HOA Grass Height Rules Overrule the Homeowner
Users are expressing frustration with lawn care challenges, including weed removal, grass height regulations enforced by HOAs, and dealing with turf issues. There's a strong sense of annoyance with restrictive rules and the perceived overreach of homeowner associations.
SOURCES (60)
“If you can’t afford a lawn service then you won’t be able to afford the HOA fines for not mowing your yard.”
“Just like the title says, I’m looking for a somewhat discrete yet obvious way to mark my property line. My neighbor uses a lawn service that mows their yard. The neighbor has an overgrown bush that butts up to my property line. Their mowing service just goes around it, blades on, absolutely scalping my tall fescue. I’ve tried talking to the lawn service but they speak zero English. I’ve put flags out and they go around those which results them going further into my lawn. I live in a HOA so even”
“https://preview.redd.it/uxwxn6wf6vch1.jpeg?width=4032&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=98f7bf8c6e5fa3f38fb8dd2d46c287f2a9f00c6d 2”. HOC matters much less than consistency. The lower you cut the more frequent you need to cut.”
“They burn in so well, I just kind of eye-up the old lines and make little adjustments as I go to keep it looking straight.”
“Find an object as far away as possible to stare and aim at. Source: superintendent at a golf course, this is how I teach everyone to mow lasers”
“My trick is to look further down the yard when I'm pushing my mower vs. 5 feet ahead of me. Just like driving a car. Having a level yard helps as well.”
“Looks great! How do you keep your stripes so straight? I have the same mower/striper and my stripes are always kinda wavy.”
“This one might go into overtime skip they’re neck and neck here. A true battle of lawns is upon us, we can only be thankful to be in the presence of such greatness”
“You’re just flexing on OP right now. Gorgeous turf.. how are you able to cut so low? Not with a traditional lawn mower I suppose?”
“https://preview.redd.it/n4ug91i4jvch1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=f2d48e208ef8636e330e02a4c61075e10ae43edd 6mm or just a hair shorter than 1/4”… I agree HOC matters! Gorgeous turf OP!”
“No one here ever seems to ever talk about the practical aspects of height of cut. If you have kids who want to kick a soccer ball for example, they will hate a 4 inch height of cut because the ball won't roll well. Or even if they just want to do cartwheels and run around.... But yeah if you just have grass to look at then sure go super high.”
“I don’t judge as much as I compare others against mine. I put too much time and effort into my lawn. It’s one thing to have a controlled lawn that has some weeds and needs some fertilizer and may be going dormant due to grass length or lack of water. It’s another thing to have an overgrown jungle. That will make me judge you lol.”
“You bought into a golf course HOA so yeah they're judging you hard, but mowing weekly and edging the sidewalk would take 30 minutes and shut them up”
“I think there’s a social contract with your neighbors when you own a home. At the minimum it should be clean and kept, and not looking like blight. It does not need to be golf course immaculate, but just decent enough to look like you care about your home. Find a kid in your neighborhood who’s looking for a little work.”
“You live in a nice neighborhood so why not hire a company to at least fertilize your yard and take care of the weeds. If you don’t have time to mow then also hire a company to mow for you or even half the time for you. If you are asking the question it obviously bothers you that your yard is not looking good whether you are being judged by your neighbors or not. I personally feel that curb appeal strongly affects the value of your home and your neighbors homes.”
“I’ve always kept my lawn pretty much tip top. I’ve had neighbors that did virtually nothing besides mow every 10 days and it’s never really bothered me. We all have different priorities. Now, I do get frustrated at the lawns that are nothing but 2’ tall weeds. People can do better than that”
“Yes, you are being judged. Neighbors with pride of ownership and ones that dedicate resources to to reflect that, don’t want your issues or the indirect effects”
“i live on a cul-de-sac of pristine lawns and we have an HOA. i have the time and energy so i try to keep up to a point that it stays "fun". Five houses down is a guy with more weeds than lawn, it feels like. I judge when I see it and usually forget about it entirely 100ft later.”
“I don’t know expect everyone to care about their lawns as I do, but I get bent on those who grow weed farms and don’t clean up their leaves”
“Personally I don’t expect everyone to be as dedicated to their lawn as I am with mine, but I do expect to at least keep the mowed to a decent length. I hate driving by and seeing some houses in my neighborhood with legit 2 foot tall weeds throughout.”
“The problem with weeds is, they don't only affect your yard, but all your neighbors through reseeding. If you get the weeds under control, you only need to treat once a year. I haven't had to bother with my backyard for 2 years now. Also, eventually, you will only have weeds. Hire a guy once a year around this time to spray weed control. It won't get everything, since it's sounds like it's already bad, but it will help. It will probably cost $100. Or get the hose attachment o”
“For me, it's about the same money to pay a local service to spray fertilizer and weedkiller. I don't spend any time going to store to buy this stuff or spend time to apply it. The lawn looks better than when I did it myself. I feel that I come out ahead in this. I just keep up with the mowing and fighting bermuda and nutsedge.”
“100% judging you for your poorly kept lawn. Look up “external obsolescence”. You probably picked the area because you liked how the homes looked, and now you’re not maintaining your own. I have never understood that mentality.”
“Your neighbors are probably thinking “I can’t wait till they slip into foreclosure and have to move out of here.” I know I would. You live in a golf course community. If you don’t have the skill, devote the time to develop it. If you don’t have the time hire someone to do it. If you don’t have the money gtfo. I’m suffering through this same thing in my neighborhood. Covid low interest rates attracted a bunch of buyers that wouldn’t otherwise be able to afford homes in my neighborhood. Now that p”
“The only reason I care about my neighbors lawns are because they blow weed seeds on mine. I’d prefer they kept their lawn nice so they stop contaminating mine but I only think marginally less of them as people. /s”
“If you buy a home in a neighborhood based on how that neighborhood looked, you should strive to keep it that way. Its unfair to the others to make their home value aka investment perceive to be less.”
“Agreed. I love taking care of my lawn but my nextdoor neighbor does not. He doesn’t own a trimmer/edger or blower. He just mows once every few weeks after it gets bad. Do I silently judge him for it? A little bit, but I also really like him and there are more important things in a neighbor than grass.”
“I don't mow my lawn nearly enough. Even so, after I do spend an afternoon mowing, trimming, and edging I absolutely judge my neighbor who has three little dandelions popping up.”
“Yes, they are judging you. Do you judge others around you? When they are late to appointments, or messy in personal appearance, or when they prioritize things differently than you would? Is their car messy with old coffe cups, or their desks disarrayed with clutter? Are their clothes covered in crumbs or lunch stains or unwashed when they should be clean and pressed? They judge you, and you judge them. That's why we strive to "judge lest ye be judged", but also why "to err is”
“I have a neighbour across the street like you. People have different priorities in life and we get that. If your weed is going to seed… I can’t believe there’s been no complaints to your HOA. Running the mower over it is like 1/4 of the time you scroll a day. At least be a decent neighbour and keep the weeds cut.”
“In an HOA on a golf course, yes they absolutely look down upon your yard and judge you. That’s why people buy in HOA, so that they don’t end up with neighbors with unkept yards and homes. Homie, you bought in the wrong neighborhood if you don’t care if your yard looks like shit.”
“It doesn’t bother me and if anything I feel like it makes my yard look nicer by comparison. I think it depends on the neighborhood though. My neighborhood has a lot of older trees and I feel like more character than some newer neighborhoods so an unkept lawn is not really a “blight” on the neighborhood. In some newer neighborhoods with uniform houses and fewer trees it might stick out more.”
“Yeah, they’re judging not just your lawn but your house, your car(s), your career, how you and your family present yourselves, and everything in between. It’s quite exhausting, I’m sure.”
“If you live on a golf course your neighbors are judging you regatdless of your lawn, I promise.”
“Our HOA has a retired lady who Drives around looking for violations. It Seems to be common to Have one on the HOA unfortunately. Do like me and call for their removal at every board meeting and document everything.”
“Almost feels like you’re not telling the full truth. To grow more than 2 inches in a week is unheard of. To grow that much it’s been a while since you mowed. They actually allowed you to make it right and you probably didn’t do anything. They finally gave you a warning. I live in a HoA. Many of them. And I also take vacations and is not home. My community k it’s my lawn is kept and if it is not cut, it’s cause I was out of town or was too occupied to get to it right away. They know I will take c”
“8" here. The solution is to mow twice a week and especially before you leave town for an extended time.”
“Not crazy grass if fertilizer has been applied. I get two inches in five days, especially when rainy!”