By Nadia Lathan, CalMatters
An ornate balcony or quirky storage door could be in attain for extra Californians as householders associations throughout the state are being pressured to control with out the facility of exorbitant charges to implement rules.
Tens of millions of California residents may get a break in the event that they violate their householders affiliation guidelines resulting from a brand new regulation that caps fines at $100, down from tons of to 1000’s of {dollars}. Amid an affordability disaster, lawmakers and teams that signify householders have characterised the cap, which took impact July 1, as defending the pocketbooks of middle- and low-income residents. Nonetheless, HOA boards fear the brand new restriction will restrict their authority to implement guidelines.
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Attorneys for householders and HOAs say it is going to eliminate excessive instances the place board members impose unfair and egregious fines to retaliate towards householders they dislike.
“I have seen the worst of the worst and HOAs fine thousands of dollars and foreclose on those homes,” mentioned Edward Susolik, CEO and president of Callahan & Blaine, who represents each householders and HOAs. “Generally speaking, that seems reasonable to bring that down because that is one of the biggest issues living in California, because HOAs have very broad powers to enforce their rules.”
The cap on HOA fines was quietly inserted into unrelated main housing reform laws, Meeting Invoice 130, that exempts most new housing from environmental overview and was led by Democratic Sen. Scott Wiener of San Francisco. The language of a separate invoice by Democratic Sen. Aisha Wahab of Fremont, Senate Invoice 681, capping the HOA charge was included within the housing reform invoice simply days earlier than the governor signed it into regulation, drawing little consideration.
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“We were in active negotiations with Sen. Wahab’s staff and actually provided amendments to the pro tem’s office as well. What we were promoting was greater transparency and notice when fines take place at associations and avoiding a cap at all,” mentioned Louis Brown, an lawyer who represents HOAs with the Neighborhood Associations Institute. “We were very surprised when the language showed up in AB 130.”
HOAs are proliferating nationwide
HOAs are a virtually inescapable actuality for residence patrons. Their rise continues to skyrocket as 67% of all new single-family properties inbuilt 2024 nationwide had been in communities with HOAs, in accordance with information from the U.S. Census Bureau, up from 46% in 2009. In California, greater than 50,000 HOAs govern round 65% of the state’s householders, in accordance with the California Affiliation of Owners Associations. California residents paid a median of $278 in month-to-month charges –– among the many steepest within the nation, in accordance with information from the Census Bureau.
They create and implement guidelines for residence, residence and condominium house owners and are managed by the residents themselves, who elect and may recall board members. HOAs have confronted the ire and frustration of some Californians for many years, and lawmakers have proposed laws in search of extra transparency on governing boards.
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Most neighborhood disputes are resolved via informal dialog and finish cordially and not using a advantageous needing to be imposed, in accordance with David Zepponi, chief government of the Government Council of Owners and a lobbyist for HOA boards. In instances that require extra formality, the board should maintain a listening to the place residents can clarify themselves earlier than a advantageous is levied. However there are excessive situations the place conditions escalate and devolve into costly disputes between residents.
The brand new state regulation bans HOAs from charging late charges or curiosity along with the $100 cap, excluding guidelines that have an effect on public well being or security. It additionally provides residents extra leeway to absolve charges after they’ve been charged.
Lawmakers mentioned it’s a step towards addressing exorbitant charges prevalent in some HOAs.
A invoice to cap HOA charges by state Sen. Aisha Wahab was quietly tucked into a significant housing proposal this spring, with out public dialogue. Photograph by Fred Greaves for CalMatters
‘They’re responsible till the home-owner proves their innocence’
Some householders additionally see the brand new restrictions as a essential examine on boards that misuse their energy over superfluous violations, comparable to portray a house a daring colour.
“Our concern about violation fines in the past are that there has been no procedure for determining if a violation has occurred,” mentioned Marjorie Murray, an advocate for householders with the Heart for California Home-owner Affiliation Regulation. “The board tells the homeowner they’re guilty until the homeowner proves their innocence.”
Many board members are terrified of the implications of their diminished energy and fear the way it will have an effect on their capacity to implement neighborhood guidelines, Zepponi mentioned.
“You don’t have the leverage anymore to get people to change bad behavior,” Zepponi mentioned. A neighbor who leaves their RV parked on the driveway in violation of affiliation guidelines would possibly simply eat the $100 moderately than pay for RV storage that’s dearer, he mentioned.
“It takes a tool away from a board to make behavioral changes that are needed,” he mentioned.
Board members have additionally argued that the decrease advantageous may price the whole neighborhood extra if a neighbor continues to interrupt the foundations and refuses to pay their charges, forcing boards to pursue the one out there various — pricey litigation — extra often.
The change is just not anticipated to have an effect on HOAs financially, as fines should not a big quantity of their income stream, in accordance with Neighborhood Associations Institute lawyer Louis Brown.
“The days of homeowners associations telling you that your garage door needs to be painted might be over,” mentioned Susolik, the lawyer who has represented householders and HOA boards. “That’s probably a good thing.”
Initially Printed: October 2, 2025 at 10:42 AM PDT
