Novato HOA Guide: Local Rules for Boards and Owners

North Marin Water District rescinded its drought emergency rules on April 4, 2023, so no watering-day limits are in effect. Its permanent rules still ban runoff and overspray, watering during or within 48 hours after measurable rain, hosing down hard surfaces that drain to a gutter and watering decorative (nonfunctional) turf as the State Water Board defines it. Leaks should be fixed within 72 hours. Enforcement can escalate from a notice to a flow restrictor, a penalty on the bill or a shutoff.

NMWD’s Cash for Grass rebate pays up to $1.50 per square foot of irrigated lawn removed, but the caps differ sharply: $1,500 for a single-family home, $100 per unit for townhomes, condos or HOA common areas and $50 per unit for apartment common areas. Projects need approval before work starts and plants must come from approved lists. Synthetic turf does not qualify. NMWD also pays for weather-based irrigation controllers ($30 per active station, up to $1,500). Water conservation: (415) 761-8944.

When a property sells, NMWD requires older plumbing fixtures to be replaced with water-saving ones, or the seller can pay $315 per bathroom and the buyer has a year to finish. New and rebuilt landscapes are capped at 300 square feet of lawn for a townhouse or condo.

A state law passed in 2023 (AB 1572) bars the use of drinking water on nonfunctional turf in HOA common areas starting January 1, 2029. The law stops the watering; it does not require removing the lawn. A board that decides to replace decorative lawn can use a rebate, where one is offered, to pay for part of the conversion.

NMWD’s own rules already bar watering nonfunctional turf, so ask NMWD how that applies to your common areas before planning around the 2029 state date.

On owners’ lots, Civil Code section 4735 prevents an association from banning low-water plants or artificial turf as a replacement for lawn.

Allow 72 hours for the police to process an RV permit. Your association’s rules can be stricter.

Section 18-5.1 lets the City Council, after notice and a hearing, make private roads subject to the Vehicle Code under state law. We did not find a list of private roads that have been designated. Where no designation exists, enforcing parking and speed rules on association-owned streets usually falls to the association, so ask the police department whether your community’s roads are covered.

Removing, pruning or altering a heritage tree, 24 inches or more in diameter (75 inches around) measured 24 inches above grade, takes a city permit. On vacant land, removing any tree 6 inches across needs one too. Planning checks applications within 30 days, gives 10 days’ public notice and allows 10 days for appeals. Staff may waive notice and appeal for trees a licensed professional finds dying or hazardous and for four fire-prone species: Monterey pine, Bishop pine, acacia and eucalyptus. Planning: (415) 899-8989.

Novato’s Tenant Protections Ordinance (section 4-17) took effect May 28, 2026. It adds relocation and right-of-return rules for no-fault evictions for substantial renovation and for red-tagged units. It exempts single-family homes and single condominium units owned by individuals, but not units owned by corporations or REITs. Copies of termination notices must be emailed to Code Enforcement within 10 days.

Short-term rentals need a city registration and a business license, and hosts pay a 12% occupancy tax quarterly. California Civil Code section 4741 limits how far an association can restrict rentals generally, but it does not stop an association from prohibiting rentals of 30 days or less.

Gas-powered leaf blowers are banned in Novato under Ordinance 1690, enforced since July 1, 2023. The ordinance also restricts hours for all blowers and bans blowing debris onto neighboring property, streets or storm drains.

The city’s construction hours handout, which cites section 19.22.070, allows work from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. on weekdays and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturdays, and not on Sundays or federal holidays without written approval. Grading is weekdays only. Put these hours in your contracts.

Complaints about overgrown, dead or diseased trees, weeds or vegetation go to the Novato Fire Protection District at (415) 878-2690, not the city. City Code Enforcement handles other property violations with administrative orders and citations: (415) 899-8928.

Marin voters approved Measure C in March 2020, a 10-year parcel tax of up to 10 cents per square foot of building or $75 per multifamily unit, to fund the Marin Wildfire Prevention Authority. Its inspectors and local fire departments run defensible-space and home-hardening evaluations, but enforcing the rules is up to your local fire agency.