Electric vehicles are growing more popular than ever, and it shouldn’t surprise anyone that California is the state where ownership is growing the fastest. Your San Francisco HOA likely has a homeowner or two with an electric car, and those cars will need to charge.
What are your responsibilities?
Your HOA isn’t allowed to restrict or prohibit electric cars or their charging stations. But, are you required to provide those charging stations? We’re taking a look at that question today.
Most buildings in San Francisco have separate living units and
parking areas. The law protects the right of your association’s homeowners to install electric vehicle (EV) charging stations in their “units,” not simply their designated, exclusive use common area parking spaces. But, your association does not need to provide the electricity. Homeowners have to pay for that and they also have to pay for installation of charging stations.
It’s possible your association will want to dissuade the installation of separate charging stations by providing your own. If your HOA plans to install one or more charging stations, you must make sure to budget for them. You’ll spend between $1,000 and $5,000 on each one.
When the HOA pays for and installs charging stations, the association retains ownership. This might be preferable to having a series of private stations owned by your homeowners. You’ll also be able to serve the needs of homeowners who provide condo rentals to tenants. Those tenants will benefit from communal charging stations.
When your HOA is not interested in putting aside the space and resources needed for communal charging stations, you’ll have to welcome individual homeowners to build their own.
California law does not let you prohibit this, not even in your rules and regulations.
The benefit of course is that your HOA won’t have to pay for any of the expenses. You might not like the aesthetics of private charging stations, but you’ll have to allow them if you’re not providing them yourself.
Installing charging stations isn’t always easy.
If your building is a high-rise, for example, there may be structural issues associated with installing charging stations. Review the architectural requirements and make sure you’re not setting your building up for any damage.
To install a charging station, you’ll need space for the station itself and an outdoor level 2 power outlet. If your HOA is going to do the installation, you’ll need to consider the extra space and power that’s needed as well as ADA accommodations.
Create a Policy for your HOA and Condo Rentals
This is not a trend that’s going away. More and more people will invest in electric vehicles and your HOA will have to continue adjusting. This might be a good time to get ahead of the curve and plan for some communal charging stations. Put a strong and detailed policy in place for the owners who will want to install their own.
If you’re working with a
San Francisco property management team, you’ll have some support navigating this process. At BanCal Property Management, we’ve been helping owners and HOAs deal with changing market trends since 1987. We can make sure you are prepared for electric vehicles at your community.
To hear more about our property management and HOA services, please
contact us. We also welcome your comments, questions, and suggestions on the topic of electric charging vehicles and stations in San Francisco HOA communities. What do you think?