An owner sent our HOA a demand for mediation. How should the board respond?

By OurHOA · General information · Revised November 8, 2026

How an HOA board answers an owner's mediation demand: Florida's 20-day presuit deadline, choosing a mediator, who attends, costs and writing up a settlement.

Part of the HOA board handbook: running the board.

The short answer

Find the mailing date first. If the letter is a Florida statutory offer to participate in presuit mediation, the board has 20 days from that date to answer in writing, by certified mail plus first-class mail, naming a mediator from the owner's list and agreeing to pay half the fee. Outside that statute, mediation is usually voluntary unless your declaration says otherwise. Say yes more often than not. A session costs a few hours of a mediator's time, and nothing binds the board until it signs. Our guide on what to do when an owner threatens to sue covers the wider response, including the records hold. Rules vary by state and by your governing documents, and this is education, not legal advice. Have the association's attorney review the response before it goes out.

Work out what kind of demand you are holding

Florida homeowners' associations. Section 720.311(2)(a) requires a presuit mediation demand before either side sues over use of or changes to a parcel or the common areas, other covenant enforcement, amendments to the association documents, board and committee meetings, membership meetings other than elections, and access to official records. It excludes collection of assessments, fines and other money, and actions to enforce an earlier mediation settlement. Election and recall disputes go to state arbitration or to court. If an owner sends the form over something outside that list, ask the attorney before deciding not to answer. Florida condominiums. Under section 718.1255(4) and (5), a party to a covered dispute either petitions the state division for nonbinding arbitration, with a $50 filing fee, or submits it to presuit mediation. Texas. Property Code chapter 209 has no general presuit step. Section 209.007(e) says an owner or association may use alternative dispute resolution, and section 209.007(d) lets a party move to compel mediation once a suit is filed over a matter covered by the notice and hearing rules. A mediation request does not replace a hearing request. If the owner asked for a hearing under 209.007(a), the board still holds it within 30 days of receiving the request. Colorado. Under C.R.S. 38-33.3-124(2), a dispute may go to mediation by agreement, and either side may end the process without prejudice. Sections 124(1)(b) and 209.5(1)(b)(VIII) require a written policy for owner disputes, so pull yours and follow it. Everywhere, read the dispute clause in your declaration and bylaws. It may add a mandatory step or send certain disputes to arbitration.

A sample calendar for a Florida demand

The 20 days run from the date of mailing, not the day a director opened the envelope. Keep the envelope. - Day 0: the owner mails the demand. - Within 2 days of arrival: the secretary logs the deadline and sends the letter to every director and the attorney. Report it to the insurance agent that week. Our guide on buying directors and officers insurance explains why late notice hurts. - Next few days: the board meets with its attorney. Section 720.303(2)(a) lets a meeting with the attorney about proposed or pending litigation stay closed when the discussion is privileged. - By day 10: call the listed mediators. - By day 15: mail the response, certified, return receipt requested, plus first-class, to the address on the demand. - By day 90 after the offer: hold the session. Otherwise the statute deems an impasse unless both sides agree to extend. Here is what failing to act costs. Under section 720.311(2)(b), each of these counts as refusing to participate: not responding, not agreeing on a mediator, not paying fees by the mediator's deadline, and not appearing without the mediator's approval. The other side may then go to court and seek the costs and fees tied to the mediation. A party who refuses or fails to take part in the entire process also cannot recover attorney fees and costs in later litigation over the dispute. For an association counting on the prevailing party rule in section 720.305(1), that is the expensive part.

Wording the board can adapt

Florida response, sent with the signed agreement block from the statutory form: "The Board of Directors of [Association] received your Statutory Offer to Participate in Presuit Mediation mailed on [date]. The association agrees to participate and selects [mediator name] from your list. The association agrees to pay or prepay one-half of the mediator's fees and to forward any advance deposit the mediator requires. Please direct scheduling to [name, phone, email]." Texas or Colorado reply to a voluntary request: "The board is willing to mediate the dispute about [subject]. We propose choosing a neutral mediator by [date], sharing the fee equally, and meeting by [date]. Nothing is binding unless both parties sign a written agreement. This offer does not extend any deadline or waive any right of the association." Motion: "Moved that the board designates [director] as the association's representative at mediation of the dispute concerning [lot or unit number], with settlement authority as discussed with counsel, and authorizes payment of the association's half of the mediator's fee from [budget line]."

Picking the mediator and budgeting for it

A Florida demand lists five mediators with contact details and hourly rates, and the board may select any of them. Section 720.311(2)(d) requires a certified circuit court civil mediator. Have the attorney or one director call the names and ask three things. Has the mediator worked for the owner, the owner's lawyer or a director? What deposit is due, and when? How much association work has the mediator done? Do not simply reject the list, because failing to agree on a mediator counts as refusal. If none will do, propose another certified mediator in writing well before day 20 and get the owner's written agreement, or pick the least bad name. The parties split the cost equally unless they agree otherwise, and the statutory form estimates three to four hours for an average case. If a mediator quotes $300 an hour, an example and not a market rate, the association's half is $450 to $600, plus its own attorney's time. In Texas, chapter 152 of the Civil Practice and Remedies Code lets a county create an alternative dispute resolution system, so ask whether yours has one. Colorado's section 124 points parties to the judicial branch's Office of Dispute Resolution.

Who goes and what they can decide

Send someone who can say yes. Florida runs presuit mediation under the applicable civil procedure rules, and Rule 1.720 describes a representative with full authority to settle without further consultation. Set the limits in closed session with counsel first. Do not send the director who has been fighting with this owner for two years. Under section 720.311(2)(a), non-parties may not attend without everyone's consent, apart from counsel and the association's designated representative. Neighbors who back one side stay home. A quorum of the board at the session is not a board meeting for notice purposes. In Texas, section 209.0051(c) lets the board discuss threatened litigation and enforcement actions in executive session, with decisions summarized in general terms in the open meeting and the minutes. In Colorado, section 38-33.3-308(4)(b) covers consulting counsel about disputes in pending or imminent court proceedings. Keep what is said at the session out of the newsletter and the minutes. Fla. Stat. 44.405(1), Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code 154.073 and C.R.S. 13-22-307 all protect mediation communications.

Turn any deal into something you can enforce

Before anyone signs, make sure the agreement answers these questions: - Who does what, by what date, and how will the board confirm it? - What happens to any fines, fees or pending violation letters? - Who pays the mediator and each side's attorney? - Which claims are released, and for whom? - Does every owner on the deed sign? - Does the promise need an amendment or an owner vote? A settlement cannot let the board do what its declaration leaves to the members. Fla. Stat. 44.405(4)(a) removes confidentiality from a signed written agreement unless the parties agree otherwise, so decide what owners may see and write it in. Enforcement differs by state. In Florida, a suit to enforce a settlement skips another round of presuit mediation, and section 720.311(2)(c) lets the prevailing party seek its mediation costs and fees. Texas section 154.071 makes a signed settlement enforceable like any written contract. In Colorado, section 38-33.3-124(2) and section 13-22-308 let a signed agreement go to a court as a stipulation. At an impasse in Florida, either side may file in court, or all parties may agree to binding or nonbinding arbitration under section 720.311(2)(c). Tell the insurer the outcome either way.

When a Florida board sends the demand itself

When a Florida homeowners' association wants a court order on a covenant violation, it usually serves this demand first. Serving it tolls the statute of limitations under section 720.311(1). Use the form printed in the statute. State each dispute and the governing document section behind it, and list five certified mediators with contact details and hourly rates. Send it by certified mail, return receipt requested, with a first-class copy, to the owner's address as it last appears in the association's records. Then calendar day 20 and day 90. Two errors come up often. Boards send the form for unpaid dues, which the statute excludes. They also wait through an urgent safety problem, when section 720.311(2)(a) lets a party ask a court for a temporary injunction without mediating first.

Sources

These guides are general education for HOA boards and residents, not legal, tax, or financial advice. Rules vary by state and by your community's governing documents - check with a professional for your situation.

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