Oregon HOA Laws: What Homeowners Need to Know in 2026

Oregon subdivision HOAs fall under the Oregon Planned Community Act (ORS 94.550 to 94.783); condominiums have their own Oregon Condominium Act, ORS chapter 100. How much of the planned-community law binds you turns on your community’s Class and creation date, before or after 2002. Assessment liens rank behind a recorded first mortgage.

Class I, II or III: how ORS 94.570 and 94.572 sort communities

A “planned community” is a subdivision under ORS 92.010 to 92.192 whose owners collectively pay for maintenance, operation, insurance or other expenses of property in it, or for exterior maintenance of individually owned property (ORS 94.550(21)(a)). Four things are excluded: a condominium under ORS chapter 100; an exclusively commercial or industrial subdivision; a timeshare plan; and a development established on or after January 1, 2024, in which every residential unit either carries an affordability restriction or is owned by a public benefit or religious nonprofit corporation.

The Act then sorts communities by size and budget (ORS 94.550(3)–(5)). Class I has at least 13 lots (or a declarant right to exceed 12) and an estimated annual assessment, reserves included, above $10,000 for all lots or $100 per lot. Class II is not Class I, has at least five lots and an estimated annual assessment above $1,000 for all lots. Everything else is Class III. For communities created before 2002 the estimate is the cost of existing obligations as of January 1, 2002.

A subdivision with preliminary plat approval before July 1, 1982, that fits the planned-community definition and is not exempted by ORS 94.570 must follow ORS 94.640(1), (3), (4) and (8), 94.644 and 94.670 once an owner asks in writing (ORS 94.673). Associations are chapter 65 nonprofit corporations, and where chapter 65 conflicts with the Act, the Act wins (ORS 94.625, 94.770(4)).

foreclosure-suit">Liens, fines and the foreclosure suit

Under ORS 94.709 the lien for unpaid assessments includes interest, late charges, attorney fees and costs, and outranks the homestead exemption and every other lien except tax and assessment liens and a first mortgage or trust deed of record. Before any foreclosure suit can proceed, the association must record a verified notice of claim of lien in the county deed records. The suit then follows, as nearly as possible, the procedure for liens under ORS 87.010, and the lien can be kept alive up to six years from the date the assessment was due.

Fines must be “reasonable,” may be levied only after written notice and an opportunity to be heard, and must rest on a schedule in the declaration or bylaws, or on a board resolution, delivered or mailed to each lot (ORS 94.630(1)(n)). Unless the documents say otherwise, fines are enforceable as assessments, lien included (ORS 94.709(5)). Whoever wins a collection or enforcement suit recovers reasonable attorney fees (ORS 94.719).

Board meetings, owner meetings and records

Owners may attend every board meeting except an executive session, which is allowed only to consult a lawyer or to take up personnel matters, third-party contract negotiations or unpaid-assessment collection; nothing decided there takes effect until the board votes on it in open session (ORS 94.644(2)). Where most lots are principal residences, non-emergency board meetings need notice posted on the property at least three days ahead or given another reasonably effective way (ORS 94.644(6)).

Owners meet at least once a calendar year, with notice 10 to 50 days before (ORS 94.650). The board adopts a budget annually and sends owners a summary within 30 days (ORS 94.645), plus an annual financial statement within 90 days after the fiscal year ends (ORS 94.670(4)). Where all of ORS 94.595 applies (not Class II communities created since 2002, and not older communities that entered only through ORS 94.572), the board must conduct or update a reserve study every year; in a subdivision recorded before October 23, 1999, whose declaration or bylaws require a reserve account, that duty starts only after a board resolution or a petition signed by a majority of owners (ORS 94.595(5)).

Records must be “reasonably available” to an owner acting in good faith for a proper purpose, apart from the seven withholding categories in ORS 94.670(9)(b). The declaration, bylaws, recorded plat (if feasible), rules, latest financial statement, operating budget, reserve study and architectural guidelines must be furnished within 10 business days of a written request (ORS 94.670(10)–(11)).

Buying a lot: the statement of unpaid assessments

The Act’s table of sections, 94.550 through 94.785, has no resale-certificate section. In a voluntary sale the buyer becomes jointly liable with the seller for the seller’s unpaid assessments, unless the owner or agent obtains the board’s written statement of unpaid assessments, in which case the buyer is not liable for anything left off it (ORS 94.712(2)). An owner can also demand, within 10 business days, a statement of amounts due and the interest and late-charge rates, unless the association has already filed suit against that owner and the case is pending (ORS 94.670(8)).

Limits Oregon places on association rules

• Fire-hardened materials. Since June 5, 2026 (Oregon Laws 2026, chapter 86, SB 1551), a planned community’s documents cannot block swapping non-fire-hardened materials for fire-hardened ones, or use design limits that make fire-hardened materials practically unusable or unreasonably costly. An application is deemed approved unless a reasoned, non-arbitrary written denial or modification request arrives within 90 days.
• Electric vehicle chargers. The association must approve a complete application within 60 days unless it reasonably asks for more information. Installation must be done by at least a licensed journeyman electrician (ORS 94.762).
• Solar panels. A declaration or bylaw ban is void, but the association may set reasonable size, placement and aesthetic rules (ORS 94.778). This section is not on the ORS 94.572 list.

Mediation offer and the one-year clock

Before suing, either side must offer in writing a qualifying county dispute resolution program; if the offer is not accepted within 10 days, suit may be filed, and skipping the offer can bring a 30-day stay. The offer is not required where delay would cause irreparable harm or for suits to collect assessments other than fines (ORS 94.630(4)). A suit under ORS 94.780 over a violation of the Act must be started within one year after the violation is discovered or identified.

Oregon HOA questions

Can the board close our pool without a vote?

Not permanently. Closing or removing a swimming pool, spa or recreation or community building other than temporarily needs approval from a majority of owners voting at a meeting or by written ballot (ORS 94.630(1)(k)).

Does the Act cover my condo?

No. Condominiums are carved out of the definition; use ORS 100.450 (lien) and 100.480 (records) instead.

Can I be foreclosed on over fines?

Unless your declaration or bylaws say otherwise, fines are enforceable as assessments, so the same lien and suit can reach them (ORS 94.709(5)).

Statute text: ORS chapter 94 and ORS chapter 100. See also HOA basics, selling in an HOA, Oregon closing costs, Oregon homeowners insurance, Oregon hub, buying guide and selling guide.