Can an HOA give you a parking ticket or fine you for parking?
Reviewed by the OurHOA team · Updated June 2026
An HOA can penalize a parking violation only with real authority and due process - and a private windshield slip isn't a government ticket. When a parking fine is valid, and towing vs. fining.
The short answer
An HOA can penalize a parking violation only if two things are true: the parking rule is actually in the recorded CC&Rs or a validly adopted operating rule, and the association has authority to fine and follows the required process. A slip left under your wiper that looks like a municipal parking ticket is not a government citation - it's a private notice, and it only becomes an enforceable HOA fine if the underlying rule and the procedure behind it hold up. So the first question isn't 'how much,' it's 'where is this parking rule written, and did the board follow its own fining process.'
Where the parking authority has to come from
On the community's private streets, lots, and driveways the association can regulate parking if its documents give it that power; on a public street, only the city or police can ticket or tow. Common, generally enforceable rules include no overnight parking on private streets, no commercial vehicles or RVs and boats stored in view, park in your garage or driveway rather than on the street, and limits on how long a guest vehicle can stay. What a board can't do is invent a parking restriction with no basis in the documents. Our guides on whether an HOA can restrict parking and whether it can ban guest or overnight parking cover which parking rules tend to be allowed in the first place.
A parking fine still needs due process
A parking fine is a fine like any other, so the usual protections apply: written notice describing the violation, a chance to be heard, and an adopted fine schedule the penalty is drawn from. California builds this in through Civil Code sections 5850 (the association must adopt and distribute a fine schedule) and 5855 (notice and an opportunity for a hearing before the fine is imposed). Florida's Statute 720.305(2) caps most fines at $100 per violation and $1,000 in the aggregate and requires at least 14 days' notice plus a hearing before an independent committee of other owners. A windshield slip that imposes an instant charge with no hearing right behind it may simply be unenforceable - the procedure isn't a courtesy, it's often a legal prerequisite. See our deeper guide on the HOA fining process and due process.
A fine and a tow are two different tools
Fining charges money to your account. Towing physically removes the car - and when an HOA-authorized tow happens on private property, the tow company bills you directly, not the association (see our guide on who pays the tow fee when an HOA tows your car). Towing carries its own signage and notice law, such as California Vehicle Code section 22658 and Texas Occupations Code chapter 2308, which require conspicuous posted signs and, in Texas, give you a right to a justice-court tow hearing. An association can sometimes both fine and tow for the same parking problem, but each remedy needs its own authority and its own notice - one doesn't automatically authorize the other.
What an HOA generally can't do
It can't 'ticket' you on a public street - that's the city's job. It can't enforce a parking rule selectively, penalizing your truck in the driveway while ignoring three others. It can't collect a made-up fee with no adopted schedule behind it. And in many states a parking fine, unlike an unpaid assessment, can't be turned into a lien and foreclosed on, which limits how far an association can push a purely fine-based balance. A private parking-permit or decal fee is a separate matter - it has to be reasonable and cost-based, which our guide on whether an HOA can charge for a parking permit or decal explains.
What to do if you're ticketed - and how OurHOA helps
Don't pay on autopilot and don't ignore it. Ask in writing for the specific rule you're alleged to have broken, the fine schedule it's based on, and the date of any hearing; photograph where you parked and any posted signage; and raise selective enforcement or a skipped notice step before the deadline, because raising it later is much harder. For boards, parking is the single most common recurring dispute, and a parking fine only sticks when it rests on a written policy, clear signage or marked spaces, an adopted schedule, and consistent, documented notice. OurHOA helps small self-managed communities keep the parking rules, notices, and violation history in one place so the same rule lands the same way on every car - it's software, not a law firm, and because parking and towing law varies by state and locality, check your governing documents and local code for your situation.
OurHOA is the friendly, affordable way self-managed communities keep dues, records, and reminders in one place. See how it works.
These guides are general education for HOA boards and residents, not legal, tax, or financial advice. Rules vary by state and by your community's governing documents - check with a professional for your situation.