HOA glossary
The words that fill governing documents, board agendas, and closing paperwork, defined in plain English. Each entry explains what the term means, how it usually works in practice, and where to read more. State law and your own documents vary, so treat these as a starting point, not legal advice.
- CC&Rs — CC&Rs are the recorded rules that bind every lot in an HOA: what owners may build, how dues are set, and how the association enforces it all.
- Bylaws — HOA bylaws set out how the association runs itself: how directors are elected, how meetings are called, what counts as quorum, and who holds which office.
- Special assessment — A special assessment is a one-time charge an HOA levies on every owner to pay for something the budget and reserves cannot cover, like a new roof.
- Reserve fund — An HOA reserve fund is money set aside each year to repair or replace big shared components — roofs, roads, pools — so owners are not hit with a sudden bill.
- Reserve study — A reserve study inventories an HOA’s shared components, estimates when each needs replacing and what it will cost, and sets a yearly savings plan.
- HOA lien — An HOA lien is a legal claim the association records against a home for unpaid assessments, so the debt must be settled before the home is sold or refinanced.
- Assessments (HOA dues) — Assessments, or HOA dues, are the recurring charges every owner pays to fund the association’s budget: upkeep, insurance, utilities, and reserves.
- Quorum — Quorum is the minimum number of owners or directors who must be present, in person or by proxy, before an HOA meeting can legally conduct business.
- Proxy voting — A proxy lets an HOA owner who cannot attend a meeting authorize someone else to vote for them, and usually counts toward quorum.
- Architectural review committee — An architectural review committee approves or denies owners’ exterior changes — fences, paint, additions — against the community’s design standards.
- Common area — Common areas are the parts of an HOA owned or maintained for everyone — pools, clubhouses, roads, landscaping — and paid for through assessments.
- Fine schedule — An HOA fine schedule is the board-adopted list of fine amounts for each type of violation, and how fines escalate if the violation continues.
- Estoppel certificate — An estoppel certificate is the HOA’s official statement, issued when a home sells, of what the seller owes — so the buyer is not left with unpaid dues.
- Management certificate — In Texas, a management certificate is the public filing that tells owners and buyers who runs an HOA and where to get its records and resale documents.
- Declarant — The declarant is the developer who created the HOA and recorded its CC&Rs, and who usually controls the board until control turns over to the owners.
- Covenant enforcement — Covenant enforcement is how an HOA makes owners follow the CC&Rs and rules: notices, cure periods, hearings, fines, and as a last resort, legal action.
- Board of directors — The HOA board of directors is the group of owners elected to run the association, with a fiduciary duty to act in the community’s best interest.
- Annual meeting — The HOA annual meeting is the yearly meeting of all owners, where directors are elected and the board reports on the budget and the year ahead.
- Audit and financial review — An HOA audit or financial review is an outside CPA’s check of the association’s books. An audit goes deepest; a review or compilation costs less.
- Transfer fee — An HOA transfer fee is a charge collected when a home sells, to cover updating the owner records or to add to the reserves. State laws often limit it.