Liens & ForeclosureCO
Can a Colorado HOA Foreclose Over Dues?
By The HOARebel Team · June 2, 2026 · 2 min read · Updated June 7, 2026
Unpaid assessments in Colorado create a lien with real teeth — including a slice that can jump ahead of a first mortgage. But the 2022 reform law sharply narrowed when an association can actually foreclose. For your specific situation, a licensed Colorado attorney is the right resource. This is general information, not legal advice.
The lien and its six-month super-priority: C.R.S. § 38-33.3-316
Under § 38-33.3-316, the association has a lien on a unit for unpaid assessments. Colorado, like other states that adopted the Uniform Common Interest Ownership Act, gives part of that lien a six-month super-priority ahead of a first mortgage — an amount equal to the common-expense assessments that would have come due during the six months before a foreclosure action begins. That priority slice is why unpaid Colorado dues get a lender's attention.
HB 22-1137 narrowed foreclosure
The 2022 reform changed the calculus. An association now "may not foreclose" its lien if the debt securing it consists of one or both of: fines, or collection costs and attorney fees that are associated only with fines. In other words, fines alone — and the costs of chasing them — can no longer drive a Colorado home into foreclosure. Foreclosure is reserved for genuine assessment delinquencies that meet the statutory threshold.
Payment plans come first
Before initiating foreclosure, the association must offer the owner a repayment plan that allows repayment over 18 months, in monthly installments the owner chooses (each at least $25), and it "shall not foreclose" while the owner is complying with that plan. The law also requires the association to make real contact about the delinquency. A 2024 update (HB 24-1233, effective Aug. 7, 2024) revised the required notice methods — dropping physical posting and instead requiring certified mail plus at least two of: telephone, text message, or email — and added further pre-foreclosure notice and mediation-information steps.
Interest and payment application
Two related limits matter to the balance: interest on unpaid assessments, fees, or fines is capped at 8% per year, and the association must apply payments to assessments first, then to fines and fees — which helps keep a fine dispute from snowballing into assessment delinquency.
What people generally do
In a Colorado assessment-debt situation, a few points commonly matter:
- The association's records and a payoff figure show how much of the balance is assessments versus fines.
- Disputed fines and undisputed assessments are treated separately, since fines alone cannot support foreclosure.
- The statutory repayment plan runs over 18 months, with the owner choosing each monthly payment (at least $25).
- Interest stays within 8%, and payments are applied to assessments first.
- A licensed Colorado attorney, or the HOA Information and Resource Center, are the resources while options remain open.