How does an HOA board file a small claims case for unpaid dues?

By OurHOA · General information · Revised November 4, 2026

How an HOA board files small claims for unpaid dues: the notices first, the Texas, Florida and Colorado limits, who appears, what to bring and a sample timeline.

Part of the HOA board handbook: treasurer and money.

Yes, the board can file it, and the work comes first

A self-managed board can usually file its own small claims case for unpaid dues. In Texas, Florida and Colorado a volunteer officer can appear for the association without a lawyer. For a balance of a few hundred to a few thousand dollars, it is often the cheapest way to a judgment. The case is won in the file built beforehand: a clean ledger, proof of every required notice, and a board decision authorizing the suit. Small claims produces a personal money judgment against the owner. It does not record or foreclose a lien. Florida section 720.3085(1)(c) lets an association sue for a money judgment on unpaid assessments without waiving its lien; ask your attorney how the two remedies fit under your declaration. Rules vary by state and by your governing documents, and this guide is education, not legal advice.

Check the dollar limit and decide if the case fits

Texas. Justice courts hear civil cases up to $20,000 under Government Code section 27.031. Rule 500.1(a) of the justice court rules counts attorney fees toward that limit but not statutory interest or court costs. Florida. The Small Claims Rules cover county court cases up to $8,000, not counting costs, interest and attorney fees (Rule 7.010(b)). Colorado. Small claims court hears cases up to $7,500 under C.R.S. 13-6-403, and subsection (1)(b)(I) names disputes over association assessments, fines and fees. Section 13-6-411 limits each plaintiff to two claims a month and 18 a year in one county's small claims court, so a board with five delinquent owners has to spread the filings out or use county court. Small claims fits best when the balance is under the limit, when the owner has sold and the lien no longer helps (our guide on collecting a balance a closing missed from a former owner covers that demand), or when the debt can't be foreclosed. Colorado section 38-33.3-209.5(8)(c) bars foreclosing a lien that secures only fines and the costs tied to them, so a Colorado fine balance is collected as a money claim or not at all.

Send the notices your state requires before filing

Boards lose more small claims cases on notice than on anything else. Texas. Section 209.0064 bars charging the owner for a collection agent's fees unless the association first sends a certified letter listing each delinquent amount and the total to bring the account current, describing payment plan options where the association must offer them, and giving at least 45 days to cure before further collection action. A lawsuit is further collection action, so send the letter and wait out the 45 days even with no agent involved. Associations with more than 14 lots must have payment plan guidelines under section 209.0062. A suit to collect regular or special assessments is exempt from the section 209.006 enforcement notice; a suit over fines or property damage is not. Florida. Section 720.3085(3)(d) bars requiring attorney fees on a past-due assessment until the association mails a notice of late assessment in the statutory form, first-class, and also to the parcel address if the owner gets mail elsewhere. The form gives the owner 30 days. A sworn affidavit of mailing from a board member, officer or agent creates a rebuttable presumption that it went out, so sign one the day it is mailed. Colorado. Section 38-33.3-209.5(1.7)(a) requires a first contact that the association logs, then a notice of delinquency by certified mail, return receipt requested, plus two more contacts by phone, text, email or regular mail. Under 209.5(5)(a)(V) the notice states the total due with an accounting, the payment plan option, who to ask for a ledger copy (due within seven business days of a request), and that failing to cure within 30 days may lead to a lawsuit. Section 38-33.3-316.3(2) requires the plan to allow equal installments over at least 18 months.

Take the vote and name who appears

Put the decision on a board agenda. In Texas, section 209.0051(c) lets the board discuss enforcement actions and pending or threatened litigation in executive session, but any decision made there must be summarized orally and placed in the minutes in general terms. Colorado section 38-33.3-209.5(1.7)(a)(II) allows a referral to a collection agency or attorney only on a majority recorded vote. That subsection speaks of referrals, not a case the board files itself. Take the recorded vote anyway, because the judge may ask who authorized the suit. The motion should name who appears. Texas Rule 500.3(b) lets an entity appear through a non-attorney employee, owner, officer or partner. Florida Rule 7.050(a)(2) allows a principal with authority to bind the entity, which includes an officer, or an employee a principal has authorized in writing. Colorado section 13-6-407 has a nonprofit corporation appear through a duly elected nonattorney officer or an employee. A motion to adapt: "I move that the association file a small claims case against the owner of account 214 for $2,340 in unpaid assessments, late charges and interest through March 31, that the treasurer file and appear for the association, and that the treasurer report the result at the next board meeting." Use the account number, not the owner's name, in open session.

Build the file the judge will read

Bring three copies of everything. - The assessment covenant from the recorded declaration, with its recording number, and the budget or resolution that set the current dues. - The account ledger from the first unpaid charge, with every charge, payment and credit and a running balance. - A one-page summary splitting the total into assessments, late charges, interest and anything else. - Every notice, with certified mail receipts, return cards, mailing affidavits and the contact log. - The minutes or motion authorizing the suit. Check the math against state law. Colorado caps interest on unpaid assessments, fines and fees at 8 percent a year and bars charging for a statement of what the owner owes (38-33.3-209.5(8)). Texas section 209.0063 applies payments to delinquent assessments first, and Colorado section 38-33.3-316.3(4) applies them to assessments before fines. Florida section 720.3085(3)(b) runs the other way: interest, then late fee, then collection costs and attorney fees, then the assessment. If the ledger applied payments in the wrong order, correct it and send the owner the new balance before filing. Florida Rule 7.050(a)(1) requires a copy of any written document the claim is based on to be attached, so attach the covenant and the ledger. In Texas, a default judgment without a hearing under Rule 503.1(a)(1) needs a written document the defendant signed. A recorded declaration usually isn't one, so plan to prove the amount at a hearing under Rule 503.1(a)(2).

Filing, service and the hearing

Texas. Rule 502.2 requires the petition to give the owner's name and address, the amount sought and the basis for the claim, with filing and service fees paid at filing. Under Rule 502.4 an owner is generally entitled to be sued in the county and precinct where they live or where the contract was to be performed, so ask the clerk which justice precinct covers the subdivision. The answer is due by the end of the 14th day after service (Rule 502.5(d)). Florida. The clerk sets a pretrial conference no more than 50 days after filing (Rule 7.090(b)), and both sides must appear. If the owner doesn't, the association is entitled to a default, and the judge takes evidence of the amount before entering judgment (Rule 7.170). Military service. Before any default judgment, federal law requires the plaintiff to file an affidavit stating whether the defendant is in military service, with supporting facts (50 U.S.C. 3931(b)(1)). If the owner is serving, the court must appoint an attorney for them first. Run the owner through the Defense Department's SCRA status website and print the result. At the hearing, walk the judge through the ledger and the notices in five minutes, and leave the owner's unrelated violations out of it.

A sample Texas timeline

Day 0: the account is 60 days past due after two reminders. The treasurer calls the owner and logs the call. Day 1: the certified section 209.0064 letter goes out with the payment plan option and 45 days to cure. Day 47: no payment and no plan request. The board votes in executive session to file and summarizes the decision in the minutes. Day 50: the treasurer runs the military status check and files the petition. Day 55 to 70: a constable, certified process server or the clerk by certified mail serves the citation. Rule 501.2 bars a party or anyone interested in the case from serving it, so no director hands it over. Day 75 to 110: hearing, or a default hearing if no answer came in. In Florida, the notice of late assessment replaces day 1 and the vote moves to about day 31. In Colorado, start with the logged contact and the notice of delinquency, and wait 30 days plus any time the owner spends on a plan. Gaps between statutory periods are practice, not law. Our guide on the HOA past-due dues timeline for boards shows where this case sits in the full collection sequence, and our guide on collecting a judgment the HOA won against an owner covers recording the judgment, homestead protection and bank accounts.

Mistakes that lose the case

Filing before the cure period ends. Count from the date your statute uses and add a few days of margin. Claiming fees too early. Florida attorney fees on a past-due assessment need the notice of late assessment first. In Texas, attorney fees count toward the $20,000 limit. A ledger nobody can explain. A double-posted late charge or a payment applied to fines first in Texas or Colorado will come out at the hearing. Fix it before filing. Turning down a fair offer at the courthouse. If the owner offers a written payment plan that matches the association's policy, take it and ask the court how to record the agreement. Forgetting new dues. The judgment covers what you claimed. Keep billing the account and track later charges separately.

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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