HOA
From Listings to Living
The refinance was supposed to close on Friday. On Wednesday the title company called: a notice of delinquent assessment from the homeowners association, recorded two years earlier for $1,140, still sat in the county records. The owner had paid that balance within a month. Nobody had recorded the release, and the new lender would not fund until someone did.
That is the lien homeowners associations rely on, in its most ordinary form. A homeowners association lien is a legal claim against your lot or unit that secures money you owe the association, mainly regular dues and special assessments, and often the interest, late charges and collection costs that follow them. It attaches to the property itself and stays there until it is paid and released or until the law lets it lapse. Most owners and buyers who run into an HOA lien want three answers: what it covers, whether it can outrank the mortgage, and how to get it off title.
This guide covers the lien itself. The collection steps that lead up to it are in what happens if you don't pay HOA fees, and the forced sale that can follow it is in how HOA foreclosure works. Rules vary by state, so treat the statutes below as examples and check your own.
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States create the association's lien in one of two ways, and the difference decides when a lien exists and what a title search will show.
In states that follow the Uniform Common Interest Ownership Act model, the lien exists as soon as an assessment falls due, and the recorded declaration itself serves as public notice. Nevada's statute, NRS 116.3116, says recording the declaration "constitutes record notice and perfection of the lien" and that no further claim of lien needs to be recorded. Colorado's version, C.R.S. 38-33.3-316, uses the same language. In those states, a property can carry an HOA lien that no separate document in the county records reveals.
Other states make the association take a visible step. In California, the lien arises only when the association records a notice of delinquent assessment with the county recorder, and before that, the board must vote in an open meeting to record it and send the owner an itemized notice by certified mail. Florida mixes the two approaches. Under Florida Statutes 720.3085, an association's lien relates back to the date the original declaration was recorded, but against a first mortgage it is effective only from the recording of a claim of lien, and the association must first give the owner 45 days' written notice to pay.
Either way, the lien sits on top of a chain of documents. Your declaration usually contains the lien covenant, and our guide to HOA governing documents explains which document controls when the declaration and the statute say different things.
The core of every HOA lien on property is unpaid assessments. That includes regular dues and, in most states, special assessments, which our guide to the HOA special assessment covers from the vote to the payment plan. If the "special assessment" on your title report came from a city or county rather than the association, it is a different animal with different priority rules, explained in what a special assessment is in real estate.
Beyond assessments, the add-ons vary by state:
A lien is one tool in a larger kit. Boards also use violation letters, hearings, suspensions and lawsuits, and our hub on HOA enforcement shows where the lien fits among them.
Priority decides who gets paid first if the property is sold to satisfy debts. In most states, property tax liens come first, and an association lien ranks behind a first mortgage that was recorded before the assessment went delinquent. That default is why a buyer at an association's foreclosure sale usually takes the property still subject to the bank's loan.
A number of states carve out an exception. The uniform act gives a slice of the association's lien, roughly six months of regular assessments, priority over the first mortgage. The Community Associations Institute's public policy on lien priority, last adopted by its board in August 2013, says twenty-one states have adopted some version of it, and that the language, coverage and impact vary widely, with one state providing a 12-month lien period. Where the priority applies, it can be a true lien priority: in Nevada, the SFR Investments decision held that a proper foreclosure of the super-priority portion can extinguish the first deed of trust.
Two states show how the details differ:
Nevada is also where the super lien turned from theory into a fight. In SFR Investments Pool 1 v. U.S. Bank, decided in September 2014, the Nevada Supreme Court held that NRS 116.3116 "gives an HOA a true superpriority lien, proper foreclosure of which will extinguish a first deed of trust," and that associations could foreclose without going to court. A small delinquency could, in principle, wipe out a large mortgage.
The federal government pushed back where its own loans were at stake. In April 2015, the Federal Housing Finance Agency, as conservator of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, said in a statement on HOA super-priority lien foreclosures that federal law bars extinguishing their liens without its consent, and that it had not consented and would not. If you are shopping for condos and townhomes in Las Vegas, the practical takeaway is simpler than the case law: dues delinquencies on Nevada property get lenders' attention fast, and a title search will look for them.
Florida is not a classic super lien state, but it limits what a foreclosing lender owes the association. Under Florida Statutes 720.3085 for HOAs and 718.116 for condominiums, a first mortgagee that takes title through foreclosure owes past-due assessments only up to the lesser of 12 months of assessments or 1 percent of the original mortgage debt, and only if it joined the association as a defendant in the foreclosure.
Say a lender foreclosed on a unit with a $300,000 original loan and $450 monthly dues. Twelve months of dues is $5,400; 1 percent of the loan is $3,000. The lender's exposure for that back balance is $3,000. If you are buying condos in Brickell or elsewhere in Florida, bank-owned units are where this formula shows up on the closing statement.
| State | When the lien exists | Priority over a first mortgage | Time limit to enforce |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nevada (NRS 116.3116) | When the assessment or fine is due; declaration perfects it | Up to 9 months of assessments plus capped costs | Lien extinguished unless enforcement starts within 3 years after the full amount is due |
| Colorado (C.R.S. 38-33.3-316) | When the assessment or fine is levied; declaration perfects it | 6 months of budget-based assessments | Lien extinguished unless proceedings start within 6 years after the full amount is due |
| Florida condos (718.116) | Relates back to the declaration; against first mortgages, from the recorded claim of lien | None; foreclosing lender owes the lesser of 12 months or 1 percent | Claim of lien not effective 1 year after recording unless an enforcement action is filed |
| Florida HOAs (720.3085) | Same relation-back rule as condos | None; same lesser-of formula | If the owner records a notice of contest, the association has 90 days to sue or the lien is void |
A lien by itself does not take a house. It is what makes foreclosure possible later, and whether that can happen depends on state thresholds, notice rules and, in some states, a court order, all covered in the HOA foreclosure guide.
Long before foreclosure, though, the lien does practical damage. A recorded lien clouds title, so a sale or refinance stalls until it is paid and released. The title company or closing agent will order a statement of what the owner owes, usually called an estoppel certificate or resale certificate, and our guide to what an estoppel is in real estate explains why that document binds the association to the number it states.
Buyers have a reason to care even if the seller owes the money. In Florida, a new owner is jointly and severally liable with the previous owner for unpaid assessments that came due up to the transfer of title, with a right to recover from the seller. That right is worth much less than a correct payoff at closing.
Most HOA liens come off the same way: the balance is paid and the association records a release. The steps that matter:
If you cannot pay the balance at once, ask about a plan before the account moves further. Colorado requires the association or debt holder to make a good-faith effort to set up a payment plan that lets the owner pay the deficiency in equal installments over at least 18 months, with exceptions. Texas and California plan rights are covered in the guide to unpaid HOA fees.
Liens get recorded on the wrong unit, for the wrong amount, for charges the state does not allow on a lien, or without the notice the statute requires. If you think yours is one of them:
A contested lien close to a sale or a foreclosure deadline is the point where an attorney earns the fee. Our guide to the HOA litigation lawyer covers what a case costs and how fee-shifting works.
An HOA lien does not last forever in every state, and the clock differs widely. Nevada extinguishes the lien unless the association records a notice of default or files suit within 3 years after the full amount becomes due. Colorado's deadline is 6 years. A Florida condominium claim of lien stops being effective one year after recording unless the association has filed an action to enforce it.
An expired lien is not always an erased debt. Nevada's statute says the lien section does not prohibit separate actions to recover the sums owed, and in many states an association can also sue the owner personally for the debt, on its own limitations clock. Ask an attorney in your state before treating an old balance as dead.
Statutes set the outer limits, but how quickly a particular association records liens, and how slowly it releases them, is something residents learn firsthand. You can ask them on Ask a Resident.
How an association uses its lien power shows up in owners' experience long before it shows up in a title report.
Listings show the property, but they rarely explain the lived reality around it. On Leevli, a mover can explore the city, review neighborhood and building information, and ask a verified resident the specific questions that remain unanswered. That human layer helps readers know what to investigate before signing a lease, making an offer, or choosing between two addresses.
It is a legal claim the homeowners association holds against your lot or unit to secure money you owe it, mainly regular dues and special assessments. Depending on your state, it can also secure interest, late fees, collection costs and some fines. The lien stays with the property, so it must be paid and released before a clean sale or refinance can close.
In some states it still exists. Nevada and Colorado treat the recorded declaration as perfecting the association's lien, so no separate claim of lien has to be filed. Other states, such as California, create the lien only when the association records a notice of delinquent assessment. Ask the association for a written statement of any balance before you buy or refinance.
Usually not in full. In most states an association lien ranks behind a first mortgage recorded before the assessment went delinquent. Super lien states are the exception: Colorado gives six months of assessments priority, and Nevada gives up to nine months plus capped costs. Florida instead caps what a foreclosing first mortgagee owes, at the lesser of 12 months of assessments or 1 percent of the original loan.
They are states whose statutes give a limited portion of an association's assessment lien priority over the first mortgage. The Community Associations Institute's public policy, adopted in 2013, says twenty-one states have some version of this priority. The amount, the costs included and the trigger differ by state, so read your own statute rather than relying on a national list.
Pay the itemized balance, then make sure the association records a release or satisfaction with the county. California requires the release within 21 days of payment, and Florida's statute entitles the payer to a satisfaction on payment in full. The common mistake is assuming payment clears title by itself; check the county records a few weeks after you pay.
It depends on the state and the association. California sets a 21-day deadline after payment, and the same deadline applies when a lien was recorded in error. Many states set no deadline at all, so put your request for a recorded release in writing at the time you pay and follow up with the management company if it does not appear in the county records.
It depends on where you live. Nevada and Colorado let the lien include fines, though Colorado bars foreclosure for them and Nevada allows a foreclosure sale over a fine only in narrow cases, such as a threat to health or safety. Several other states keep fines off the lien altogether. Check your state statute and the declaration before paying a disputed fine.
Ask in writing for the ledger and the provision behind each charge, and dispute any errors before the next deadline. In California, a lien recorded in error must be released within 21 calendar days, and the association must reverse related fees and pay dispute resolution costs. In a Florida HOA, recording a notice of contest gives the association 90 days to sue or lose the lien.
In many states, yes. Nevada extinguishes the lien unless enforcement begins within 3 years after the full amount is due, Colorado allows 6 years, and a Florida condominium claim of lien lapses one year after recording unless the association files suit. The underlying debt can survive the lien, so the association may still be able to sue you personally.
Yes, in most states, though the lien is only the first step. States set minimum balances, notice periods and sometimes court requirements before a sale, and some states bar foreclosure based only on fines. In a super lien state, a properly conducted association foreclosure can even wipe out the first mortgage, which is why lenders often pay delinquent dues themselves.
Editorial review: verify current federal and state law, insurance regulations, HOA and condominium statutes, and lender guidelines before relying on any single claim. This article is informational and does not constitute legal, financial, tax or insurance advice.
