California HOA Fine Notice Response

Introduction

Key Things to Know

1. 1

   A California HOA fine notice response is a letter from the member to the board, sent after a Section 5855 notice arrives and before the meeting it announces. It answers the alleged violation, documents any cure, asks for executive session if you want privacy, and asks for a copy of the penalty schedule. It is not a hearing request in the usual sense, because the Davis-Stirling Act already obliges the board to hold the meeting and invite you.

2. 2

   Count from the notice the board sends, not from a deadline of your own. Section 5855(a) requires written notice by personal delivery or individual delivery at least 10 days before the meeting where discipline will be considered. Nothing in that section puts a request window on the owner. If you received less than 10 days' notice, or the notice was posted rather than delivered to you, say so in your response, because Section 5855(g) provides that discipline is not effective unless the board fulfills the requirements of the section.

3. 3

   Check the notice for its four required items: the date, time and place of the meeting; the nature of the alleged violation; a statement that you have a right to attend; and a statement that you may address the board. Section 5855(b) sets those as a minimum. The same subdivision says the board shall meet in executive session if you request it, which keeps the discussion of your account and your household out of the open meeting.

4. 4

   Curing before the meeting is now a complete answer. Since AB 130, Section 5855(c) says the board shall not impose discipline if you cure the violation prior to the meeting, or if the cure would take longer than the time between notice and meeting and you provide a financial commitment to cure. Date-stamped photographs, a paid invoice or a signed contract with a completion date are the evidence. Put them in the letter rather than waiting to produce them at the table.

5. 5

   The penalty ceiling is low and specific. Section 5850(c) limits a monetary penalty to the lesser of the amount in the schedule in effect at the time of the violation or $100 per violation. Section 5850(d) lets the board go above $100 only if the violation may result in an adverse health or safety impact on the common area or another member's property, and only after a written finding in a board meeting open to the members. Section 5850(e) forbids any late charge or interest on a penalty.

6. 6

   A fine cannot cost you the house through foreclosure. Section 5725(b) provides that a monetary penalty imposed as a disciplinary measure may not be characterized or treated in the governing documents as an assessment that may become a lien enforceable by sale. A charge to reimburse repair of common-area damage is treated differently under Section 5725(a), so read which of the two the notice describes before you respond.

7. 7

   After the meeting, the board has 14 days under Section 5855(f) to send its decision in writing. If you and the board do not agree, Section 5855(d) gives you the opportunity to request internal dispute resolution under Section 5910, where the association must participate and may not charge you a fee. Before either side files an enforcement action in superior court, Section 5930 requires an attempt at alternative dispute resolution, started by a Request for Resolution that the other party has 30 days to accept.

California Requirements for HOA Fine Notice Response

• The Section 5855 Notice, With the Delivery Date and the Meeting Date

  Record the day the notice reached you, how it was delivered, and the meeting date it names. Civil Code Section 5855(a) requires written notice by personal delivery or individual delivery under Section 4040 at least 10 days before the meeting where the board will consider discipline. Fewer than 10 days, or a notice that was only posted, is worth stating in your response.

• The Four Items the Notice Must Contain

  Section 5855(b) requires, at a minimum, the date, time and place of the meeting, the nature of the alleged violation, a statement that you have a right to attend, and a statement that you may address the board. Check each one. Section 5855(g) provides that discipline is not effective against a member unless the board fulfills the section's requirements.

• Your Request for Executive Session

  Section 5855(b) says the board shall meet in executive session if requested by the member. Make the request in writing in your response so it is on record before the meeting agenda is prepared. It keeps the discussion of your violation out of the open meeting.

• Proof of Cure, or a Financial Commitment to Cure

  Section 5855(c) bars discipline if you cure before the meeting, or if the cure would take longer than the time between notice and meeting and you provide a financial commitment to cure. Attach date-stamped photographs after the work, or a signed contract, paid deposit or dated schedule with a completion date.

• The Penalty Schedule in Effect on the Date of the Violation

  Section 5850(f) entitles you to a copy of the most recently distributed schedule of monetary penalties and its supplements on request. Section 5850(c) caps the penalty at the lesser of the scheduled amount in effect at the time of the violation or $100 per violation, and Section 5850(e) forbids a late charge or interest on it.

• The Health or Safety Finding, if the Penalty Exceeds $100

  A penalty above $100 per violation is allowed only under Section 5850(d): the violation may result in an adverse health or safety impact on the common area or another member's property, and the board made a written finding specifying that impact in a board meeting open to the members before imposing it. Ask for the minutes recording the finding.

• Whether the Charge Is a Penalty or a Repair Reimbursement

  Section 5725(b) bars a disciplinary penalty from being treated as an assessment that may become a lien enforceable by sale. Section 5725(a) treats a charge to reimburse repair of common-area damage caused by you, a guest or a tenant differently, and it may become such a lien if the governing documents authorize it. Identify which one the notice describes.

• The Written Decision and Your Next Step

  Section 5855(f) requires the board to send its decision in writing within 14 days following the action. If you and the board disagree, Section 5855(d) lets you request internal dispute resolution under Section 5910, in writing and without a fee. Section 5930 requires an attempt at alternative dispute resolution before certain enforcement actions in superior court, and Section 5935(c) gives 30 days to accept a Request for Resolution.