HOA wants to charge homeowner $500 because his grass isn’t green, so he adds a little blue and yellow: ‘No more HOA fee’

A homeowner says his HOA came after him over the color of his lawn, and rather than reseed or fertilize his way out of it, he found what he considers a faster fix. The dispute, which he laid out in a short TikTok clip, centers on his claim that his homeowners’ association threatened to fine him over the color of his grass.

The creator, who posts on TikTok as Blingo Blongo, opens the video walking across a patchy, brown lawn while holding a hose or spray wand. According to his account, the trouble started when his HOA threatened him with a fine over the state of his yard. HOA want to charge me $500 because my grass wasn’t green?” he says at the start of the clip before showing a before-and-after comparison. “There was before. Here’s after.”

He then points out that the lawn in question sits “on my land.”  From there, he explains his workaround. Instead of watering or treating the grass to bring it back naturally, he says he is dyeing it green with a colored liquid as the ground visibly changes shade while he sprays.

HOA wants green grass? He found a shortcut

Text overlaid on the video reads “Blue + Yellow = Green,” matching his explanation that mixing colors gets him to the shade his HOA apparently requires. “Put a little blue in there, mixes with the other color, and bang,” he says. “No more HOA fee.”

It is unclear whether the HOA has accepted the dyed grass—or even realized it was dyed. The video does not show any notices related to the alleged $500 fine. HOA rules often cover landscaping and exterior appearance, though the rules and enforcement process vary by community and state. That has led to disputes over where an HOA’s authority begins and ends, including one homeowner who said his association repeatedly targeted his yard and lawn-watering system despite him not being a member.

Commenters focused less on the lawn itself and more on the idea of an HOA fining someone over the color of his grass. “Land of the free and you get charged for your grass not being green,” one comment reads. 

Another commenter seemed baffled by the idea entirely, writing, “Usa sounds miserable because wdym you get fined if your grass isnt green what.”  A third pointed to how unfamiliar the setup can seem outside the US, saying, “As a Brit the concept of hoa will always shock me.”

For some homeowners, however, the trouble begins before they even realize an HOA has a say over their property. One Texas man learned his home was part of an association months after buying it, despite claiming that avoiding an HOA had been his one requirement during his search, before he began facing fees and restrictions.

For now, Blingo Blongo’s grass is green, at least by his own definition, and there is no word on whether his HOA sees it the same way.