Association Remedies for Unpaid Assessments

Unpaid assessments are the most common collection problem a Florida condominium or homeowners’ association faces, and the Legislature has given associations a layered set of remedies to deal with them: interest and late fees, a statutory lien, foreclosure of that lien, a rent demand on tenants, and suspension of use and voting rights. This post updates our original 2014 note on Fla. Stat. § 718.116 for the 2026 Florida Statutes and adds the parallel homeowners’ association remedies under Chapter 720.

Who Is Liable for Unpaid Assessments

Under § 718.116(1) (condominiums) and § 720.3085(2) (HOAs), the owner is liable for all assessments that come due while he or she holds title, and a new owner is jointly and severally liable with the prior owner for unpaid assessments that accrued before the transfer. A first mortgagee that takes title by foreclosure gets a safe harbor: its liability is capped at the lesser of twelve months of unpaid assessments or one percent of the original mortgage debt, but only if the association was joined as a defendant in the foreclosure. Cooperative associations have a nearly identical framework in § 719.108.

Interest, Late Fees, and Application of Payments

Both Acts allow interest at the rate stated in the governing documents; if the documents are silent, unpaid assessments bear interest at 18 percent per year. The association may also charge an administrative late fee of up to the greater of $25 or five percent of each delinquent installment. § 718.116(3); § 720.3085(3). The order of application matters when an owner tenders a partial payment: the statute applies money first to accrued interest, then to the late fee, then to costs and reasonable attorney’s fees incurred in collection, and only then to the delinquent assessment itself, regardless of any restrictive endorsement the owner writes on the check.

The Statutory Lien and the 45-Day Notice Sequence

The association’s lien for unpaid assessments relates back to the recording of the original declaration, but it must be perfected by recording a claim of lien that identifies the unit or parcel, the record owner, the association’s name and address, the amount due, and the due date. Before recording, the association must run the statutory notice sequence, which the Legislature lengthened from 30 to 45 days in 2021.

First comes a notice of late assessment giving the owner 30 days to pay before any attorney’s fees may be charged; an association that skips this step forfeits its fees. § 718.121(5); § 720.3085(3)(d). Next comes the notice of intent to record a claim of lien, sent by certified mail and first-class mail to the owner’s last address of record (and to the unit or parcel address if different), giving the owner 45 days to pay in full. § 718.121(6); § 720.3085(4).

A condominium claim of lien expires one year after recording unless an enforcement action is filed within that year. § 718.116(5)(b). On the HOA side, an owner can force the issue by recording a notice of contest of lien, after which the association has 90 days to sue or the lien is void. § 720.3085(1)(b). Either way, calendar the deadline the day the lien is recorded.

Foreclosing the Lien for Unpaid Assessments

The lien is foreclosed in the same manner as a mortgage, and the association may recover its reasonable attorney’s fees and costs. It may also sue for a money judgment against the owner without waiving the lien. § 718.116(6)(a); § 720.3085(1)(c).

A second 45-day notice is required before an association can foreclose for unpaid assessments: no foreclosure judgment may be entered on a condominium lien until at least 45 days after the association gives the owner written notice, by certified mail or personal delivery, of its intent to foreclose. § 718.116(6)(b). An HOA likewise may not foreclose until 45 days after the owner is given notice of intent to foreclose. § 720.3085(5). HOA owners have one further tool: a “qualifying offer” to pay the full amount, which stays the foreclosure for up to 60 days. § 720.3085(6).

Rent Demand: Collecting Unpaid Assessments From the Tenant

Since 2010 the Condominium Act has allowed an association to go around a delinquent owner and collect directly from the tenant. If a unit is occupied by a tenant and the owner is delinquent in any monetary obligation, the association may make a written demand that the tenant pay the subsequent rental payments to the association and “continue to make such payments until all monetary obligations of the unit owner related to the unit have been paid in full to the association.” § 718.116(11)(a). The identical remedy exists for HOAs in § 720.3085(8) and for cooperatives in § 719.108(10).

The statute protects a cooperating tenant: payment to the association gives the tenant complete immunity from any claim by the landlord for the amounts timely paid, and the landlord must credit those payments against the rent. A tenant who has already paid the owner for the current period must provide written proof within 14 days and then begin paying the association the following period.

A tenant who ignores the demand can be evicted by the association under Chapter 83, just as a landlord would. The association must also mail a copy of the demand to the owner. This is commonly known as rent interception, and it remains the fastest way to stop an investor-owner from pocketing the rent while shorting the association.

Suspension of Use and Voting Rights

Once an owner is more than 90 days delinquent on any fee, fine, or other monetary obligation, the board may suspend the owner’s, and the tenant’s or guest’s, right to use the common elements and association property until the account is paid in full. § 718.303(4); § 720.305(3). The suspension cannot reach the essentials: a condominium may not cut off limited common elements serving the unit, the common elements needed to reach it, utility service, parking, or elevators, and an HOA may not block pedestrian or vehicular access to the parcel.

Voting rights may be suspended for unpaid assessments as well; for condominiums the delinquency must exceed $1,000 and 90 days, with proof of the debt sent 30 days before the suspension takes effect and a warning at least 90 days before any election. § 718.303(5). Every suspension must be approved at a properly noticed board meeting and followed by written notice to the owner.

Fines are a separate remedy for covenant violations, not a collection tool, and the distinction matters: a condominium fine may never become a lien, § 718.303(3), while an HOA fine of $1,000 or more may. § 720.305(2). Both require a hearing before an independent committee of at least three non-officer, non-director members before the fine is enforceable, so fines should never be confused with the remedies for unpaid assessments discussed above.

Practice Points for Florida Associations

Three habits prevent most collection failures. First, treat the notice sequence as jurisdictional: a defective late-assessment notice forfeits attorney’s fees, and a defective intent-to-lien or intent-to-foreclose notice invites a motion to dismiss. Send by the method the statute specifies, to every address it specifies, and keep proof of mailing.

Second, deploy the rent demand early on any investor-owned unit; it costs a letter and often resolves the delinquency before a lien is needed. Third, before foreclosing, confirm the priority of any first mortgage and the value of the equity above it, because foreclosing a junior lien into a property with no equity produces a deed and an unpaid mortgage, not money. Cox Law, PLLC represents condominium and homeowners’ associations, and owners, in assessment collection and defense throughout the Tampa Bay area.

This article is provided for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice or create an attorney-client relationship. Statutory citations are to the 2026 Florida Statutes as published by the Florida Legislature; consult counsel regarding your specific situation.