Frequently Asked Questions 

It’s a non-governmental association made up of property owners or residents in a defined geographic area — a neighborhood, condo, cooperative, or shared-interest community. Some are voluntary, some are tied to where you live, and they can act as social clubs, advocacy groups, service organizations, or something close to a small local government. 

A Neighborhood Association is a group of residents or property owners who come together — usually voluntarily — to advocate for the neighborhood or organize community activities. Some are formally incorporated and recognized as 501(c)(4) nonprofits at the federal level. 

HOAs are mandatory — when you buy in, you’re a member, with rules tied to the deed. Neighborhood associations are voluntary or informal. HOAs usually own and maintain common property, such as roads and recreation areas, while neighborhood associations are mostly about advocacy and community events. The two can even coexist in the same area. 

Association management is a distinct field because associations operate differently from most organizations. Owners are the members, the elected board governs, and the association manager handles the day-to-day. That includes finance, HR, IT, vendors, and projects, plus things specific to associations — member retention, nonprofit accounting, and laws that apply only to associations. 

It’s a property management company hired by the board to handle the association's day-to-day operations — collecting assessments, coordinating vendors, preparing financial reports, managing day-to-day maintenance, resolving issues, and advising the board on legal and operational matters. Some manage hundreds of properties at once; others focus more closely on individual communities. 

A Managing Agent is the person or entity the board hires specifically to help enforce the documents and manage the association’s assets, funds, and interests. 

A Proxy is someone appointed to act or vote on behalf of another person at an association meeting. The word can also refer to the written document granting that authority. 

Quorum is the minimum number of owners required to hold an official association meeting. The actual number can vary quite a bit depending on what the association’s governing documents say. 

Recuse means temporarily removing an association or board member — or barring their participation — from a specific vote or proceeding, usually because of a conflict of interest. 

CAI stands for Community Associations Institute. It’s a national, chapter-based membership organization founded in 1973 that supports common-interest communities through education, advocacy at the state and federal level, and tools for board members and managers. More info at caionline.org or (888) 224-4321. 

CAI is national, but it operates through nearly 60 state and local chapters. When you join, you automatically get chapter membership wherever you choose. 

In a condo, each owner holds title to their unit and an interest in the shared common areas. In a co-op, the corporation owns the entire property, and residents own shares in the corporation, which give them the right to live in a specific unit. That difference shapes how each is governed, financed, and sold. 

They’re legally binding — once you buy a home in an HOA, you’ve agreed to follow them. If you don’t, there can be real consequences. Board members are responsible for enforcing them, and homeowners are responsible for complying with them. 

A homeowner can send a written request to the association for the specific documents they want to review. There are easier paths, too — most associations post the documents in the owner portal, and a neighbor may already have a copy. If you’re buying in, the current owner usually hands them over as part of the sale. 

CC&Rs are “Covenants, Conditions & Restrictions” — legal obligations a property seller writes into the deed that the buyer agrees to follow. They typically run with the land, so future owners are also bound. They can be as simple as keeping the property in good repair or as detailed as paint colors, holiday decorations, and parking. 

If you can’t get them another way, public records at the county recorder’s office are the place to go. CC&Rs have to be recorded with the county to be enforceable in the first place, so anything an HOA actually enforces should be searchable there. 

Bylaws are the set of internal rules that govern how a non-profit corporation — like an association Board — operates. They typically lay out officer and committee definitions, voting rights, meeting and notice procedures, and other operational details. 

No — unlike CC&Rs, bylaws aren’t required to be filed with the county recorder. An HOA can choose to include them in public records, but it isn’t required. 

The Declaration is sometimes called the master deed, the documents, or the Declaration of Covenants, Conditions & Restrictions. It outlines what owners owe the association — including dues and assessments — and what the association owes owners. It’s often described as the association’s constitution. The original signer (or whoever inherits that role from the developer) is the Declarant. 

An estoppel letter is used in a property transfer or conveyance before closing. It’s sent to the lender, HOA, condo association, municipality, or tenant to confirm what’s owed — mortgage payoff, assessments, taxes, or rent — so those amounts can be reflected accurately on the closing Settlement Statement. Some can be prorated, but all amounts owed must be included. 

An easement is an interest or right in real property that gives a landowner the ability to use someone else’s land for a specific purpose. An association might have an easement for slope maintenance, and utility companies often have easements for future maintenance or repair. 

It’s similar in spirit to a lien — a document, sometimes authorized under the CC&Rs, that can be recorded in the county property records to put prospective buyers on notice that a property violates the governing documents. 

A Common Area is any part of the improved real property that’s intended for shared use by the association’s members. 

An Ordinance is an individual law (or set of laws) adopted by local government at the county or city level. 

The person requesting them usually pays the cost — printing, staff time, document preparation. Most governing documents cap how much the HOA can charge for that. 

Dues are predetermined fees that HOAs, community associations, or property management groups collect for the general upkeep of the organization or neighborhood. They’re billed at regular intervals — monthly, quarterly, or annually — and are often referred to interchangeably with assessments. 

They come out of the association’s annual budget and get divided across owners using the formula in the governing documents — per unit or by square footage. The management company usually handles the billing schedule, payment processing, and follow-up if an account falls behind. 

It triggers the collections process set out in the governing documents and Florida statute. Things usually start with late notices and fees, escalate to legal involvement and a recorded lien against the property, and — if it isn’t resolved — can ultimately lead to foreclosure on the lien. 

Moore prepares budgets based on real history — the prior year’s actuals, current contracts, and what the property will need next — then works through long-range planning with the board so the association isn’t caught flat-footed when larger expenses surface. 

Reserve studies and funding plans determine what the association sets aside each year. That keeps things on the right side of Florida statute and ready for the major capital items down the road. 

Yes — boards have secure, online access to live financials, including daily bank reconciliations, monthly reports, AP and AR detail, and backup documentation. Anyone on the board can pull what they need, whenever they need it. 

Yes, vendor payments are part of the service. We run them through internal controls that separate duties — the manager approves the work, accounting issues the payment, and a daily bank-monitoring service flags anything unusual. Dual approvals add another layer of protection. 

We source qualified vendors, run a competitive bidding process, and help the board evaluate proposals on scope, quality, and cost. Contracts are reviewed for risk before they’re signed, and the work is monitored to ensure it actually matches the spec. 

It’s a defined workflow — late notices, escalating statements, attorney coordination when an account doesn’t respond, and lien filings handled in accordance with the governing documents and Florida statute. The board sees consistent application across owners, with as little day-to-day involvement as possible. 

Owners have access to a secure portal to retrieve documents, statements, work orders, and announcements. Boards get their own layer for financials and operational reports. Email, text alerts, and online voting are available where the association wants to use them. 

A 24/7 emergency line handles after-hours calls, with established vendor relationships for fast responses to water, electrical, structural, and life-safety issues. The on-call manager keeps the board looped in on anything that needs an immediate decision. 

Estoppels and resale packages are handled within Florida’s statutory timeframes, with the details closing agents and title companies need to close cleanly. Fees and statutory caps are spelled out clearly so owners and buyers aren’t guessing. 

Full management covers everything — operations, vendors, residents, communication, and financials. Accounting-only is limited to the financial side — billing, AP, statements, and reconciliations — for boards that want to handle the operational pieces themselves. 

If the community isn’t self-managed, the management company’s contact information is usually on the community’s website or on the management company’s website. Board members, owners, and communities seeking representation can contact a management company online or by phone. 

If your community has a Board, contact information, meeting times, minutes, and other details are usually available in the Board section of the website. 

Florida statute requires that written notice of board meetings be posted at least 48 hours in advance. Some meetings — budget meetings, special assessments, certain rules — require a 14-day mailed notice to owners. Annual membership meetings have their own longer notice requirements. 

Generally, no. Florida statute prohibits compensation for board service and restricts board members from being paid employees of the same association. The specifics differ slightly depending on whether you’re a condo, HOA, or co-op, and the governing documents should be checked. 

Yes. Florida statute gives owners the right to inspect and copy most official records. There are limited exceptions — personnel records, attorney-client privileged materials, certain personal data — but the association has to make records available within a set timeframe of a written request. 

The governing documents set these, and they vary a lot. Some communities have weight or breed restrictions on pets; some restrict short-term rentals or set minimum lease lengths; most condos require board approval before any structural alteration. The Declaration and rules are the right place to start. 

Voting rights can be suspended for an owner who is more than 90 days delinquent on money owed, provided proper notice is given. Beyond that, voting rights are protected by Florida statute and the governing documents, and can’t simply be taken away. 

Licensed CAMs are required to complete continuing education to maintain their licenses. Board members must complete certification within 90 days of being elected — either by reading the governing documents and signing an affidavit or by completing a state-approved 4-hour Board Certification course. 

Florida’s DBPR — specifically the Division of Florida Condominiums, Timeshares, and Mobile Homes — provides non-binding arbitration for certain condo and co-op disputes. That includes election challenges, recall disputes, and disputes over access to records. HOA disputes follow a different statutory path. 

Associations can enforce the governing documents through fines (capped by statute), suspension of common-area use rights, suspension of voting rights for monetary delinquencies, liens for unpaid obligations, and ultimately litigation. Fines require proper notice and a fining-committee process before they can be assessed. 

For condos and co-ops, complaints are filed with the DBPR’s Division of Florida Condominiums. Complaints about a licensed CAM are filed with DBPR’s Regulatory Council of Community Association Managers. HOA-related disputes generally move through pre-suit mediation rather than DBPR. 

DBPR reviews the complaint for jurisdiction, opens an investigation when it’s warranted, and can pursue actions ranging from a corrective notice to formal discipline. The complainant is notified of the outcome, and in some cases, mediation or arbitration may be ordered. 

Florida law imposes implied warranties on developers of new construction and certain common elements — covering structural integrity, fitness, and merchantability — with statutory time limits. The exact warranty period and scope depend on whether the property is a condo, HOA, or co-op. 

DBPR regulates Florida condos, co-ops, and timeshares through the Division of Florida Condominiums, Timeshares, and Mobile Homes — covering developer registration, association compliance, certain dispute arbitration, and CAM licensure. HOAs largely sit outside that Division’s jurisdiction.

Yes — the post-Surfside legislative cycle has reshaped Florida condo law significantly, particularly around mandatory milestone structural inspections, structural integrity reserve studies, and reserve funding requirements for safety-critical components. Boards should expect continued legislative activity in each Florida session. 

The Florida Legislature meets every year, and changes to Chapters 718 (condos), 719 (co-ops), and 720 (HOAs) are common in any given session. The Florida Administrative Code is updated on a rolling basis whenever agencies — DBPR included — adopt new rules.