A homeowner and military veteran in a Sun Belt suburb received a formal violation notice from his HOA for painting his mailbox the wrong shade of beige.

The approved color, per the community’s Architectural Standards Guidelines (a 47-page document), was Navajo White (Sherwin-Williams SW 6126). The homeowner’s mailbox was painted Antique White (SW 6119). To the untrained eye — which is to say, to every human eye — these colors are functionally identical.

The violation letter stated that the mailbox represented a “material deviation from approved community color standards” and imposed a fine of $50 per day until the mailbox was repainted in the correct shade.

The homeowner, who had recently returned from a deployment overseas, expressed confusion. He had purchased the paint at the same hardware store recommended by the HOA and asked the clerk for “the beige one.”

The HOA board held firm.

At the subsequent board meeting, a neighbor presented paint swatches of both colors side by side and asked board members to identify which was which. None could.

The fine was eventually rescinded. The mailbox remains Antique White.