Texas HOA fine rules

Written notice by certified mail is a precondition to enforcement: "Before a property owners' association may suspend an owner's right to use a common area, file a suit against an owner other than a suit to collect a regular or special assessment or foreclose under an association's lien, charge an owner for property damage, levy a fine for a violation of the restrictions or bylaws or rules of the association, or report any delinquency of an owner to a credit reporting service, the association or its agent must give written notice to the owner by certified mail" (Tex. Prop. Code § 209.006(a)). The contents of that notice are fixed by § 209.006(b), under which the notice "must: (1) describe the violation or property damage that is the basis for the suspension action, charge, or fine and state any amount due the association from the owner; (2) except as provided by Subsection (d), inform the owner that the owner: (A) is entitled to a reasonable period to cure the violation and avoid the fine or suspension if the violation is of a curable nature and does not pose a threat to public health or safety; (B) may request a hearing under Section 209.007 on or before the 30th day after the date the notice was mailed to the owner; and (C) may have special rights or relief related to the enforcement action under federal law, including the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (50 U.S.C. App. Section 501 et seq.), if the owner is serving on active military duty; (3) specify the date by which the owner must cure the violation if the violation is of a curable nature and does not pose a threat to public health or safety; and (4) be sent by verified mail to the owner at the owner's last known address as shown on the association records." The chapter defines the delivery term used in (b)(4): "'Verified mail' means any method of mailing for which evidence of mailing is provided by the United States Postal Service or a common carrier" (§ 209.002(13)). Two carve-outs limit the requirement. Subsections (a) and (b) "do not apply to a violation for which the owner has been previously given notice under this section and the opportunity to exercise any rights available under this section in the preceding six months" (§ 209.006(d)); and "[t]he notice and hearing provisions of Section 209.006 and this section do not apply if the association files a suit seeking a temporary restraining order or temporary injunctive relief or files a suit that includes foreclosure as a cause of action" (§ 209.007(d)).

Texas fixes no day count. The notice must "specify the date by which the owner must cure the violation if the violation is of a curable nature and does not pose a threat to public health or safety" (Tex. Prop. Code § 209.006(b)(3)), and "[t]he date specified in the notice under Subsection (b)(3) must provide a reasonable period to cure the violation if the violation is of a curable nature and does not pose a threat to public health or safety" (§ 209.006(c)). The notice must correspondingly inform the owner that the owner "is entitled to a reasonable period to cure the violation and avoid the fine or suspension if the violation is of a curable nature and does not pose a threat to public health or safety" (§ 209.006(b)(2)(A)). No fixed number of days appears anywhere in the section. The cure requirement falls away in two defined situations: "a violation is considered a threat to public health or safety if the violation could materially affect the physical health or safety of an ordinary resident" (§ 209.006(f)), and "a violation is considered uncurable if the violation has occurred but is not a continuous action or a condition capable of being remedied by affirmative action. For purposes of this subsection, the nonrepetition of a one-time violation or other violation that is not ongoing is not considered an adequate remedy" (§ 209.006(g)).

Tex. Prop. Code § 209.006(b)(2)(B) — the notice must inform the owner that the owner "may request a hearing under Section 209.007 on or before the 30th day after the date the notice was mailed to the owner." Under § 209.007(a), "[e]xcept as provided by Subsection (d) and only if the owner is entitled to an opportunity to cure the violation, the owner has the right to submit a written request for a hearing to discuss and verify facts and resolve the matter in issue before the board" — the hearing is before the board itself, not a committee. Under § 209.007(c), "[t]he association shall hold a hearing under this section not later than the 30th day after the date the board receives the owner's request for a hearing and shall notify the owner of the date, time, and place of the hearing not later than the 10th day before the date of the hearing. The board or the owner may request a postponement, and, if requested, a postponement shall be granted for a period of not more than 10 days." The former § 209.007(b), which permitted the hearing to be held before a board-appointed committee, was repealed by Acts 2021, 87th Leg., R.S., Ch. 951 (S.B. 1588), Sec. 22(2), eff. September 1, 2021.

Texas sets no statutory dollar cap on a property owners' association fine; Chapter 209 states no maximum fine amount and no per-day or aggregate limit. What the chapter imposes instead, for fines that became due on or after January 1, 2024, is a published fine-schedule discipline: "A property owners' association board shall adopt an enforcement policy regarding the levying of fines by the property owners' association. The policy must include: (1) general categories of restrictive covenants for which the association may assess fines; (2) a schedule of fines for each category of violation; and (3) information regarding hearings described by Section 209.007" (Tex. Prop. Code § 209.0061(b)). The published schedule is not itself a ceiling — the policy "may reserve the board's authority to levy a fine from the schedule of fines that varies on a case-by-case basis" (§ 209.0061(c)). The requirement "does not apply to a property owners' association that is not authorized by the association's dedicatory instrument to levy a fine" (§ 209.0061(a)), and § 209.0061(d) requires the association to provide the policy to owners by posting it on an association Internet website accessible to members or by annually sending it by hand delivery, first class mail or e-mail, and to make it available on any publicly accessible association Internet website. Section 209.0061 was added by Acts 2023, 88th Leg., R.S., Ch. 666 (H.B. 614), Sec. 1, eff. January 1, 2024. Separately, a timely cure removes the fine entirely: "[i]f the owner cures the violation before the expiration of the period for cure described by Subsection (c), a fine may not be assessed for the violation" (§ 209.006(e)).

Association books and records must be open to examination by an owner; the request must be in writing and sent by certified mail (Tex. Prop. Code § 209.005(c), (e)).