EXACTLY! If you live where there is no hoa then you can have a pig farm in your front yard!
This is why people live where there is an HOA. After living in a neighborhood where one didn't exist, I quickly grew tired of the one neighbor who used his front yard as overflow parking. At a minimum, his personal truck sat off his driveway and directly in front of his porch. This was so his box truck work vehicle could use the driveway and easily back up to the stockpile storage area he created next to the garage. In hindsight, he likely used that area as a stockpile to help create a screen of sorts so people couldn't see the '85 Firebird he had buried underneath it all. All very lovely in terms of curb appeal ...........
Also had a neighbor down the street who had nearly twice as many vehicles as his driveway could hold. Thankfully, he didn't park in his front yard, he just double parked them on the street. One vehicle would be on the edge of the road and another would be parked on the non-existent shoulder (into the edge of the yard).
Let's not talk about another neighbor - thankfully closer to the entrance of the neighborhood - who elected not to cut his grass one year (out of spite for another neighbor who commented on the grass height once is got past about 8" deep). Nothing better in maintaining/increasing home values when perspective buyers believe your house is full of foreclosures/abandoned homes.
Now, with an HOA (albeit a very mild one) - people have obligations to maintain their property - and have expectations of others. Grass/yards need to be maintained. RV / boats need to be tucked behind the house. No permanent on street parking, etc. It's really not a bad deal. You do have to obtain certain permissions for additions of course but it's all to ensure you don't elect to paint your house a neon-pink while surrounded by a bunch of brick fronted colonials.