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“People like grass, and there is nothing wrong with grass. If you want to keep your grass, that is great—just water it efficiently.”
The survey examined how willing homeowners are to take action on outdoor water efficiency and where the greatest opportunities exist. The findings compare current behavior and willingness to act across six irrigation and landscaping activities, with differences by age and HOA status. Use these insights to identify which audiences and activities offer the strongest opportunities for water-efficiency programs and outreach.
Homeowners want to increase outdoor water efficiency
Most homeowners with irrigation systems are already implementing water-saving activities or want to do more. On average, 36% are already taking action, while 44% are willing to start or expand their efforts. Together, that means about four in five homeowners are either actively doing or open to taking the next step.
The largest opportunities are irrigation system upgrades and landscape changes. Just 33% of respondents say they have already completed irrigation upgrades, while 51% either want to make additional upgrades or are willing to start. The pattern is similar for landscaping: 32% have already made partial or phased landscape changes, compared with 52% who want to do more or are willing to begin. For landscape redesign, only 26% have already acted, while 53% are open to taking additional action. These gaps suggest substantial interest that has not yet translated into completed projects.
Grass removal is the clear exception. Only 36% of respondents want to remove more grass or are willing to start, while 30% say they do not plan additional removal. That is a much higher level of resistance than for irrigation upgrades, partial landscape changes, or redesign. The findings suggest homeowners are more receptive to improving irrigation systems and making targeted or broader landscape changes than to removing grass outright.
Four in five homeowners are already acting or willing to act. Willingness is lowest on grass removal.
Current participation and willingness to take further action across six irrigation and landscaping practices
Already complete or consistently doingWant to do more or willing to startNo additional action plannedOther or not applicable
IRRIGATION
Routine irrigation maintenance553112
Active irrigation scheduling4844
Irrigation system upgrades335111
LANDSCAPE
Partial or phased landscape changes325296
Water-efficient landscape redesign2653146
Grass removal or replacement23363011
Average, all six activities3644127
0%20%40%60%80%100%
Note: Rows may not sum to 100% because of rounding. Segments below 6% are unlabelled. “Other or not applicable” includes respondents whose yard has no such feature and, for maintenance, those whose landscaper, HOA, or property manager handles it. Average is the unweighted mean of the six activities.
Source: Healthy Green Spaces Coalition, 2026 Residential Outdoor Water Barriers Survey (n = 1,286 U.S. homeowners with in-ground irrigation systems).
HOA vs. Non-HOA
HOA homeowners have completed more projects, while non-HOA homeowners show more untapped demand
HOA and non-HOA homeowners show similar overall engagement with outdoor water efficiency, but they are at different stages. HOA homeowners are more likely to have already completed major landscape projects, including landscape redesign (HOA at 30% vs. non-HOA at 23%) and grass removal (28% vs. 19%). Non-HOA homeowners, however, are more likely to say they still want to make changes. For landscape redesign, 56% of non-HOA homeowners are open to additional action, compared with 50% of HOA homeowners; for partial landscape changes, the gap is 56% vs. 49%.
The difference is much smaller for routine irrigation activities. Active scheduling is nearly identical, with 44% of HOA and 43% of non-HOA homeowners open to doing more, while irrigation-upgrade interest is also close at 50% vs. 52%. The larger divide appears in visible landscape changes: HOA households have finished more, while non-HOA households represent a larger pool of homeowners who are still willing to act.
HOA and non-HOA households reach about the same combined engagement. HOA households have finished more; non-HOA households have more still willing.
Share already acting and share open to additional action, % of respondents. Number at the end of each bar is the combined total.
Already actingOpen to additional action
Water-efficient landscape redesign
Open-to-more gap: −6 pts *
HOA305080
Non-HOA235679
All265379
Partial or phased landscape changes
Open-to-more gap: −7 pts *
HOA344983
Non-HOA305686
All325284
Irrigation system upgrades
Open-to-more gap: −2 pts n.s.
HOA335083
Non-HOA345286
All335184
Active irrigation scheduling
Open-to-more gap: +1 pt n.s.
HOA474491
Non-HOA494392
All484492
Grass removal or replacement
Open-to-more gap: −4 pts n.s.
HOA283462
Non-HOA193857
All233659
Routine irrigation maintenance
Open-to-more gap: −2 pts n.s.
HOA533083
Non-HOA563389
All553186
“Already acting” means doing the activity consistently or having completed it. “Open to more” means wants to do more or is willing to begin. Remaining respondents are not interested or say the activity does not apply. Significance from two-proportion z-tests on the open-to-more share; * p < 0.05, n.s. = not significant.
Source: Healthy Green Spaces Coalition, 2026 Residential Outdoor Water Barriers Survey (HOA, n = 644; non-HOA, n = 642; all, n = 1,286). Groups are quota-matched, so the split does not represent national HOA prevalence.
Motivation Declines With Age
Younger homeowners show stronger interest in irrigation improvements
Interest in irrigation upgrades and active scheduling remains relatively strong across generations, but younger homeowners are more likely to take the next step. For irrigation upgrades, 52% of Gen Z, 56% of millennials, and 55% of Gen X are open to additional action, compared with 44% of boomers. Active irrigation scheduling shows a similar pattern: 52% of Gen Z are open to doing more, compared with 45% of millennials and Gen X and 37% of boomers.
Grass removal is less appealing than the other major water-saving activities at every age. Even among younger homeowners, willingness is lower than for irrigation upgrades or landscape redesign. Still, age matters: 48% of Gen Z homeowners are open to additional grass removal, compared with only 27% of boomers. The data suggests irrigation improvements offer a broader opportunity across age groups, while grass removal is a more selective behavior that resonates most with younger homeowners.
Boomers are 8 to 21 points less willing to act than Gen Z. On four of six activities the gap opens in one step at boomers.
Respondents open to additional action, % of respondents in each generation
Gen ZGen YGen XBoomersAll respondents
Water-efficient landscape redesign
Gen Z to boomer gap: −17 pts
Gen Z
Gen Y
Gen X
Boomers
All
Partial or phased landscape changes
Gen Z to boomer gap: −9 pts
Gen Z
Gen Y
Gen X
Boomers
All
Irrigation system upgrades
Gen Z to boomer gap: −8 pts
Gen Z
Gen Y
Gen X
Boomers
All
Active irrigation scheduling
Gen Z to boomer gap: −15 pts
Gen Z
Gen Y
Gen X
Boomers
All
Grass removal or replacement
Gen Z to boomer gap: −21 pts
Gen Z
Gen Y
Gen X
Boomers
All
Routine irrigation maintenance
Gen Z to boomer gap: −12 pts
Gen Z
Gen Y
Gen X
Boomers
All
Counts respondents who said they want to do more of the activity or are willing to begin it; excludes those already doing it consistently, those not interested, and those for whom it is not applicable. Generations by age at fielding: Gen Z 18–29, Gen Y 30–45, Gen X 46–61, boomers 62–80; 32 respondents aged 81–98 are included in All respondents but not shown as a generation. Gen Z is n = 105, so its figures carry roughly ±10 points of sampling error.
Source: Healthy Green Spaces Coalition, 2026 Residential Outdoor Water Barriers Survey (Gen Z, n = 105; Gen Y, n = 481; Gen X, n = 288; boomers, n = 380; all, n = 1,286).
Activity Definitions
The table below provides practical examples of what each water-saving action may involve. These examples clarify the broader behavior categories shown in the readiness chart.