What can an HOA director do when the president or manager won't share the association's records?

By OurHOA · General information · Revised November 11, 2026

A director shut out of HOA bank statements, ledgers or files: the director inspection rules in TX, FL and CO, a written demand, a board motion and a records policy.

Part of the HOA board handbook: running the board.

The short answer

A director needs the association's records to do the job, and in most states the law backs that up. Texas gives directors their own inspection right. Florida and Colorado don't have a separate director section, but a director who owns a lot keeps every right an owner has, and those rights are strong. The fix is usually not a lawsuit. It is a written request, a vote of the board, and a written policy that says every director can see every record the association holds, with a few limits on what they do with it. The typical case looks like this. The president keeps the bank login. Or the management company sends reports only to the president. Or a new treasurer asks for last year's ledger and gets told to go through the president. None of that is how a board is supposed to work. The board as a whole runs the association, and a director who signs off on a budget or an audit without seeing the numbers is the one exposed if those numbers are wrong. Rules vary by state and by your bylaws, and this guide is general education, not legal advice. If the refusal is hiding missing money, call the association's attorney early.

What the law says in Texas, Florida and Colorado

Texas. Section 3.152 of the Business Organizations Code gives a governing person, which includes a director, the right to examine the entity's books and records for a purpose reasonably related to service as a governing person. If the association refuses a good faith demand, a court can order the books opened under 3.152(b) and award the director attorney's fees and other relief under 3.152(c). The section covers filing entities, so it applies to an HOA that is incorporated. Separately, Property Code section 209.005(c) opens the books to any owner, with a certified mail request under 209.005(e) and a 10 business day deadline to produce or give a later date under 209.005(f). Florida. Section 720.303(1) says the officers and directors have a fiduciary relationship to the members and are subject to section 617.0830, which requires them to act in good faith and with the care an ordinarily prudent person would use. A director can't meet that standard blind. As an owner, the director can also make a written request under 720.303(5)(a), and the association must make the official records available within 10 business days. Under (5)(c), willful refusal costs the association at least $50 a day for up to 10 days, starting on the 11th business day, and (5)(g) bars the association from asking why the owner wants the records. Colorado. The records article of the nonprofit act, which starts at section 7-136-101, speaks to members, not directors. Section 38-33.3-317(2)(a) opens all association records to owners on a written request at least 10 days ahead, and bars the association from demanding a proper purpose. Some records an owner can be refused, such as executive session records under 317(3)(e), are records a director was entitled to be part of in the first place.

Find out who is blocking and why

Before writing anything, figure out which of these you are dealing with, because the fix differs. - A login nobody shared. The bank, the payment portal or the email account is in one person's name. That is usually habit, not malice. Our guide on HOA board email and shared accounts covers moving these into association-owned accounts. - A manager taking orders from one director. Management contracts often name a single contact. The contract is with the association, and the board can change the contact by vote. - A president who thinks the treasurer reports to them. Most bylaws make officers answer to the board, not to each other. - Someone hiding a problem. Unpaid bills, a missed tax filing, money moved to a personal account. If the refusal gets sharper the more specific your request, treat this as the likely answer and bring in the attorney and the agent who wrote the crime or fidelity policy. Ask once, in person or by phone, and write down the answer and the date.

The steps, in order

1. Make a written request. Email is enough between directors. In Texas, if you also want to preserve the owner route, send a separate owner request by certified mail as 209.005(e) requires. Name the records, the months and the format you want. 2. Give a short deadline. Five business days is fair for records that already sit in a portal or folder. 3. Put it on the next board agenda. If the officer still refuses, ask the secretary to add an item, or use the bylaws' process for directors to call a special meeting. The board, not one officer, decides who has access. 4. Adopt a director access policy by motion. Use the wording below. 5. Act on the policy the same day. Add every director as a viewer on the bank accounts, give the manager written notice of the board's decision, and move shared files into a folder the association owns. 6. If the board refuses, or the officer ignores the vote, write to the association's attorney. In Texas, a director who made a good faith demand and was refused has the 3.152(b) court route. Elsewhere, the owner records statute is the fallback, and in Florida the statutory damages start running on their own. Keep every request and reply in one folder. If this ends in a recall or a lawsuit, that folder is your evidence.

Wording the board can copy

Request from a director: 'As a director, I need the following association records to carry out my duties: bank statements for all accounts from January through October, the general ledger for the same months, the current vendor contracts and the most recent insurance declarations. Please send electronic copies or a viewer login by [date]. If there is a reason any of these can't be shared, tell me which ones and why, and I will put the question on the next board agenda.' Motion: 'Moved that every director shall have access, at any reasonable time and at no cost, to all books and records of the association, including bank and payment accounts in view-only form, management company reports and correspondence, and executive session minutes; that the president and the management company provide that access within five business days; and that directors hold owner account, personnel and attorney-client information in confidence.' Note to the manager: 'At its meeting on [date], the board voted that all directors receive the reports and records listed in the attached motion. Please add [names] to all report distributions and provide view-only access to the operating and reserve accounts by [date].'

A sample timeline

- Day 0: The treasurer asks the president for the bank login and is told no. - Day 1: Written request by email to the president and the manager, copying the other directors, with a five business day deadline. - Day 8: No reply. The treasurer asks the secretary to put director access on the agenda and sends the draft motion to all directors. - Day 14: Board meeting. The motion passes 4 to 1. The secretary sends the note to the manager that night. - Day 21: The bank adds view-only access for all directors. The treasurer reconciles the last three months. - Day 30: If access still hasn't been given, the board authorizes the attorney to send a demand to the officer or manager. If a former management company is holding the records in Colorado, section 38-33.3-317(9) requires it to turn over all association records, account information and passwords within 45 days after the contract ends, at no charge, and makes it pay $250 for each business day it misses that deadline. That subsection does not apply to a self-managed association that never hired a management company.

What a director does with what they see

Access comes with duties. Owner account balances, violation histories and personnel files are records the association can keep from other owners. Texas 209.005(k) lets the association withhold an owner's payment history, contact information and employee files from an owner request, and Florida 720.303(5)(g) lists records owners can't see, including personnel records and most personal identifying information. A director who reads those records for board work can't share them with neighbors or post them online. Say that in the policy, and say it in the meeting, so the director who asked for access isn't later accused of misusing it. Do the work quietly. Reconcile the accounts, compare the ledger to the bank, and bring questions to the board in executive session if they involve a specific owner or employee.

Mistakes that make it worse

- Arguing by email with the whole community copied. Keep it among directors until the board has voted. - Going around the officer to the bank without a board resolution. Banks follow the signer list and the board's authorization, so get the vote first. - Taking the refusal personally. Most of these end once the board writes down a rule that was never written before. - Skipping the request and filing suit. In Texas, 3.152(b) requires a demand made in good faith and refused, so a director who sues first may lose on that ground alone. - Letting it slide until the audit. A director who approves financial statements they never saw can't later say they didn't know. For how the board answers requests from owners rather than its own directors, see our guide on how an HOA board should respond to a records request.

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.

More on board & governance

Or browse all hoa boards & governance guides.