TALLAHASSEE, Fla. \u2013 A new proposal filed in the Florida Legislature could give homeowners the unprecedented power to dismantle their homeowners association \u2014 a move supporters say would restore long-lost freedoms, and opponents warn could destabilize neighborhoods and property values.<\/p>\n
House Bill 657, filed last week, would establish the \u201cHomeowners\u2019 Association Dissolution and Accountability Act.\u201d If passed, it would create a legal roadmap for residents to completely shut down their HOA.<\/p>\n
State Rep. Ron Porras, who is sponsoring the bill, said his goal is to shift power back to homeowners.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think it\u2019s time we have the conversation if homeowner associations are really needed,\u201d Porras said. \u201cIn my opinion, they act more as a failed experiment. They\u2019re a quasi-elected pseudo-government that have more power and are entitled to more rights than I think most cities and counties do.\u201d<\/p>\n
How the Proposed Process Would Work<\/p>\n
Under HB 657, the dissolution process would begin when 20% of homeowners sign a petition. That would trigger a mandatory vote. To abolish the HOA, two-thirds of all voting members must approve.<\/p>\n
Once the petition threshold is met:<\/p>\n
The HOA board would have 60 days to hold a meeting on dissolving the association.<\/p>\n
Two-thirds of homeowners must vote in favor for the dissolution to pass.<\/p>\n
If the vote fails, residents must wait 18 months before trying again.<\/p>\n
Porras argues that the measure would increase transparency and restore rights to homeowners who, he says, often struggle to obtain required association documents.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s a lack of transparency across the board,\u201d he said. \u201cMany times homeowners either don\u2019t get the documents they\u2019re entitled to or the association makes it harder for people to do their job.\u201d<\/p>\n
Real Estate Leaders Warn of Consequences<\/p>\n
But critics in the real-estate industry say the proposal could undermine the very structures that help keep neighborhoods orderly and property values high.<\/p>\n
Howard Flaschen, a broker with Roundtable Realty, said allowing just 20% of residents to force a vote is too low.<\/p>\n
\u201cTwenty percent of a neighborhood that\u2019s upset being able to overwhelm the entire HOA and get rid of it seems awfully low to me,\u201d Flaschen said. He noted that HOAs often maintain shared amenities \u2014 such as pools, tennis courts and landscaped entryways \u2014 that benefit entire communities.<\/p>\n
\u201cHOAs do serve a great purpose in the world of real estate,\u201d he said. \u201cYou can often recognize the differences between communities that have HOAs and those that do not. It really boils down to a community effort to keep property values stable.\u201d<\/p>\n
Porras\u2019 latest proposal also introduces several rules pointed at community associations (COAs), including the following:<\/p>\n
Getting rid of presuit mediation requirements for COAs<\/p>\n
Creating a new Community Association Court Program in circuit courts to better handle disputes<\/p>\n
Requiring new COAs (those created on or after July 1, 2026) to include the following statement in their governing documents:<\/p>\n
\u201cThis association and the association\u2019s governing documents are governed by the Florida Condominium Act, as amended from time to time.\u201d<\/p>\n
Requiring other COAs (those created before July 1, 2026) to hold a meeting on whether to include that statement in their own governing documents<\/p>\n
What if it gets approved?<\/p>\n
If the termination plan does get passed, the HOA board would then be required to carry out the following:<\/p>\n
Employ professionals to liquidate or conclude the board\u2019s affairs<\/p>\n
Conduct the affairs of the association as necessary for the liquidation or termination<\/p>\n
Carry out contracts and collect, pay, and settle debts and claims for and against the HOA<\/p>\n
Defend suits brought against the association<\/p>\n
Sue in the name of the association for all sums due or owed to the HOA or to recover any HOA property<\/p>\n
Perform any act necessary to maintain, repair or demolish unsafe or uninhabitable improvements or other HOA property in compliance with applicable codes<\/p>\n
Sell at public or private sale or exchange, convey, or otherwise dispose of assets of the HOA for an amount deemed to be in the best interests of the HOA, and execute bills of sale and deeds of conveyance in the name of the HOA<\/p>\n
Collect and receive rents, profits, accounts receivable, income, maintenance fees, special assessments, or insurance proceeds for the association<\/p>\n
Contract and do anything in the name of the HOA which is proper or convenient to terminate the affairs of the HOA<\/p>\n
Afterward, any remaining association assets must be distributed equally among members or as provided in the termination plan.<\/p>\n
In addition, HB 657 aims to punish officers or directors who use HOA funds to campaign for or against termination plans, fail to hold a meeting after receiving a petition, or hide financial records relevant to termination plans.<\/p>\n
Anyone found violating those rules could be fined up to $5,000 per violation and be removed from office.<\/p>\n
What\u2019s next for HB 657?<\/p>\n
Now that the bill has been filed, it will need to pass through at least one other committee before the full House will vote on it.<\/p>\n
However, no information has been given at this time about which committees the bill may be referred to. Furthermore, there is no companion bill in the Senate as of Dec. 9.<\/p>\n
But if the bill manages to clear both houses during next year\u2019s Legislative session and garner Gov. DeSantis\u2019 signature, it is slated to take effect on July 1, 2026.<\/p>\n
Copyright 2025 by WJXT News4JAX – All rights reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"TALLAHASSEE, Fla. \u2013 A new proposal filed in the Florida Legislature could give homeowners the unprecedented power to…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":80548,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[28,100,2161,1644,123,99,232,234,233],"class_list":{"0":"post-80547","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-tallahassee","8":"tag-florida","9":"tag-florida-legislature","10":"tag-government","11":"tag-housing","12":"tag-miami","13":"tag-politics","14":"tag-tallahassee","15":"tag-tallahassee-headlines","16":"tag-tallahassee-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/80547","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=80547"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/80547\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/80548"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=80547"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=80547"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=80547"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}