, rules, and regulations (Michigan Legislature) ↩
12. MCL 559.146, Restrictions and covenants (Michigan Legislature) ↩
13. Hirzel Law, "MCL 559.167: Michigan Court Rules on Unit Reversion" (explaining that "site condominium" is not defined by the Act and refers to units that are building sites for detached homes) ↩
14. Marketable Record Title Act, MCL 565.101 et seq., as amended (Enrolled House Bill 4524 of 2025; liber-and-page identification and preservation requirements) (Michigan Legislature) ↩
15. House Bill 4524 of 2025 (Public Act 13 of 2025), Marketable record title act; revise (Michigan Legislature) ↩
16. Homeowners' Energy Policy Act, 2024 PA 68, Secs. 3, 5, and 7 (definition of energy-saving improvements; invalidation of prohibiting provisions) (Michigan Legislature) ↩
17. Homeowners' Energy Policy Act, 2024 PA 68, Secs. 9 (written policy within one year; 10% production and $1,000 cost caps) and 13 (inapplicable to common areas and shared roofs) (Michigan Legislature) ↩
18. Hirzel Law, "HB 5028 Passes: A Michigan HOAs' Guide to ... the Homeowners' Energy Policy Act" (Act uses "homeowners association" without defining it; condominiums may voluntarily comply) ↩
19. Freedom to Display the American Flag Act of 2005, Pub. L. 109-243, 120 Stat. 572; codified at 4 U.S.C. 5 (GovInfo) ↩
20. Stille-DeRossett-Hale Single State Construction Code Act, 1972 PA 230, MCL 125.1501 et seq. (Michigan Legislature) ↩
21. Melvin R. Berlin Revocable Trust v. Rubin, Mich. Court of Appeals opinion, July 20, 2023 (Docket No. 359300) (courts of appeal enforce the plain language of recorded restrictions and examine waiver) (Michigan Courts) ↩
22. MCL 559.206, Default by co-owner; relief (damages, injunctive relief, foreclosure of lien, costs and attorney fees, fines after notice and hearing) (Michigan Legislature) ↩
23. House Bill 5028 of 2023 (Public Act 68 of 2024), bill history and status (Michigan Legislature) ↩
24. Enrolled House Bill 4524 of 2025 (Public Act 13 of 2025), amending the Marketable Record Title Act (two-year extension; "Person" includes a property owners' association; Sec. 4 exceptions for post-1950 declarations and recorded condominium master deeds) (Michigan Legislature) ↩
25. Melvin R. Berlin Revocable Trust v. Rubin, Michigan Supreme Court, Docket No. 166228 (order affirming by equal division, July 9, 2025) (Michigan Courts) ↩
26. CAI Michigan Legislative Action Committee updates (ongoing efforts on HEPA amendments and a condominium reserve-study bill) ↩