JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Imagine opening your mailbox to find out you have a lien on your house, and the entity issuing it is not the bank, but your home owner's association.
THE QUESTION
Can an HOA in Florida put a lien on your home?
SOURCES
Chapter 720 of the Florida state statutes
Rock Solid Law and Title Associate Attorney Walt Unfricht
THE ANSWER
Yes, HOAs can not only issue a lien, but they even have the power to foreclose on a home.
WHAT WE FOUND
“They could absolutely foreclose on your home for owing them a thousand dollars," said Unfricht. "They could foreclose on a multi-million dollar home for something like that.”
Unfricht says HOA agreements have grace periods for a homeowner to pay their late dues or violation fines.
He says those are typically anywhere from 10 days to a month depending on their individual HOA agreement.
After that, the payment is considered delinquent, and the HOA has to give the homeowner 30 days to pay the amount and any late fees.
“A lot of times, this is referred to as free notice, or free notice period, but even at that point, they can’t place a lien on the property yet," said Unfricht.
After the initial grace period and free notice period, state law requires the HOA to give the homeowner a 45 day notice they intend to put a lien on the property.
“You’re really looking at at least two months the homeowner has to remediate any of those issues before that lien is in place," said Unfricht.
Unfricht says the HOA can then file to foreclose on the home for lien amount if it’s over $1000.
“They can lump in any attorneys’ fees as well, and if you’ve dealt with any of us attorneys, then you know that can get expensive fairly quickly," said Unfricht. "So, reaching that $1000 threshold doesn’t take a whole lot.”
Unfricht says the foreclosure proceedings vary, but could take several months to a year, giving the homeowner more time to pay the debt before the home is foreclosed on.
If a homeowner doesn’t agree to what the HOA is charging, Unfricht’s advice is to pay it anyway if they can, then bring up the issue to the HOA for a credit or reimbursement when you’re not under threat of a lien or foreclosure.
Georgia HOAs also have the ability to put a lien on your home, but can only foreclose if the amount due is over $2000.